The Potomac Highlands Watershed School 

Oh Deer!" 2010 Environmental Forum

 

Points of View with Thoughtful Discussion

Foresters

 

Foresters POV & TQ Navigation

The Rubber Duckies   Freakin' Foresters    deer devils   JJ Forest    BA Foresters    

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farmer, hunter, forest, forester, homeowner, insurance company, Others

 

POV

The Rubber Duckies- John Marshall H.S.

                                                                                                                            10/26/2010

     Coyotes being introduced to the forest can help the environment it can also do damage to the

 environment. Once coyotes are introduced to the forest they could possibly kill the deer which

would lower the deer population. By deer being killed hunters will not have as much to hunt.

That means less killing of animals. The Hunters use of the forest is keeping it maintained

differently. Concerns of urban sprawl which means over use of farmers cutting trees when

trees are cut animal populations will have to migrate to a new area. If we lose the forest we

will have fewer hunters. The hunters will have to hunt out in open fields where they should be

hunting.

 

 

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  From:   The Cultivators - farmer - KLMS

              Ask                                                                         11/9/2010             2:16:00 PM

     How will coyotes help the environment? How will coyotes harm the environment?

  From:   The Happy Hunters - hunter - KLMS

              Ask                                                                         11/9/2010              1:41:00 PM

     How does it mean less killing of animals when the coyotes are killing so many deer that

     hunters will not have as much to hunt?

  From:   The Farmers From Across The Field - farmer - KLMS

              Ask                                                                         11/9/2010           12:55:00 PM

     what about the farmers? What if the coyotes stopped eating the deer and started eating

     our livestock? what then? after they killed the livestock would they attack us?

 

 

 

POV

 

Freakin' Foresters- North Harford H.S

                                                                                                                            10/27/2010

Our group is important due to the fact that we care for and over see the activities run in

the forests and are responsible for its care. The deer are destroying the shrub levels of

forest vegetation and we need to make sure there is enough forest for more generations

to come.  If the deer overpopulate the forest it will kill off the forest till there is not a

plant left and that would be horrific. We will fence them in to a meadow and section of

forest and let them live there and monitor their community to keep their numbers stable at

20 deer per square mile are common in many areas of state forest land and such

populations are largely responsible for the lack of woody and herbaceous regeneration.

During hunting season we will open the reservation to the public and let them hunt them. We

 will then send the bodies to be used as food for the homeless shelter. We will rotate them

every year to a new area so the last area has a chance to re grow and flourish. We will do

a yearly inspection for sick or old deer and quarantine them and use them as sniper training

 for the military and the body will be used for zoo food and the skins for clothing. 

Hunters will have a recreational area to hunt in a controlled manner. Our solution to the

deer problem seems to us very efficient and respectable.

 

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  From:   Freakin' Foresters - forester - NHHS

              Ask                                                                       10/29/2010           10:53:00 AM

     How would reintroducing predators help stabilize the economy? We would like facts.

  From:   The Happy Hunters - hunter - KLMS

              Ask                                                                         11/9/2010             1:37:00 PM

     1. Why would you use the sick deer meat to feed animals at the zoo?2. How would you

     do a yearly inspection when the deer can run away?

 

 

 

POV

deer devils- North Harford H.S

                                                                                                                            10/28/2010

I represent the stakeholder for the deer devils group that is for Forester. i think everyone

should read my POV and consider what i am about to say because it can make a big difference.

All we need is you! The forester group is very important in many ways and we are a group that

is not only going to help out but change the ways that animals live their lives in the environment

 that they thrive in. We are also going to help maintain the population of animals that are either

 to overpopulated or not enough of, to help stabilize the Environment.  Without the foresters,

the forest would not be maintained and there could be an over population of deer, or any animal

 that could get out of control and make our many resources and species scarce. We are also out

to balance the ecosystem by reintroducing predators to help stabilize the economy. Having an

overpopulation of deer can not only affect me but affect everyone in the world. Deer can

destroy a whole forest and make many plants and shrubs scarce in that area, or if it gets bad

enough, it can destroy them all throughout the world. Our solution to this problem with an over

population of deer is that we need to cut down the population of deer by getting hunters

together and to take down some deer. Another solution is that farmers and others can build

fences and help keep out the deer and this will help things in the forest from possibly going

extinct. Our group prefers to both of the solutions I have suggested. They will help make a big

difference in keeping the animal population stable and also the plants. I hope you consider

listening and helping our group to protect the animals, people and many of our plants. Please

help and make a difference, you can be one of the reasons our planet will be stabilized and

normal to live for everyone’s enjoyment.

