Gunnison Basin Mule Deer Feeding Program
This winter has brought cold weather and deep snow to much of our Mule Deer country. Some of the states are refusing to feed the deer for good reason, and, I might add, taking flack for it from the likes of the Mule Deer Foundation. I could go into a list of reasons why Mule Deer shouldn’t be fed, but instead, I will talk about the feeding program in Colorado.
There are supposedly 21,000 mule deer in the Gunnison Basin. Of those, about 7,000 are being fed. So far, 11% of the ones being fed have reportedly died. More on the way. I don’t yet know mortality rates for the ones that aren’t being fed. The local economy depends heavily on hunting, so between local businesses and the Mule Deer Foundation, the governor has been pressured into allocating $1.7m (without counting donations and volunteerism) for feeding mule deer. How many deer will they save? We’ll see. It is at times like this when special hunts should be considered.
This much is certain: Colorado’s deer herd has been a long time making a come-back, and is still not fully recovered. It would be a shame to save wintering deer and then have them eaten by predators before they could be hunted. Even if some of the deer can be saved from exposure, many of them will be eaten by predators. The older/mature bucks will be hit the hardest. If $1.7m were invested in predator eradication – particularly if it went to hunter/trapper bounties, it would be far more effective in preserving a local economy and a deer herd.
