Women in the outdoors give hunting a shot

 

 

 

Scenic view of Wallkill River NWR

On a warm autumn Saturday, three women gather together at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge with their crossbows and archery equipment. Reminiscent of Katniss Everdeens’ from the Hunger Games Trilogy, these women may also inspire more youth and adult women to take up bow hunting. Mikalia, Maria, and Tanya are participating in a Women in the Outdoors hunt, and members of the refuge staff and National Wild Turkey Federation are ready to guide them in the field.

The three women are novice or inexperienced bow hunters, and the dedicated refuge hunt for women, by women, offers a unique opportunity for them to ask questions and get hands-on experience with experts. It is the second annual Women in the Outdoors hunt at the refuge, offered through a partnership between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Wild Turkey federation.

 

 

Mikalia, Maria, and Tanya pose with National Wild Turkey Federation banner

The refuge is closed this day to everyone else. In the quiet, Refuge Law Enforcement Officer Mike McMenamin looks for signs of deer. Like a biology detective, he points out a broken branch where a buck rubbed his scent, hoof scrapes on the ground, and other places where deer had left a mark.

Chelsea Utter, wildlife refuge specialist and a National Wild Turkey Federation hunt mentor, sits patiently and quietly with Mikalia. Chelsea explains the sounds to listen for to track deer. The women will spend hours through the afternoon until dark in the blind.

 

 

Hunter in the blind with her equipment

For a Women in the Outdoors hunt, each participant is paired with a more experienced mentor. This one-on-one allows for a strong personal connection and comfortable relationship for learning. Mentors provide guidance on all aspects of the sport, including hunting safety, wildlife tracking, taking a first shot, and processing a deer for food.

Chelsea was a mentor for the first time the previous year. Her first mentee aimed her bow and her arrow hit her mark, a buck. Chelsea confessed that after hunting for six years, she had yet to have a successful hunt. The hunt was a proud moment for both women.

Sitting this year with Mikalia in the blind, Chelsea hopes that today she might experience that feeling of accomplishment again. Mentoring has become her favorite part of the women’s hunt program, and she hopes that her mentees might become mentors themselves some day.

Tanya is an example of how this unique program can foster a love of hunting. On the recommendation of a friend, Tanya decided to try out the Women in the Outdoors hunt in 2016. She loved the event so much, she’s returned this year. Today, her hunt will prove successful…a milestone!

 

 

Tanya in the blind with her son during the youth hunt

Wanting to share her newfound pastime with her son, Tanya encouraged him to enroll and participate in the refuge’s youth hunt. “It can be difficult for new or non-hunters to gain access to the knowledge, guidance, places and opportunities to gain the confidence and experience to safely, ethically, and successfully go into the field. The women’s mentored hunt provided all of those resources openly and wholeheartedly to me. The refuge hunts are special opportunities that are appreciated so much more than the mentors will ever know,” she says.

Chelsea says there’s nothing better than seeing the excitement of the participants and their eagerness to continue hunting. She says that she hopes that after participating in the program women aren’t as intimidated to get out into the woods by themselves, become part of a community of hunting enthusiasts, and feel comfortable with all stages of the hunting experience. She hopes to share with others how hunting can be a favorite pastime, an opportunity to enjoy the outdoors, and a way to provide food for your family and friends.

 

 

Jesse Mihatov and Chelsea Utter, staff from Wallkill River NWR, accept the Robert E. Eriksen Conservation award

In recognition of their hunting programs, Wallkill National Wildlife Refuge was recently awarded the Robert E. Eriksen Conservation Award by the board of directors of the New Jersey chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation.

People and deer: A complicated relationship

Do you see deer in your neighborhood or backyard? Credit: Greg Thompson/USFWS

Today you’re hearing from Emily Pomeranz, a doctoral student at Cornell University in the Department of Natural Resources. She studies citizen participation in deer management. Want to learn more? She can be contacted at efp33@cornell.edu. Photo courtesy of Emily.

In the Northeast, people have a complicated relationship with deer.

Deer are beautiful animals that many (myself included) love to view and love to photograph; deer are also a game species that many hunters value, too. But, in many parts of the Northeast (like here in Ithaca, New York), there are a lot of deer.

And with too many deer comes conflict. No one wants to see his or her garden chomped. No one wants to hit a deer on the highway (or have a deer hit you while you’re stopped at a stop sign—I speak from experience!). Lyme disease is a real concern, too.

So, what do we (as individuals, communities, or management agencies) do? How do we balance the things we value about deer with the real concerns that come with their overabundance?

In New York State, the Department of Environmental Conservation has partnered with Cornell Cooperative Extension in a longstanding effort to involve citizens in task forces to help make better decisions about deer; other states in the region (like Pennsylvania and Maine) have modeled their own citizen involvement processes after New York’s citizen task forces.

Three bucks snapped by an infrared-triggered camera. Monitoring by Cornell helps to determine the population on and around campus. Photo courtesy of Paul Curtis.

Some communities with passionate conflict over deer have engaged in community-based deer management. For example, Cayuga Heights, New York—Ithaca’s neighbor—has convened deer remediation advisory committees (consisting of local residents and municipal officials) to provide guidance on what the town should do to manage their deer.

A doe out for a walk. She is wearing a radio-transmitter so Cornell researchers can see where she goes and note her home range. Photo courtesy of Paul Curtis.

And over at Cornell University, in the Human Dimensions Research Unit (where I’m a graduate student), researchers study citizen participation in deer management (along with other social aspects of natural resources management and policy) in order to help better manage human-wildlife conflict and its impact on wildlife conservation.

My own feelings towards deer are also complex. Last week on a short drive to the Ithaca Airport at 4:30 in the morning, I slowed down for seven different deer peering at me from the side of the road as I passed by. With each pair of eyes I noticed reflecting the light from my headlights, I had that familiar fear of one of those critters racing out in front of my car—hurting either the deer or my car (or myself).

Photo courtesy of Paul Curtis.

But I also never tire of the chance to observe them.

Not only are they lovely to watch, but they are also held in trust by the State of New York for citizens like myself (and future citizens, too), so I feel a certain connection and responsibility towards them.

Yes, deer and people have a complicated relationship. And many of us disagree over how best to manage that relationship.

But I believe that citizen involvement in deer management decisions—whether in providing feedback to local wildlife managers, engaging in processes like the citizen task forces, or creating a community-based deer program, are invaluable in managing our relationship with deer.

Hopefully, together we can find ways to coexist with deer into the future. And in New York State, we are trying.