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Grand Island CAB asks town to invite DEC biologist to workshop on rising deer concerns
Summary
The Grand Island Conservation Advisory Board voted Oct. 23 to recommend the town board invite a DEC big-game biologist to a workshop to explain deer-management options and implications for the island.
The Grand Island Conservation Advisory Board voted Oct. 23 to advise the town board to invite New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) big-game biologist Ryan Rockefeller to a town board workshop to present options for controlling a rising white-tailed deer population.
Board members described multiple indicators of an increasing deer presence, including more frequent deer-vehicle collisions reported in regional call-for-service records and observed deer near town roads and neighborhoods. They noted that regional wildlife-management boundaries and state law (Environmental Conservation Law) restrict hunting in some adjacent jurisdictions, increasing the likelihood of deer spillover into Grand Island.
Members reviewed the DEC's deer-management framework as summarized in the DEC's 2021'2030 plan and discussed management tools used elsewhere: regulated hunting on private land, DEC-issued deer-damage or baiting permits used in coordination with local enforcement, and fertility-control options. The board emphasized that harvest strategies that focus only on antlered bucks do less to reduce population growth than antlerless-focused permits and that many implementation details depend on private-landowner participation and DEC permitting.
The board adopted a motion advising the town board to invite Ryan Rockefeller (DEC wildlife biologist) to a workshop and requested that CAB members and the liaison be included in that meeting. The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote; the transcript records two recorded "Aye" responses and one recorded opposing "Nay." Board members asked that, if the town proceeds, DEC outline options, expected costs, likely effectiveness, and timing relative to hunting seasons.
Next steps: CAB will ask the town board to contact DEC to schedule a workshop; CAB requested that liaison follow up and that CAB members be invited to the session so they can offer local context and help identify private-land stakeholders for any pilot measures.
