CWD as well. Deer population collapse is real, because they have no real predators anymore. The sick bred and survive and you end up with crazy disease susceptible animals.
You’re friend is absolutely correct. Proper conservation requires death.
Yep. From my understanding the native population of America basically reshaped all the forest in America to make the deer population go brrrr. Since we don’t really hunt deer to the extent of the natives anymore, deer populations basically have stripped the forest of all shrubbery, low lying plants, and young native tree saplings.
It’s more because white colonizers killed all the wolves, so deer don’t have as many natural predators anymore.
Wolves were not native to all of north America at the time when settler colonialists came to America. Nor were they ever in the amount of numbers that could control the deer population by themselves. Deer were a staple protein of native American societies and were utilized as free grazing stock animals by the tribal people in the anterior of America.
It’s pretty typical though that you would have heard someone “blame it on the indians” instead of the white settlers…
The native Americans developed the forest of America over thousands of years, and the overpopulation did not become a problem until the colonizers killed the actual predators who were namaging the deer population… The native Americans.
The overpopulation got worse when white settlers expanded westward and killed off wolf populations as wolves were the only predators left to help moderate some of the overpopulation. However the real damage had already been done generations before when disease cut through the native American populations.
The problem is that wolves weren’t really native to all the places deer overpopulated in America. The over population of deer wasn’t a natural development, but a purposely implemented design by native populations of America that took place over thousands of years.
Humans hunting deer is really the only solution because humans reshaped the forest ecology to overproduce deer in the first place. A lot of people like to think that prior to European colonization, America had a pristine and untouched forest. In reality native Americans spent thousands of years reshaping the forest to basically become deer factories.
Which mainly prey upon small mammals like raccoons, possums, and rabbits. They also were never a large enough population to control deer populations even if that was all they were to hunt.
The northeast had timber wolves.
Again… Eastern wolves were rarely seen south of the Great lakes, and there’s evidence that there were less than 70k prior to Europeans coming to the Americas.
On the other hand pre colonial white tail deer populations are estimated to be a little over 30 million.
It wasn’t at all. Now there are states and counties in some states with deer populations showing like 1 in 4 or even 50%+ of the entire population having CWD. I know the northern states, those populations are in real bad shape now.
You can send the neck lymph nodes and brain stem in for testing by your state wildlife agency. Wait for results.
Honestly there are a lot of hunters, not all, that just don’t give a shit. No documented cases of CWD crossing into humans yet. I don’t take the chance.
CWD as well. Deer population collapse is real, because they have no real predators anymore. The sick bred and survive and you end up with crazy disease susceptible animals.
You’re friend is absolutely correct. Proper conservation requires death.
Yep. From my understanding the native population of America basically reshaped all the forest in America to make the deer population go brrrr. Since we don’t really hunt deer to the extent of the natives anymore, deer populations basically have stripped the forest of all shrubbery, low lying plants, and young native tree saplings.
It’s more because white colonizers killed all the wolves, so deer don’t have as many natural predators anymore.
It’s pretty typical though that you would have heard someone “blame it on the indians” instead of the white settlers…
Wolves were not native to all of north America at the time when settler colonialists came to America. Nor were they ever in the amount of numbers that could control the deer population by themselves. Deer were a staple protein of native American societies and were utilized as free grazing stock animals by the tribal people in the anterior of America.
The native Americans developed the forest of America over thousands of years, and the overpopulation did not become a problem until the colonizers killed the actual predators who were namaging the deer population… The native Americans.
The overpopulation got worse when white settlers expanded westward and killed off wolf populations as wolves were the only predators left to help moderate some of the overpopulation. However the real damage had already been done generations before when disease cut through the native American populations.
Just reintroduce wolves.
The problem is that wolves weren’t really native to all the places deer overpopulated in America. The over population of deer wasn’t a natural development, but a purposely implemented design by native populations of America that took place over thousands of years.
Humans hunting deer is really the only solution because humans reshaped the forest ecology to overproduce deer in the first place. A lot of people like to think that prior to European colonization, America had a pristine and untouched forest. In reality native Americans spent thousands of years reshaping the forest to basically become deer factories.
We had red wolves throughout the south. The northeast had timber wolves. Not to mention puma. Deer had predators everywhere they exist.
Which mainly prey upon small mammals like raccoons, possums, and rabbits. They also were never a large enough population to control deer populations even if that was all they were to hunt.
Again… Eastern wolves were rarely seen south of the Great lakes, and there’s evidence that there were less than 70k prior to Europeans coming to the Americas.
On the other hand pre colonial white tail deer populations are estimated to be a little over 30 million.
TIL, thank you. Then controlled/regulated hunting it is!
The problem is, there are fewer and fewer hunters every year. It’s a problem that’s just continually getting worse.
I’ve seen entire herds with those weird tumors. I think I heard it’s some type of prion disease…
Those are cutaneous fibromas or papilomas. Like big warts. Viral in nature.
CWD has no external symptoms beyond the listless “zombie” stage. It just turns the brain into swiss cheese.
I see, so I was thinking of two different diseases.
How do people who eat venison avoid prions?
You gamble… I stopped hunting and eating deer because of it. It’s not worth the risk to me.
That’s crazy. I grew up eating venison all the time. Maybe it wasn’t as widespread back then. Now I’m happily vegetarian.
It wasn’t at all. Now there are states and counties in some states with deer populations showing like 1 in 4 or even 50%+ of the entire population having CWD. I know the northern states, those populations are in real bad shape now.
Damn, that’s crazy. You’d have better odds playing russian roulette.
You can send the neck lymph nodes and brain stem in for testing by your state wildlife agency. Wait for results.
Honestly there are a lot of hunters, not all, that just don’t give a shit. No documented cases of CWD crossing into humans yet. I don’t take the chance.
That’s some scary stuff. Most hunters are probably the type to say science is just a liberal conspiracy, so it doesn’t surprise me.
No prions for me, thanks.
https://www.unmc.edu/healthsecurity/transmission/2024/04/24/chronic-wasting-disease-feared-in-deaths-of-2-hunters-who-ate-deer-meat/
I think it has, or they think it has.