I grew up on Third Street behind the Sportsplex and the bush began just behind the alleyway. It was my playground. Our neighbour once shot a deer from his back step, but we never saw any deer in the bush as we travelled the area from Third Street to the tracks. Today walking the streets north of our family home, it is uncommon not to encounter any deer throughout most of the day. The deer have invaded our community.
Three deer walked slowly down the recently cleaned sidewalk in front of my home Monday evening, paused at Second street before crossing to the south side. They paused, unsure where they were heading but were not impacted by the several vehicles that passed them. On Tuesday evening heading to the west end of Fort Frances, we waited at the corner of Sunset Drive and McIrvine road as five deer meandered south toward the river.
Thursday afternoon, a large deer ran along the railway at the underpass heading east. It surprised me that it understood the railroad was clear of train traffic. I have watched as deer stopped on Scott Street to wait for the lights to turn green before crossing the street. They are at home in Fort Frances.
The urbanization of deer in Fort Frances is common not only across Northwestern Ontario, but also across much of North America and even in Australia. No solution exists to reduce the invasive urbanization of deer populations.
Dr Bernd Blossey of Cornell University has been studying the issue for over a decade to try and find solutions to the invasive species. Urban hunting and sterilization have been tried. Neither worked and their studies indicated continued growth in urban deer populations that created more problems within communities.
The Nature Conservancy several years ago said that the expanding deer population of Eastern United States might be a bigger issue than climate change of the ecology of the forests. As the number of deer per square mile has continued to increase so has the damage that they have incurred on forests and urban areas.
To protect my hedge and shrubbery I have fenced them off. My raised gardens are also fenced in and my Day Lilies seldom see the blossoms bloom. The deer are a pest.
A walk in the bush north of town, finds that the seedlings and grasses in spring are nipped as soon as they begin to grow, setting back regrowth. And those deer have discovered that life is protected in Fort Frances and its residents are providing feeding opportunities in flower beds, gardens and shrubbery.
Deer thrive better in an urban Fort Frances environment than in their natural habitat. They have no predators. Food is plentiful. And we have no solution to this invasive problem.
Former Publisher
Fort Frances Times
