The Medical Lake Citizens Deer Advisory Committee recently conducted another deer count within city limits where they found 27 deer: two bucks, 10 doe and four yearlings — deer that are between 1-2 years old.
This is up from last year’s number where Candace Bennett, Washington State Fish and Wildlife conflict specialist counted only 17 deer — 10 doe and seven yearlings — in the city.
“This year’s count went well,” Bennett said. “I’m still waiting to hear from Eastern State Hospital and learn what they counted.”
The committee had its first count in December where it found 87 deer within city limits. Just as they did for the December census, groups focused counting primarily in residential areas where many deer-related problems occur. Bennett said one group counted 16 deer in Coney Island Park, on Lake Street.
“Something we also noticed this time is there were a lot of deer on the edges of the city limits,” Bennett said.
The committee will conduct another deer count in August where they determine the ratio of bucks to doe.
In addition to the deer count, the committee continued their focus on education and public outreach. Bennett and committee chair Russ Brown went to each of the schools and gave presentations about deer biology and safety to students.
“We spoke to about 1,000 students,” Bennett said. “They asked a lot of good questions and were really engaging.”
The committee worked with the city to mail brochures explaining the ordinance that prohibits residents from intentionally feeding wild animals. Brown will also speak with the city’s code enforcement officer to find out if he has met with any residents regarding deer complaints. Bennett said it will take several months to determine the effect the ordinance will have on the city’s deer population.
“We’ll have a better idea when we do later counts, especially if the fawn population drops,” Bennett said.
Bennett said residents can count on deer coming to the city and eating the grass and other plants during the summer. Under the ordinance, residents will not be in violation if deer eat vegetation that is natural to the land on their property.
Bennett said winter will be a good indicator of the current deer population.
“If we have a heavy winter, you’ll still see deer, though there will not be as much stuff on the ground for them to eat,” Bennett said.
Bennett said the committee will meet in June to discuss opening a bank account to fund future educational programs.
“After that we’ll ramp down for the summer and reconvene in the fall,” Bennett said.
Al Stover can be reached at al@cheneyfreepress.com.
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