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Saugatuck council hears deer-management options including culling, hunting and fertility control
Summary
The council received an advisory report from the Wildlife Management Committee outlining options to address growing urban-deer issues — including culling, archery and firearm hunting, fertility control, lifting ordinances restricting bow use on private property, infrared drone herd counts and a community survey — and emphasized the committee is advisory only.
Councilmember Dean reported the findings of the Wildlife Management Committee at the Saugatuck City Council's Dec. 9 meeting, saying the committee observed local deer exhibiting little fear of people and discussed a range of measures to reduce human–deer conflicts.
The committee, which is advisory and does not set policy, heard observations from a Department of Natural Resources wildlife specialist who described abnormal behavior in local deer compared with deer in the nearby Allegan State Game Area. Dean said proposed responses ranged from fertility-control programs to hunting-based options and targeted culling.
Committee members discussed specific tactics: enabling archery hunting on private properties (subject to regulation), considering firearm or archery culling in selected areas, and potentially lifting local ordinances that prohibit bow-and-arrow use on private property to allow regulated archery as a tool. The committee also recommended public-education efforts discouraging residents from feeding deer, which members said contributes to congregation and habituation.
Operational and data-collection ideas under consideration include using drones equipped with infrared sensors to perform herd counts and mapping, and distributing a community survey to collect resident experiences and preferences. Dean said future herd surveys could evaluate the effectiveness of any measures adopted.
No formal policy change was proposed at the council meeting; the report was informational. Public comment on deer management was noted: Dan Fox of Holland Street offered suggestions to the council during the public-comment period.
The council did not take formal action on the committee's recommendations at this meeting. Councilmembers emphasized the committee’s advisory role and signaled that any move to change ordinances or authorize hunting or culling would require further review and formal council consideration.
