Community Corner

Riverhead Deer Harvest Drops Slightly in 2011

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation releases 2011 deer intake numbers.

The numbers are in: The New York Department of Environmental Conservation has released deer harvest numbers, and while numbers were slightly down in Riverhead on the year, the deer take remained stable across the East End in 2011.

In Riverhead last year, 462 deer were harvested, with 546 in East Hampton, 142 on Shelter Island, 641 in Southampotn, and 382 in Southold.

The take in Riverhead was slightly down from the 493 deer tagged in 2010. All other five East End towns dropped off slightly as well, with 2010 seeing 394 tags in Southold, 189 on Shelter Island, and 654 in Southampton.

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Individuals can hunt deer on the East End, October through January, provided they have obtained a permit through the DEC.

Over the past two years, the Town of Riverhead has opened up hunting at Enterprise Park at Calverton, offering . Hunters reported as in 2011.

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According to Chip Hamilton, wildlife biologist for the DEC, the DEC has seen a steady increase in tag permits issued  — in 2010 1,300 tags were handed out. That number excludes nuisance permits that are given out to farmers.

There are about 200 nuisance permits handed out in Suffolk County each year, Hamilton said.

Hamilton said the rise in tags issued has a lot to do with the addition of locations to obtain the them; tags can now be obtained at town facilities in East Hampton, Shelter Island and Southold.

"We hope that Southampton will follow suit," he said.

Hamilton said there is no shortage of tags in Suffolk, which are managed by the number of kills the year before, because of its high deer population, which he said is starting to move westward because the size of the herd is expanding.

There are no accurate exact numbers on how many deer are on eastern Long Island, Hamilton said, though he added that the Village of East Hampton is working with the DEC on a project to count deer by using infrared cameras from the air.


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