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Board approves annual deer hunt at Wesselman Woods to protect forest understory
Summary
The Evansville City Board of Parks Commissioners voted unanimously to permit the Wesselman Woods annual deer reduction hunt, continuing a long-standing program the park says is needed to preserve tree regeneration and forest health.
The Evansville City Board of Parks Commissioners voted Wednesday to approve the annual deer reduction hunt at Wesselman Woods, continuing a program the park says is essential to protecting the site’s forest regeneration.
The vote came after a presentation from Derek Walsh, director of natural resources and research at Wesselman Woods, who said the hunt is a conservation measure rather than a sport activity. "This is not sport hunting, but rather this is for the conservation of the forest," Walsh told the board. He said Wesselman Woods is an ecologically unique urban old-growth forest and that deer browsing has severely limited young tree growth.
Walsh outlined how the program operates and how hunters are selected. He said the woods have long-run approval from the Department of Natural Resources to be…
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