The connection between freshwater mammals and urban deer

The connection between freshwater mammals and urban deer

Mar 14, 2024

Dr. Jason T. Fisher, lead scientist for the Urban Deer Research Project  in Oak Bay, was recently the subject of an article in the Oak Bay News (see page A4).

 

While “Accelerated human-induced extinction crisis in the world’s freshwater mammals” may sound like quite a stretch from Oak Bay’s Urban Deer, in fact there are a number of connections that can be made between the two studies. The most significant parallel is the impact of human activity and how it encroaches on land and water habitats.  Along with increasing aridity (see Dr. Fisher’s peer reviewed paper on habitat use in Oak Bay), pesticide use and the continually expanding impact of the human footprint and climate change, the relationship between land, water and the human species are deeply intertwined.  Dr. Fisher’s work in Oak Bay and globally, helps us understand our impact, role and responsibilities, as well as how much we can learn from Indigenous ways of living in harmony with the land, water and other species.

 

The UWSS and Oak Bay is so lucky to have Dr. Fisher lead the cutting edge and recognized work of the immuno-contraception research in Oak Bay!
Falling into the rut

Falling into the rut

Oct 25, 2023

by Jen Blythe

It’s that time of year!

While we’ve all enjoyed the brisk, sunny transition to fall, the shorter, darker, days are here, and so is the rain.  A reminder to not let the fall weather bring the ‘perfect storm’ for deer or you!

Some strategies for reducing collisions during wet, dark fall days:

Whether you’re commuting by car, bike, scooter or skateboard, an earlier dawn and later dusk means you will be on the road at the same time that deer are also more active. At the same time, younger deer may lack the “street sense” of the older does and bucks, so whether they’re simply unaware or get spooked by a dog or car, for example, deer can bolt from bushes, gardens or between parked cars … and right into traffic.

Add to that the slick streets, the glare from headlights and busier roadways as we head to work, school and activities, and you have a “perfect storm” for both deer and travellers to navigate.

To help avoid collisions with deer (and other road users):

  • Slow down and scan ahead – Especially important in areas deer are known to frequent, but good practice wherever you’re driving as children, dogs, deer and others can appear quickly and without warning. You would slow down if you saw children at the side of the road right?  Doing the same for deer and any wildlife will help reduce collisions.
  • Anticipate deer and give them space – Deer rarely travel alone, so if you see one, others will typically follow. Give them time and space to pass safely.
  • Drive defensively – deer rarely jump out in front of a car unless they’re spooked. If you drive defensively you will likely see deer at the side of the road “thinking” about crossing, giving you time to slow down as you would in a school zone.  However, if a collision with wildlife seems imminent, avoid swerving, as this can cause more damage and personal injury. Instead, remove your foot from the accelerator and brake lightly, keeping the vehicle straight.

At the same time…

If dark days and rain weren’t enough, further adding to the fall and winter mix is rutting season, which typically begins at the end of October and goes through November. As bucks become single-minded in their purpose, they can easily follow the scent of a doe … right into the road.

You might also see bucks tangling with trees, poles or anything else they can practice their bravado on, and later engaging in tussles with other bucks as they strut their stuff for the does. While it may appear aggressive, in fact, it’s just bucks being bucks and they typically have little interest in us or anything else. 

As always, leave an escape route for deer that’s far away from yourself. Because dogs – no matter their size – are perceived as a threat, always check your yard carefully for deer before letting your dog out, and when walking, keep them leashed. If you encounter a deer, shorten the lead, stop your dog barking if possible, and back away to give deer more distance.

Are those collars too tight?

Are those collars too tight?

Apr 12, 2023

A big thank you to Dr. Adam Hering and team of volunteers who have just finished a month of collar and welfare checks for the does in the Oak Bay Urban Deer Research Project.

Through the winter we sometimes hear from concerned community members about collars on does that appear too tight. We are very grateful for all reports and take all concerns very seriously however, as Dr. Hering explains, there are many situations when collars look concerning from a distance but once he is close, or is able to immobilize the doe, he is able to determine that the collars are not actually problematic.

