South DSM News

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is considering changing hunting quotas to further regulate the deer population in 2020-2021.

According to Iowa Public Radio, the state of Iowa has maintained reduced antlerless deer hunting licenses from 2014 to 2017 to stabilize the population that was steadily declining.

According to the Iowa DNR, antlerless deer populations have stabilized in 2018 and 2019. The Iowa DNR is considering new hunting quotes to further regulate the population. Eleven Iowa counties will see an increase in antlerless deer hunting licenses this season while other counties will see a decrease.

The Iowa DNR manages deer populations to support a hunting harvest of 100,000 to 120,000 deer per year. These numbers are based on the recommendations from the legislatively mandated deer advisory committee. Wildlife populations are evaluated by the DNR on a yearly basis and new hunting quotes are considered on a regular basis. This includes deer, turkeys and other wildlife.

Iowa has also seen an increase in the contagious chronic wasting disease or zombie deer disease. Counties that will see an increase in hunting licenses this year include counties with confirmed chronic wasting disease.

“Knowing what we know about how the disease spreads, we want to try to maintain those counties at the lower end of our population goal to help manage and reduce the spread of that disease,” said Tyler Harms, a wildlife biometrician and deer program leader for the Iowa DNR.

Iowa City is in Johnson County, one of the counties to see an increase in hunting licenses. The city has gone so far as to contract a company, White Buffalo, for its deer management project. However, Iowa City staff were criticized for their decision when deer carcasses were found left to rot in a city park.

Iowa City Deer Friends showed pictures to city council members of deer carcasses found at Terry Trueblood Recreation Area in early December, claiming they had been shot during the city program and left to rot. No evidence was found to blame White Buffalo, but staff at Iowa City Deer Friends have recommended that the city collect more information on White Buffalo's sharpshooters for the next round of culling.

The Iowa DNR takes feedback and recommendations into consideration when making new regulations, including feedback from hunters and wildlife conservationists. New regulations are being planned and updated now, and will go into effect for the 2020-2021 hunting season.