One Solution for Deer Overpopulation in Ashburn

Spend a little time in Ashburn, and you'll notice two things multiplying rapidly: Harris Teeters and deer. The deer (and to a lesser extent the Teeters) seem to be everywhere, on your lawn, in your garden, at your golf course, and all over the roads.

The indigenous White-tailed deer, the Commonwealth's largest and most well-adapted herbivore, used to make its home primarily in the secluded forests and fields of rural Virginia. But, with the never-ending encroachment of man into the native habitat of the deer, those forests and fields have turned into backyards and playgrounds, azalea hedgerows and vegetable gardens, and, more dangerously, highways and neighborhood streets.

Unlike many species before them, who fled their home ranges to escape mankind's McMansions and strip malls, the deer have taken to the new and growing suburban landscape with great success. It is estimated that there are more deer in Virginia now than when the first settlers landed at Jamestown in 1607.

The reasons for the growing suburban deer populations are varied. Despite being crammed into unnaturally small stretches of forest and parkland, deer actually prefer the "fringe" environments created by suburban development, where underbrush and food are plentiful. Ironically, deer also find some of their safest havens living among humans, who are their only natural predators in Virginia.

For years, many landowners and developers shuddered at the thought of hunters lurking in the woods of the subdivisions they called home. Likewise, many hunters, including yours truly, routinely traveled miles away from their deer- and human-filled suburban environs in search of the Rockwellian peace and solitude of a hunt in the countryside. Thus, with no natural predators, plenty of food and the ability to adapt to close-quarters with people, deer kept pace with the multitudes of McDonald’s restaurants and Starbucks in the wilds of exurbia. 

As Ashburn and other suburban haunts continue to develop, and deer interactions with humans become more frequent and costly ­­– in Virginia alone, State Farm estimated 52,000 collisions with deer resulted in more than $174 million in insurance claims from July 2008 to June 2010 – traditional ideas about neighborhood hunting, or the lack thereof, are changing, and one local organization has been leading the suburban deer hunting movement for years.

Suburban Whitetail Management of Northern Virginia (SWMNV), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, is comprised of approximately 100 archery hunters who are committed to the safe, efficient and ethical harvesting of deer in the suburban areas of Loudoun, Fairfax and Prince William counties. 

Founded in 1997 by President Eric Huppert, SWMNV's mission is to reduce and maintain the White-tailed deer population in Northern Virginia; restore a proper balance of wildlife within this geographical area; develop a general awareness of the wildlife management role of bowhunting in suburban settings; and promote a positive image of bowhunting and bowhunters.

"When I started the organization in 1997, the original goal was to find more places to hunt," said Huppert. "Unfortunately, in those early days I found that a lot of landowners wanted to allow hunting on their property, but some had bad experiences with hunters they previously allowed on their land. So, we focused on creating an organization with strict guidelines of safety, sportsmanship and ethics. We could go out and show people they can have hunters come onto their property and quietly and effectively deal with the deer overpopulation problem." 

SWMNV's approach is simple. At the request of a landowner, and completely free of charge, SWMNV will send a representative to do a suitability assessment of the land to be hunted. Because SWMNV's members hunt exclusively from elevated tree-stands, properties to be hunted will need mature trees suitable for this technique. Other than that, SWMNV will go where the deer are, largely regardless of the size of the lot.

"Typically we hunt on properties that are anywhere from two to five acres, with some bigger and some smaller. We harvested 17 deer from a 1/2 acre lot last year," Huppert said. "With the smaller properties, we try to seek the permission of adjoining landowners to hunt their lands, or at a minimum, to go onto their land to track and recover any deer we take."

If a property is determined to be suitable for hunting, SWMNV will coordinate with its member hunters and the landowner to harvest enough deer to stabilize the local population. All hunts are completely free of charge, and done in compliance with the applicable hunting regulations set forth by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

All SWMNV hunters go through a rigorous evaluation process that continues through their time with the organization. SWMNV prefers, but does not require, that new members be seasoned archery hunters. All members must pass shooting proficiency tests with their bow and arrow, are required to complete the International Bowhunter Education Program, and must maintain log entries for every hunt they take part in and every deer they harvest on behalf of the organization.

In addition, SWMNV fully insures its member hunters to protect the landowners and its members against any liability associated with the hunts.

Because the organization's goal is to help stabilize the suburban deer populations, hunters interested only in harvesting big bucks – antlered male deer – need not apply. According to Huppert, the key to reducing the herd's population is to harvest does.

"We're very clear with everyone who signs up with us, this is not a hunt club. If you're looking to get in here to hunt big bucks, that's fine; but if your main ambition is taking antlers, this is not the organization for you," said Huppert. "Your primary job is to take as many does as possible." 

In addition to SWMNV's strict safety and ethical standards, the organization ensures that none of the deer they harvest go to waste. SWMNV hunters donate most of their deer meat to Hunters for the Hungry, another nonprofit that coordinates the processing and delivery of venison to food banks, homeless shelters, and other organizations that provide food to less fortunate Virginians.

While Huppert acknowledges that landowners can take measures other than hunting to protect their property from deer damage, such attempts do not address the bigger issue of deer overpopulation. Besides being a nuisance and a danger to humans, overpopulation can adversely affect the health of the deer herd and the surrounding ecosystem. Such impacts were very evident when SWMNV spent several years stabilizing the deer herd as Lansdowne on the Potomac was under development.

"We were shocked by the poor condition of the deer in that area," said Huppert. "Before we started thinning the herd at the request of the developer, we were seeing a lot of undernourished and unhealthy deer, as well as high fawn-mortality rates. After three years of sustained hunting, we started seeing bigger, healthier deer, and lower fawn-mortality rates."

With approximately 300-350 landowners as "clients," Huppert believes SWMNV will continue to grow and that bowhunting in general offers the best option for addressing the ever-increasing suburban deer populations.

"Bowhunting is the best method for handling deer overpopulation in a safe and effective manner,” he said. “We try to educate people who call us. It's not the deer's fault, but managing the herd through bowhunting is really something that needs to be done for the health of the environment."

For additional information about the services offered by SWMNV, or to apply to become a member hunter of the organization, please visit http://www.deerdamage.org/. For more information about Hunters for the Hungry, visit http://www.h4hungry.org/.