Fall deer hunting seasons open on Monday, Sept. 15, in Missouri with dark clouds hanging over the proceedings. The presence of chronic wasting disease is not the cause for the overwhelming concern. It is a virulent misinformation campaign that is dividing hunters, friends and families.
I hold out some hope that I am too close to the situation, and it is not as big as it appears to me, but the more people I talk to, who start our conversations with “what’s the deer season going to be like?” the more I fear we are slipping into a situation where our fellow hunters are becoming our own worst enemies.
The core of this family feud regards the state Department of Conservation’s efforts to manage the spread of CWD. Now 25 years since wildlife biologists began monitoring the state’s deer herd for the disease and almost 15 seasons since the first documented case, the slow progression should be lauded as a success.
Compared to our neighboring and nearby states, the low prevalence in Missouri is proof that the plan to increase harvests in concentrated locations is working. We can attribute the robust deer and turkey hunting opportunities in Missouri to generations of work by the department with the support of hunters. Now is not a time for distrust.
Within the past few weeks, I have been blocked from a social media site for supporting the department. Banning me is certainly the prerogative of the page manager, but what really hurts is that its founder is someone I have considered a personal friend for more than 30 years.
If we isolate ourselves in bubbles – regarding opposing opinions as enemy fire – we are destined for disaster. I am willing to have a rational debate with anyone at any time regarding the ongoing efforts to reduce the spread of a deadly deer disease.
I’ll start here with a few of the more common refrains I have heard from people who are fighting against the work of the conservation department.
“Don’t trust the government” is a pretty easy mantra to stand behind. It is solid policy regarding politicians and their hand-picked, quid pro quo appointees. Where the axiom veers recklessly into traffic is lumping public servants who rely on scientific and data-based evidence with the aforementioned miscreants.
From the volunteers who dedicate their time and energy to the recently named department director and almost every employee in between, these are people who love and care about the environment and the flora and fauna that inhabit our state.
“Common sense will tell you that killing healthy deer to eliminate a few diseased ones is senseless.” Contrarily, I say it makes no sense, common or otherwise, to disregard years of dedicated study and science in favor of something you heard from someone who knows somebody who says it’s so. Perception may be reality, but it is not verifiable.
Facts are facts, and in Wisconsin, where the disease is epidemic, wildlife managers started with an aggressive approach to containing the disease similar to Missouri’s strategy. They were showing success until public opinion forced a change in plans. Now more than 25 percent of bucks harvested in isolated areas have the disease.
That, some say, proves that it will eventually level off, as if one in four was an acceptable statistic. The reasonable conclusion is that the other three just hadn’t contracted the disease yet, since it’s probable that half of the harvested deer were less than two years old. If they hadn’t been killed, at least one would have had it by the next year. What that leads to is a population of deer that are, as a whole, younger and smaller.
I recently attended a meeting in Jefferson City where a panel of experts answered the concerns and questions of hunters and others in attendance. It was considered a prototype for informational meetings that may be held in the future. I sincerely hope we can get a similar presentation in the Jefferson and Ste. Genevieve counties area soon.
What struck me hardest at the meeting was the significant number of people whose primary reaction and underlying question was “what does this mean for me?” The future of the resource and the long-term health of the deer population in the state is not a “me and now” situation. I want to know what it means for our grandchildren and those who will inherit what we leave behind.
John Winkelman has been writing about outdoors news and issues in Jefferson County for more than 30 years and was the Associate Editor for Outdoor Guide Magazine. If you have story ideas for the Leader outdoor news page, e-mail ogmjohnw@aol.com, and you can find more outdoor news and updates at johnjwink.com.