The deer herd that resides within McCall’s city limits is once again up for discussion.
Idaho Fish and Game gave a presentation to McCall City Council, warning that the deer problem could get worse.
Through surveys done over the winter, Fish and Game now estimate the in-town deer population to be at least 258. It was noted that there is a high fawn-to-doe ratio, meaning the herd is growing.
“We learned that we have a minimum of 258 deer living in town during winter. We observed that they’re quite habituated to people,” Regan Berkley of Fish and Game said. “…We saw a very high fawn to doe a ratio… But the essence of what that means is this is a growing deer herd. The fawn-doe ratio that we observed here in town is nearly twice what we usually see at that same time in winter range on our natural herds.”
Fish and Game has recently taken 40-plus calls from people reporting dead/injured deer. Berkley said this number is likely higher as the McCall Police Department is also receiving reports.
The problem & past measures
There was a trapping effort in late January in Cascade led by Fish and Game. It was stopped after 75% of the 20 captured deer had exotic lice. Berkley said there is “no reasonable medication or treatment” for this.
“Those had exotic lice and had to be euthanized. We did not go into that as a euthanasia effort. We went into it with the hopes that we would be able to translocate most of the deer that we laid hands on. That turned out not to be the case,” Berkley said. “We stopped trapping after two days to regroup.”
There have been two cases of exotic lice found in McCall deer – this prevents relocation to winter range. In addition to spreading lice, there is also concern about the growing mountain lion population from the influx of deer.
Fish and Game have received over 50 reports of mountain lions since mid-January, most of which have been spotted around Rio Vista Boulevard and Spring Mountain Ranch.
“It is not atypical for us to have some reports of mountain lions in town any given winter we get a couple here or there. This winter has been remarkable,” Berkley said.
More issues that come from feeding include deer getting trapped in things like hammocks and Christmas lights, and aggressive deer.
“Although not exclusively, it is mama deer that likely have a fawn stashed nearby that no one can see because that’s how they deal with their fawn….then when someone comes walking along unwittingly with their dog, we get reports of dogs being threatened and or actually stomped by deer nearly every year,” Berkley said. “…We do occasionally have deer actually being threatening towards people – not letting people get in their front door and that sort of thing.”
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‘Not a simple fix’
Fish and Game Southwest Region Supervisor Josh Royse said the deer population is still growing “rapidly” and called this concerning.
“This is not a simple fix,” Royse said. “Whatever you do, it is not going to be a simple overnight fix. Working with other communities, we know that we try to keep feeding from occurring…Then we start to see an increase – we hit sort of critical mass, which this deer population hasn’t yet. It’s still growing rapidly, which is very concerning.”
The city has taken some preventive measures previously. Back in 2021, the McCall City Council voted 3-2 in favor of a feeding ban.
“People haven’t voluntarily stopped feeding the animals. The herds increasing; people are feeding them,” council member Mike Maciaszek said. “You can see people feeding them any day of the week throughout town. That being said, I think that more solution based from our community is important because that’s important to our community.”
On May 4 in the McCall-Donnelly High School gym at 5:30 p.m., the city will hold a town hall to allow citizens to comment on the town deer.
“I think engaging with our community on this is probably the most important thing we are doing. Everyone acknowledges that there is a problem and will likely get worse unless we do something, “council member Colby Nielsen said.