Dr. Hering has kindly provided information and a video (to the right) on how collars fit and why they can appear to be too tight:

It can in fact be quite difficult to truly assess how tight a collar is until I have my hands on the doe and fingers under the collar. In the years we’ve been doing these collar checks I have elected to remove 3 collars due to concerns about how tight they looked. In all 3 cases, after having my hands on the animal I decided that the collar was unlikely to be causing any distress to them but I chose to remove the collars as I could see why, from a distance, they could appear concerning. One doe did have a bit of moisture dermatitis on her skin under the collar and so I was happy I took it off and am always more than happy to take off others or replace them with looser fitting collars if I am concerned. It’s always a balance between making it tight enough that it doesn’t get caught on things or get feet caught under it when they scratch their neck and ears with a hind hoof and making it loose enough to not cause distress.

When I fit collars I take neck circumference measurements. Having done this over multiple years, on animals of all ages and throughout the seasons, I have found that the neck circumference only varies by a few cm once a female Columbian Blacktail deer reaches physical maturity. That’s based on the ~250 black tail deer I have captured throughout the Oak Bay and Esquimalt immuno-contraception (IC) programs.

What happens is that the does thicker winter coat grows in and makes the collar look tighter than it is. It can also happen that the collar may get pushed down the neck a bit when walking through shrubs, to a spot on the neck where the neck circumference is slightly greater (their neck is conical in shape) and the directionality of the hair on their neck prevents it from sliding back up where it was originally installed. They can, however, scratch their neck with their hind hooves and can sometimes slide it up that way.

I also get notified by Oak Bay Public Works any time one of our marked does die. I check them all and do post mortem exams on most that die without obvious evidence of vehicular trauma. I have yet to see an animal with a collar that has given me true cause for concern that it was impacting their wellbeing but I’m always on the lookout for it. I hate the idea that something I’ve done could be causing undue distress to one of the deer.

Doe #30 was one doe that a community member expressed concern about a too tight collar. Despite our time in the field in March, we didn’t manage to locate her, likely because there’s been construction in the area she was first tagged which may have caused her to move on from that location. Doe #30 was first captured in September 2019, when she was given her first round of IC and fitted with a collar. I estimated her to be a mature deer of 3.5 years of age at the time, and I have given her 2 booster vaccines since then with the most recent one being in fall of 2021, and I was not concerned at those times that her collar was causing her any issues.

This season I’ve completed the allotted time (based on provincial permits) in the field looking at deer and evaluating for any with concerningly tight fitting collars. I did elect to take the collar off of #3 and replaced it with large white ear tags with the number 3 on them so that she can still be identified if seen on one of the wildlife cameras – this is important for the research. On this individual, after having my hands on her it was my opinion that her collar was not problematically tight but it had caused a bit of minor hair loss/chafing which I think is a bit inevitable with collars. But given the opportunity, I elected to remove it given the number of concerned messages we’ve gotten.

In all other instances, I felt comfortable with the collars I saw and didn’t feel that any of them justified repeated capture to verify that they were fitting ok, therefore no other captures were performed.

Here is a link to a video that I took of one of the animals who is wearing a GPS collar. The collar in the video is fit on her neck similarly to the rest of them however it looks less tight because the weight of the GPS has caused the collar to slide around a little bit resulting in some hair loss – therefore you can see how tight the collar actually is against her neck without the surrounding hair obscuring the view.

Thank you to all of you who have taken the time to share your concerns – we follow up on every doe that is reported and we appreciate that the welfare of the deer is important to you as well as us!

The partnership continues!

The partnership continues!

Feb 8, 2022

We are happy to confirm that another year of provincial and municipal funding has been approved for this multi-year research project on urban deer and the impact of immuno-contraception (IC) as a  deer population management tool.  The Provincial Urban Deer Cost Share Project (PUDAC) has accepted the 2022 application prepared by the UWSS on behalf of Oak Bay.

In 2022 the data collection and analysis will continue, allowing our scientists to determine the impact of the decrease in fawn abundance on the adult deer population, as fewer fawns will be maturing into adulthood.  You will also see our field team out and about in their flashy orange vests, in early to mid-April, checking on collar fits and anything else that may need our attention.  We’ve really appreciated community eyes on Oak Bay’s deer, letting us know if a collar appears too snug, or if one of the tagged deer has an injury.  Whenever possible, we really appreciate photographs (taken safely) and locations, which can be sent to [email protected]