Fighting for Big Mule Deer with Darby Finley

[robby denning]

Fighting for Big Mule Deer with Darby Finley

Robby hosts Darby Finley, Wildlife Biologist for Colorado Parks & Wildlife. Darby has fought Chronic Wasting Disease for over 20 years, and lays out some hard truths.

www.rokslide.com

One of the more important episodes we've done. I learned a bit more about CWD related to how it affects population numbers.

Darby also sent this pic of a big buck that later tested positive for CWD. I can't tell by looking at him...

 

[AHayes111]

Man is this timely. Just went round and round with CWD at the MT Mule Deer CAC

Will give it a listen when I get time.

 

[COelk89]

Good episode. Thank you for continuing to promote the science. I shot a cwd positive buck in one of the high prevalence white river units a few years ago. I believe it was 2nd season, healthy looking probably 2 or 3 yr old 4 pt. Was actually my first mule deer. He was with 2 does.

They changed the season structures for a reason and I feel I did my part that year to take a buck out. Hopefully these herds can get back to legendary status someday if we can figure it out because the can produce. I made an educated decision to eat the buck.

It is frustrating to hear people say things like it has always been here etc. That could be the case but the fact is in areas they have demonstrated that at certain prevalence and higher there become population level impacts from the disease. Like Darby pointed out, these deer are not just dying on a hiking trail or next to the road. Like any other disease in wildlife this needs to be managed and difficult decisions need to be made. I understand the landowners plight and economic dependence, but they are not the only ones with a vested interest in having sustainable deer and elk herds. Like a chicken farmer with bird flu outbreak, difficult decisions must be made.

I wonder regarding the coyotes if the hard winter kill last year boosted the populations. Coyotes can rapidly respond with huge litters of 10-12 when conditions are favorable. Hundreds if not thousands of deer and elk carcasses through winter would seem to be favorable for yotes.

The data we are getting from GPS collars these days feels like one of the few bright spots for the future of wildlife management. It is consistent.

 

[robby denning]

Good episode. Thank you for continuing to promote the science. I shot a cwd positive buck in one of the high prevalence white river units a few years ago. I believe it was 2nd season, healthy looking probably 2 or 3 yr old 4 pt. Was actually my first mule deer. He was with 2 does.

They changed the season structures for a reason and I feel I did my part that year to take a buck out. Hopefully these herds can get back to legendary status someday if we can figure it out because the can produce. I made an educated decision to eat the buck.

It is frustrating to hear people say things like it has always been here etc. That could be the case but the fact is in areas they have demonstrated that at certain prevalence and higher there become population level impacts from the disease. Like Darby pointed out, these deer are not just dying on a hiking trail or next to the road. Like any other disease in wildlife this needs to be managed and difficult decisions need to be made. I understand the landowners plight and economic dependence, but they are not the only ones with a vested interest in having sustainable deer and elk herds. Like a chicken farmer with bird flu outbreak, difficult decisions must be made.

I wonder regarding the coyotes if the hard winter kill last year boosted the populations. Coyotes can rapidly respond with huge litters of 10-12 when conditions are favorable. Hundreds if not thousands of deer and elk carcasses through winter would seem to be favorable for yotes.

The data we are getting from GPS collars these days feels like one of the few bright spots for the future of wildlife management. It is consistent.
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Hey! Thanks for chiming in with some first-hand experience. Much appreciated.

On your CWD buck, what cooking guidelines did you follow? Anything different than normal?

 

[COelk89]

Hey! Thanks for chiming in with some first-hand experience. Much appreciated.

On your CWD buck, what cooking guidelines did you follow? Anything different than normal?

I did not follow any guidelines because I don't know there are any. Most of the agencies, including CPW, recommend disposing and CPW will actually refund the cost of processing (or something like that) if you have a positive buck animal I believe. I believe this recomendation could be more based on the potential for a lawsuit if somehow the disease did jump and the agency had recommended to eat it. They just don't know. I say it was an educated because I do have a biology degree with some familiarity of the disease and I believe the disease is real and not a boogeyman!

The only "guideline" I followed was my own moral one of not to feed it to anyone else without informing them first, so I ate pretty much the whole thing myself. Yum...LOL.

 

[robby denning]

I did not follow any guidelines because I don't know there are any. Most of the agencies, including CPW, recommend disposing and CPW will actually refund the cost of processing (or something like that) if you have a positive buck animal I believe. I believe this recomendation could be more based on the potential for a lawsuit if somehow the disease did jump and the agency had recommended to eat it. They just don't know. I say it was an educated because I do have a biology degree with some familiarity of the disease and I believe the disease is real and not a boogeyman!

The only "guideline" I followed was my own moral one of not to feed it to anyone else without informing them first, so I ate pretty much the whole thing myself. Yum...LOL.

All right! Gives me some confidence if I ever tag a cwd buck.