Community Based Deer Management Manual for Municipalities (pdf, 320kb)

White-tailed deer have reached problematic numbers in many suburban communities in New Jersey. Increased deer-vehicle collisions, damage to agricultural crops, ornamental plantings and gardens, and destruction of the natural forest ecosystem are some of the problems associated with over abundant deer populations.

Historically, deer populations have been managed through recreational hunting. However, New Jersey communities continue to trend towards denser developments with smaller property lots. The lawns and gardens of these communities, along with small open spaces provide sufficient habitat for deer populations to flourish while making them inaccessible to traditional deer management practices.

Facing this obstacle, NJDEP Fish & Wildlife has taken steps to manage deer populations by lengthening hunting seasons, increasing bag limits, increasing the number of hunting permits issued, and offering incentives for hunters to harvest more antlerless deer. However, it is increasingly difficult to control deer populations in some suburban settings through hunting due to safety zone requirements, municipal firearm and archery discharge ordinances, and larger private properties not allowing access to deer hunters.

NJDEP Fish & Wildlife, with the approval of the NJ Fish & Game Council, has permitted alternative methods of controlling deer populations under the Community-Based Deer Management Permit (CBDMP) program where traditional hunting alone is not sufficient. The program was created in 1995 to allow alternative methods of deer population control. CBDMP applications are reviewed by NJDEP Fish & Wildlife biologists and presented to the NJ Fish & Game Council for approval based upon satisfied regulations and statutes, demonstrated need, and the potential for the program to be successful in reducing deer issues.

Alternative control methods include techniques other than traditional hunting employed to control a deer population. The most viable employed methods include volunteer hunting, contracting with a professional agent, or capture and euthanasia. Experimental research including fertility control are also being considered. The CBDMP program allows municipal and county governments, airports, and County Boards of Agriculture to apply for a permit. A township resolution endorsing the CBDMP application must also be submitted. Individual property owners may not apply for a CBDMP, though interested property owners are encouraged to consider the Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) which was established to help individual properties.

Some hunters may view the CBDMP program as taking hunting opportunities away from the public. However, since the inception of the CBDMP program, many townships have opted to utilize sportsmen during the traditional deer hunting seasons or during special hunts to reduce their deer populations.

All costs of the alternative methods of deer control are borne by the applicant. In many cases, utilizing sportsmen during the existing deer-hunting season is the most appropriate, and certainly the most cost-effective management tool. But when the land is too developed to allow for a traditional hunting program, an application for a permit to use alternative methods may be submitted.

The applicant first designates a Special Deer Management Area where control is necessary. This Area may include an entire Township or a portion thereof. An applicant for a CBDMP then must demonstrate that an overabundant deer population has caused significant damage (ecosystem, crops, ornamental shrubs, etc.), caused a significant number of vehicle collisions, or is a significant hazard to airplanes on runways within the Special Deer Management Area. The applicant must explain if traditional hunting is being utilized to control deer or why it is not a viable option.

NJDEP Fish & Wildlife conducts a complete and thorough review of each application. If any insufficiencies are found or if there is a low chance of success, the application is returned to the applicant with recommended modifications. When the review of a submitted application is complete, NJDEP Fish & Wildlife recommends either approval or denial of the Special Deer Management Area and management plan to the NJ Fish & Game Council. If the application is approved by the Fish & Game Council, the permit is issued by the Assistant Commissioner of NJDEP Fish & Wildlife.

The process of developing a plan that is acceptable to the community, NJDEP Fish & Wildlife, and the NJ Fish & Game Council is a lengthy one. Applicants must submit an application for a CBDMP no later than 120 days prior to the proposed implementation date of the program. However, earlier is always encouraged. Applicants are encouraged to work closely with NJDEP Fish & Wildlife throughout the process.

Since the CBDMP program was instituted, the NJ Fish & Game Council has approved a wide variety of nontraditional and experimental methods to assist communities in controlling deer populations. Management plans to trap and euthanize deer, conduct research using chemical fertility control, and using volunteer and paid agents to hunt deer outside of the regular hunting season dates have been permitted through the program.

