Appendix C: Knowledge gaps relating to deer management The ability to manage deer effectively is impeded by gaps in current knowledge. These gaps can be broadly grouped into the following areas: guardian dogs, exclusion Improved trapping techniques. IMPACTS fencing, poisons, odour repellents, fertility control. Review of impacts of deer on MONITORING DEER priority assets and the metrics for Assess animal welfare DISTRIBUTION monitoring those impacts. outcomes of aerial shooting. AND ABUNDANCE Improved understanding of The effectiveness of hunting in damage/density relationships integrated management Assess and validate emerging and control thresholds required programs to reduce deer techniques (e.g. thermal imaging, to protect assets. density. drones, species recognition algorithms) for monitoring Develop a disease response Improve understanding of distribution and abundance. strategy to determine high risk lures and options for baiting diseases, how to monitor deer. Improve understanding of the prevalence, contact rate and locations of where deer between deer and livestock, and capacity and training of will spread. use of disease as a biological contractors to control deer control. with dogs and ground COMMUNITY shooting. Understanding of how deer ENGAGEMENT carcasses affect predators (wild Cost-effectiveness of AND AWARENESS dogs) and disease (transfer) guardian dogs and exclusion risks. fences at protecting crops. Develop a community engagement model that Determine rate of human injury/ The commercial use of considers basic education on fatality in car deer products to deer impacts, education on collisions from deer relative reduce deer impacts. control options, measuring to macropods Best-practice guide for behaviour change, and two-way (perceptions v. data). monitoring and controlling deer communication with to and their impacts which includes community. MANAGEMENT TOOLS AND a review of effectiveness of Understand motivations of existing techniques for different SYSTEMS recreational hunters and the scenarios, species, habitats, effectiveness of incentives to costs, how to control deer and Alternative deer control or management options shoot more females/more monitor deer and their impacts. and their cost-effectiveness and humaneness, eg. deer. Adapted from Forsyth D, Pople T, Page B, Moriarty A, Ramsey D, Parkes J, Wiebkin A, & Lane C (Eds) (2017). 2016 National Wild Deer Management Workshop Proceedings, Adelaide, 17–18 November 2016. Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre, Canberra, Australia.
Appendix C: Knowledge gaps relating to deer management The ability to manage deer effectively is impeded by gaps in current knowledge. These gaps can be broadly grouped into the following areas: IMPACTS Review of impacts of deer on priority assets and the metrics for monitoring those impacts. Improved understanding of damage/density relationships and control thresholds required to protect assets. Develop a disease response strategy to determine high risk diseases, how to monitor prevalence, contact between deer and livestock, and use of disease as a biological control. Understanding of how deer carcasses affect predators (wild dogs) and disease (transfer) risks. Determine rate of human injury/ fatality in car collisions from deer relative to macropods (perceptions v. data). MANAGEMENT TOOLS AND SYSTEMS Alternative deer control or management options and their cost-effectiveness and humaneness, eg. guardian dogs, exclusion fencing, poisons, odour repellents, fertility control. Assess animal welfare outcomes of aerial shooting. The effectiveness of hunting in integrated management programs to reduce deer density. Improve understanding of lures and options for baiting deer. capacity and training of contractors to control deer with dogs and ground shooting. Cost-effectiveness of guardian dogs and exclusion fences at protecting crops. The commercial use of deer products to reduce deer impacts. Best-practice guide for monitoring and controlling deer and their impacts which includes a review of effectiveness of existing techniques for different scenarios, species, habitats, costs, how to control deer and monitor deer and their impacts. Improved trapping techniques. MONITORING DEER DISTRIBUTION AND ABUNDANCE Assess and validate emerging techniques (e.g. thermal imaging, drones, species recognition algorithms) for monitoring distribution and abundance. Improve understanding of the rate and locations of where deer will spread. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND AWARENESS Develop a community engagement model that considers basic education on deer impacts, education on control options, measuring behaviour change, and two-way communication with to community. Understand motivations of recreational hunters and the effectiveness of incentives to shoot more females/more deer. Adapted from Forsyth D, Pople T, Page B, Moriarty A, Ramsey D, Parkes J, Wiebkin A, & Lane C (Eds) (2017). 2016 National Wild Deer Management Workshop Proceedings, Adelaide, 17–18 November 2016. Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre, Canberra, Australia.