City looks into bowhunting to reduce local deer population

The Fairfield City Council is considering implementing urban bowhunting within Fairfield city limits to combat deer overpopulation in town.

Councilmember Connie Boyer said the city is prepared to take action if citizens support it.

?There has been some interest from citizens wanting to bowhunt,? said Boyer. ?We will call a community meeting in the next month to see if they want to move forward with it.?

The council heard from concerned citizens on July 25, who believed deer numbers had spiked, causing safety concerns for motorists and property damage to flower beds and landscaping.

The first step the city would take would be to hire the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to conduct an aerial deer count this winter by helicopter, Boyer said. If deemed necessary, the council would then consider an ordinance.

?There are a couple of options,? said Boyer. ?You can work with DNR to create a deer management program or you can do it on your own.?

Boyer said the city would most likely create its own ordinance, but will wait to hear feedback first.

Across the state, the DNR has helped 18 communities create controlled hunts to help curb overpopulation. Cedar Rapids has held a deer hunt for seven years now, and in that time the fire department has reported a 57 percent decrease in deer killed by vehicles inside city limits.

Jefferson County Park opened its doors for bowhunting in 2007 due to crowded deer in the 200-acre area. This year?s hunt begins Oct. 1 and will continue through Jan. 20.

Park ranger Shawn Morrissey joined DNR wildlife depredation biologist Greg Harris to count deer while on a helicopter ride over the park in January 2007. They spotted 185 deer within a two-square mile area, more than triple the amount the DNR deems healthy for that amount of space.

The park paid roughly $400 for the aerial count, which Morrissey said went mostly to covering the flight. Harris contracts a helicopter from Marion, and said it costs roughly $350 per hour. He said for a Fairfield count, ?a good portion of the flight would be travel time.?

The DNR chooses winter months to conduct aerial counts, ?because the deer stand out against white snow and are easy to count,? said Morrissey.

He has been happy with the results of the hunt, with 40 does killed in the first season, and 20 in the second.

?It helps us as far as reducing our number, and helps guy who wants to get a deer,? said Morrissey. ?All around it?s a good thing if done right.?

The park only allows bows for hunting, not guns, and Morrissey said there?s a difference.

?It?s a pretty safe way to hunt compared to shotguns and rifles,? he said. ?You can hunt discretely without bullets flying everywhere.?

Harris agreed, saying the only injury he?d heard of in his years overseeing park and city hunts was when a bowhunter fell out of his own tree stand.

Harris said cities construct their own rules depending on how comfortable they are with the practice. Some cities require property to be a minimum of one acre in order to allow hunting. In less strict communities, Harris said, ?Guys have been bow hunting and the landowner comes out and gives them a cup of coffee,? he said.

Morrissey learned to shoot a bow as an adolescent and continues to enjoy the activity. He said the sport has become increasingly popular in the last 10-20 years, making it more difficult to find private land to hunt on.

?With bowhunting it?s mostly sitting outside since there are very few opportunities,? he said. ?With most guys, if they get one dear all season, they?re tickled to death.?

However, he admitted ?there are always people who don?t do things right.?

Last year in Bettendorf, citizens revolted after two bowhunters dragged their game across residential lawns leaving a trail of blood in the snow and animal parts in a river. But Morrissey has not confronted such problems in Fairfield. And Jefferson County Park does not allow those with fish and game violations to hunt.

Morrissey said he spends the off-season practicing archery and regards the practice as a hobby.

?The bowhunters I know put a lot of effort into it throughout the year,? he said.

For Morrissey bow hunting is about the time outdoors, pursuing the animal, and getting ?meat for the table.? He enjoys venison and appreciates that it is lean, nutritious meat.

?I?m fond enough of it that I can?t understand why there?s a deer problem,? said Morrissey.