Deer: scourge of Irish forestry

11 Oct 2003: These animals are making it almost impossible to establish broadleaves or diverse conifers in many areas. Deer cause damage in two ways: firstly by stripping the bark from trees, and secondly by browsing on younger trees.

Damage is most obvious in plantations in March and April. All forest areas can carry a certain amount of deer, but when there are too many in an area, intolerable amounts of damage will be experienced.

Many different control methods, such as culling, fencing and repellents, have been investigated to date. All off these approaches have varying results, dependant on plantation size, species planted and populations present in the area.

However, it would seem that a combination of control methods is necessary to effectively control numbers in any one area.

The IFA Farm Forestry Study Tour visited British Columbia last year, where deer are also a major problem.

Over there, foresters have learnt to live with them; some were opting for reusable wire tree guards, while others swore by a repellent derived from pigs blood.

Although the repellent seemed to be working well in Canada, research would be necessary to see how it would perform under Irish conditions.

The Forest Service may sometimes include deer fencing as a prerequisite to afforesation grant aid.

However, they have only allocated €3.80 per metre for fencing in their afforestation grant costings, while standard deer fencing costs between €7 per metre and €7.60 per metre. Currently, the cost of the balance must be borne by the applicant.

This is an issue that should be addressed by the forest service, in light of the current review of grant aid levels under the CAP Mid-Term review.

Generally, the open season for deer hunting starts in September for males and November for females, and ends in January for females and February for males - although this can vary for different species in different counties.

Females must be targeted if numbers are to be reduced. You must have a licence, issued by the National Parks and Wildlife Service, to hunt deer, and there are restrictions on the calibre of gun you can use.

The National Parks and Wildlife Service can also issue a licence under Section 42 of the Wildlife Act that permits you to shoot deer out of season when they are causing damage to your crop.

The National Parks and Wildlife Service have informed the IFA that although they are responsible for the welfare of the animals, they are not responsible for their control.

The IFA have held field days on deer in the past and have also organised meetings of all the relevant bodies involved to try and find a solution to this problem. Currently, we have no national deer management policy, and it would seem that once deer are on your land they are your responsibility. Effective deer management requires the co-operation of all landowners in an area, as the animals don't recognise boundaries.

The IFA have set up a number of local deer management committees in areas that are experiencing particular problems. However, it is a national issue for which the Government should take responsibility.