Bozeman residents are dealing with an increasing deer population in their neighborhoods, with some areas seeing densities of 60 to 70 deer per square mile.
Montana has approximately 225,000 white-tailed deer, averaging about 7.8 deer per square mile statewide. However, certain areas of southeast Bozeman are experiencing much higher concentrations.
"We've learned that in some areas of southeast Bozeman, we have 500-600 deer. That's a population density of 60-70 per square mile," said Julie Cunningham, a Fish, Wildlife & Parks Region 3 biologist.
WATCH: Bozeman's deer population is booming. Some neighborhoods have 60-70 deer per square mile
While seeing deer in neighborhoods might seem appealing, these animals can cause significant problems. They can destroy property and pose dangers to both pets and humans. Over the past three years, FWP has been notified of 99 deer-vehicle collisions in the Bozeman area and has responded to 59 conflicts.
One factor contributing to the overpopulation is people feeding the deer, which is illegal in Montana.
"Sometimes people want to take pity on them when we have a bad winter, and they think they're doing the right thing by feeding them, but they're really not," Cunningham said. "It can all contribute to overpopulation, too much density, spread of really damaging diseases we don't want to have on the landscapes, so for the health of the deer, we encourage people to remember that's why feeding of wildlife is illegal."
The urban deer issue isn't unique to Bozeman. Helena has already implemented an urban deer management plan, while Bozeman has not yet adopted one.
"Urban deer plans that have been successful in other places in Montana include some amount of culling, which means lethal removal of the deer," Cunningham said. "The deer get taken out of the population and then checked to make sure there's no chronic wasting disease and then delivered to the food banks."
Such management plans can help control complaints, vehicle collisions, property damage, and disease risk while managing urban populations. However, implementing these plans requires collaboration between state agencies and city and county partners.
With chronic wasting disease identified in the area, Cunningham is asking anyone who sees a suspected sick deer to report it to FWP. Until a management plan is established, FWP will continue removing dead or severely injured deer from neighborhoods, and the population will likely continue growing.
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