The Deer Problem in Hamilton New York
Colgate University Students and faculty have studied the impacts of deer overabundance in Hamilton, NY since 2013.
Do we have a deer problem?
In 2013, 15 students in ENST390: Community-based Study of Environment Issues class asked the question "Do we have a deer problem in Hamilton, NY?" Quickly students learned how to quantify deer and learned that Hamilton had an overabundant deer population. From then the course took on a life of its own and students spent ~1500 hours studying the biology, economics, public perception, and management of deer overabundance. This research led to the development of a Village Deer Cull and ultimately the Colgate University Deer Cull managed by the Upstate Institute.
Since then, deer overabundance and the prevalance of Lyme and other vector-borne disease impacts on our community have been the subject of:
- Five Courses
- Three Upstate Institute Research Grants
- One Course Development Grant
- One Dramatic Play developed by students
- Four Community Fora
- Four Community Panels
Latest Event: April 2023: Expert Panel
Our most recent event on April 5th was a Panel discussion with experts on deer overabundance, tick-borne diseases, public health, and student research on public safety measures with ticks in the area.
Timeline: Deer Research and Community Outreach Hamilton, NY
Fall 2013
15 students in Community-based Study of Environment Issues class taught by Professor Cardelús studied "Do we have a deer problem in Hamilton, NY?" This was the first year of the deer census in Hamilton, NY and has continued annually since then. In 2016, a village-specific deer and tick census began and in 2017 we began a long-term study on the quantification of deer damage on forest regeneration using fenced plots in Colgate Forests.
December 4th, 2013
The result was a student presentation at a Community Forum on Deer Overabundance at Hamilton Central School attended by > 100 community members. A key piece of that presentation was a Proposal on the Management of White-Tailed Deer in Hamilton, NY. At that meeting, a Deer Management Working Work was proposed, which began the journey of deer reduction in the area.
2013-2015
Deer Management Working Group composed of local stakeholders studied the feasibility of deer management in Hamilton, NY.
Deer Management Program, Begun 2015
The deer cull began in Fall 2015 and was largely successful. Maintaining the deer cull became more difficult and its success decreased over time (as seen in the graph). In 2021, Colgate restarted the deer cull and slowly growing the program under the management of the Upstate Institute.
Spring 2016, Fall 2016
Students in ENST390 in each semester studied aspects of deer overabundance and the Village Deer Cull. In the Spring with Professor Helfant, students studied the cullers experience of the deer cull. In Fall 2016 with Professor Cardelús, students studied Colgate students, faculty, and staff understanding of the deer issue and produced an education video with an associated survey.
Fall 2019 & 2021
Professors Cardelús and Pattison received an Upstate Institute Course Development Grant to teach Conservation Biology & Policy. In this course, students learned the sustainable management of socio-ecological systems using conservation biology and policy studies. The course was framed around deer as a case study. Students quantified deer overabundance, tick disease loads, and examined policy solutions from the local to state level. Work in this class culminated in a Community Forum.
January 10-18, 2022
The Fall ENST 389 course resulted in a restart of the Deer Cull by the Upstate Institute. The pilot deer cull included 6 cullers, one of whom was a Colgate Student from the class. In 7 days they culled 6 does.
Deer Management: October 2022-January 2023
The success of the pilot program led to the hiring of a Deer Cull Manager and the expansion of deer management to include hunting on off-campus Colgate lands. We had 12 hunter/cullers and successfully culled 8 does.
April 2023
Panel discussion on the Status of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases and their public health implications in Hamilton, NY.