 

 

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  From:   The Happy Hunters - hunter - KLMS

              Ask                                                                         11/9/2010             1:50:00 PM

     well if you reintroduce the natural predators to the forsest then let  hunters go to kill the

      deer too; either the natural predators and hunters are going to make the deer

     populations drop alot or the natural predators are going to kill the hunters. So my

     question is wouldn't the natural predators kill the hunters?

 

 

 

 

POV

JJ Forest- North Harford H.S

                                                                                                                            10/28/2010

our group is foresters, our group is important because we are responsible for the forests and

the activity in the forests ran by animals. we watch closely to the animals and there activity.

whether its deer ruining our shrubs and eating everything like our plants. if the deer

overpopulate our forests than they will eat and ruin everything which means we wont have any

more forest left for more generations of forests. other animals will go to other places to live or

 they will die off because the deer ruined there homes. My group would like to solve the

problem of deer overpopulation by setting up places for people to hunt deer but not all the deer.

 if it gets out of hand than people will have to come shoot them. my group thinks it bad to kill

deer but if they overpopulate than its necessary to kill some but not all. they will runin other

animals homes and our forests which we dont want. its a fact that deer overpopulation has

ruined many homes of animals and definately proved to the world that they can be dangerous

animals for many reaons other than killing homes and ruining everything. in pennsylvania white

 tailed deer have completely ruined the vegetation of plants. obviously deer are overpopulating

areas and need to be taken care of for the life of other animals and for the sake of the forests

 vegetation. Maybe if we put fences up in certain areas and let the deer have their own 200

acres of land, than they will ruin there land and we can switch them to other areas while we

plant more plants where they ruined them and hopefully they will grow back before the other

stuff gets ruined. Than everyone wins and life goes on.  and everyone is happy.

 

 

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POV

BA Foresters- Turner Ashby H.S.

                                                                                                                              11/4/2010

     Deer overpopulation has gotten out of hand. With nearly 1 million deer throughout the state

of Virginia, the impact can be seen in our state’s forests. As foresters, we feel that the

overpopulation of deer is very harmful to our forests. The large number of deer has caused an

overwhelming amount of destruction throughout the years. They cause deterioration of our

forests by spreading diseases, modifying forests’ interior, and through a number of other

damaging habits. There are ways to fix problems like these, but many people are not willing to

put forth the time and effort to do so. Others are against population controls. We will describe

to you the negative effect of deer overpopulation and the pros and cons of different methods

of population control.

     Deer cause massive amounts of deterioration and destruction in our forests because of

their eating habits. For foresters, this is the main problem deer cause. Deer are selective

grazers—this means that they only eat certain plants. Deer frequently masticate Redbud, Apple,

 Crabapple, Pear, Cherry, White Pine, Hemlock trees, along with many others. They also eat

shrubs and climbers, like Mountain Laurel, Blackberries, and Raspberries. They also deteriorate

 the forest floor so much that you can barely see wildflowers. Due to their selective eating

habits, deer cause a lack of biodiversity in plant and tree species. This way of grazing also

fluctuates the competitive advantage among plant species and causes the canopy of the forest

to have a much larger variety of species than that of the under story.

     There are many solutions to the problem of deer overpopulation. One method is to increase

the number of deer exclusion fences. Studies show that where these fences were built, the

forests grew back. Another method would be to lower the cost of hunting licenses so that they

are more affordable. With more people hunting, the deer population would decrease. We could

also increase the number of wolves and/or coyotes. Both of these animals feast on deer.

Although a lot of people can’t fathom the idea of “murdering” deer, these are plausible and, in

the long run, more cost efficient than doing nothing about the overpopulation.

 

 

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