A leading wildlife researcher believes that the general consensus on deer management in Ireland is to have a sustainable and healthy population.
Dr. Simone Ciuti, assistant professor of Wildlife Biology at University College Dublin (UCD), oversaw the SMARTDEER Ireland project which came to an end in recent weeks.
The research was led by the Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour at UCD, began in 2019 and was funded by the university and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).
It sought to investigate the population distribution of the three main deer species in Ireland: Red, Sika and Fallow.
The project was supposed to run for two years, but was extended due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Research
A coordinated approach has never been applied to monitoring deer distribution and density in Ireland – until now.
The researchers painstakingly collated all available data on deer distribution in Ireland previously collected by different deer stakeholders, including the DAFM; National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS); Coillte; hunting associations; farmers and members of the public.
They also collected original data by developing a smartphone app and a website where sightings of deer could be easily reported.
Dr. Simone Ciuti told Agriland that the level of engagement from the public in the project, including from farmers, exceeded his expectations.
This resulted in the production of maps outlining the distribution and relative density of deer in Ireland with an accuracy of 5x5km.
The research also shows how deer populations have expanded across the country over the past 20 years and the types of damage caused by deer to forestry in “hot spots” of higher deer density.
Population
Dr. Ciuti said that further research will be needed to determine exact population numbers for each species. “It’s the starting point for the next level,” he said.
“We have to keep moving in that direction in the efforts to gather more data. With the data you provide, information about how many deer you have and then based on the management goals set by the government, you can act accordingly,” he said.
The smart methods developed by the researchers to streamline the collection of data are available to government agencies if they wish to use them to promote deer monitoring.
Dr. Ciuti said that the project team is “ready any time” to provide all of the information it has collected to the Deer Management Strategy Group which was reconvened last year by government.
“In principle, we scientists shouldn’t have an opinion on what we should do, but we have to provide information that these policymakers and managers will use,” he said
The possible role played by deer in the spread of bovine tuberculosis (TB) was also raised by participants in the project.
Dr. Ciuti said that the results of research being carried out by UCD on the role played by wildlife in the spread of TB is expected to be published in 2024.
Although the SMARTDEER project has now come to an end, the research team is continuing its work in “hot spots” such as Co. Wicklow where they are examining the impact of over-abundant deer populations on biodiversity.
Deer management
The results of a public consultation on deer management in Ireland published this week showed that 86% of the 1,500 survey respondents believe that a “culling of deer is needed”.
DAFM said that “the information provided by respondents will inform the development of a national deer management strategy”.
A series of stakeholder working groups are now scheduled to take place ahead of the Deer Management Strategy Group’s final report being published in the early autumn.
Dr. Ciuti is optimistic about the future management of Ireland’s deer population.
“I think at the end of the day, everybody wants the same thing. Everybody wishes to have a sustainable, healthy deer population, which will mean that they will not cause damage to forests and to agriculture and hunters will have plenty there to hunt.
“Even though we have different views from farmers, foresters and citizens, eventually they think all the same way. They want to maintain the population in a healthy way.
“When I moved to Ireland four years ago, there was the previous Irish Deer Management Forum which was suspended. Now I guess there is hope. There’s lots of data available, so it’s looking good,” he said.