Below are details about different options within the CBDMP program.

Management Programs using Volunteer Agents

Townships are encouraged to utilize sportsmen during the traditional deer hunting seasons to reduce their deer populations in addition to opening lands to recreational or controlled hunting wherever possible. It is a technique proven effective and economical in controlling deer populations.

Controlled hunting, as an alternative deer control method, involves the harvesting of deer during a modified hunting season with limited participation. In approved CBDMPs, counties utilized volunteer sportsmen to harvest deer outside of the traditional deer season dates, without restricting agents to a bag limit. Licensed hunters were carefully selected based on their safety and efficiency record. They were given a shooting proficiency test and trained to serve as volunteer agents for each county. The venison from the harvested deer was then donated to a local food bank.

In another instance, properties were opened to local hunting clubs during extensions to the regular hunting season covered by the CBDMP.

Whether agents are hired or volunteer, if the program occurs during the regular deer seasons, and no modification of the hunting regulations is requested, a Community Based Deer Management permit is not required.

Suburban communities in many states have successfully managed their deer populations by utilizing hunters under controlled hunting restrictions.

Management Programs Utilizing Authorized Agents

Townships receiving a CBDMP may opt to hire a company to harvest deer outside of the traditional deer season dates, without bag limit restrictions. Deer may be harvested day or night, depending on the experience of the hired agent. Suppressors (silencers) may be used, however the use of suppressors requires approval from the county prosecutor’s office. Fees typically ranged from $200 to $500 per deer. Names of specific agents to be utilized are submitted as part of the application.

Trap and Euthanize

In areas where firearms could not be used, deer can be trapped and euthanized. Private companies utilize a bolt gun which employs a bolt instead of firearm ammunition to instantly kill the animal. Although controversial, this method of euthanasia is acceptable according to the 2020 American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines on Euthanasia (pdf, 550kb). This method is expensive but offers options in areas where other control methods are not feasible.

Fertility Control

All management plans using fertility control are considered experimental and therefore considered research requiring a research proposal to be submitted with the appropriate permit applications. Fertility control includes both chemical and surgical methods. The use of fertility control chemicals and vaccines on deer in New Jersey requires a special permit to inhibit wildlife reproduction, issued by NJDEP Fish & Wildlife. An application for such a permit must contain the credentials of the person administering the contraceptive procedure, the purpose or intent of the procedure and an assessment of environmental impacts. Written permission to access all properties on which the deer may be tranquilized, recovered and vaccinated must be obtained prior to applying for a Special Permit to Inhibit Reproduction. If the purpose of the Special Permit is population control, a CBDMP is also required.

Currently, the regulated-use pesticide, GonaCon-Deer (USEPA Reg. No. 56228-40), is the only fertility control drug legal for use in free-ranging populations. It was registered by the US Environmental Protection Agency in 2009 and registered for use by DEP’s Pesticide Control Program in 2011. GonaCon™ has limitations including the need to capture and hand-inject each animal, and later find that individual deer to administer booster vaccines. The time and cost of finding and administering booster vaccines to individual deer, obtaining prior written permission to access all properties on which deer may be tranquilized, recovered and vaccinated makes chemical fertility control impractical for large, free-ranging deer populations.

Surgical sterilization is considered superior to chemical fertility control because it requires similar financial and time investments but has a higher probability of sterilizing the deer and removing the chance of accidentally exposing humans or other wildlife to chemicals.

In Summary

NJDEP Fish & Wildlife and the NJ Fish and Game Council have a responsibility to manage deer populations in areas of the state where traditional deer hunting programs may not be the most effective method of deer population control. In a rapidly urbanizing state such as New Jersey, alternative methods to traditional deer management are necessary for NJDEP Fish & Wildlife and the Council to responsibly manage deer populations in areas with high human densities.

County Boards of Agriculture, municipalities, counties and airports can get further information on applying for a Community-based Deer Management Permit by contacting Principal Biologist Jodi Powers at 609-223-6073 or via email at Jodi.Powers@njdepwptest.net.