WEST SENECA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Regular deer hunting season begins Saturday and runs through December 7 in New York's southern zone, marked in blue on state maps. Beyond being a popular sport, this hunting period plays a critical role in controlling deer populations that cause significant problems across the state.
New York sees over 70,000 car-deer related crashes every year. Deer are also responsible for nearly $60 million in crop damage annually, and they carry ticks that can cause Lyme disease in humans.
These mounting concerns have prompted communities like West Seneca and East Aurora to develop plans to curb their local deer populations.
In West Seneca, the town board just approved doubling its budget from last year for deer control, bringing the total from $9,000 to $20,000 for next year.
It's a small step for a town dealing with a major problem, as residents report deer running rampant in the community. Town Supervisor Gary Dickson says they're stepping up control efforts.
"We get a lot of complaints about them," Dickson said. "Some people don't want us to do anything. At least as many, if not more, appreciate the town is taking some steps."
Those steps include bringing on eight nuisance wildlife operators, all licensed by the DEC, to help control the deer population. The deer are killed and then eventually processed for food.
"All the meat is donated to FeedMore and then FeedMore distributes the venison to food banks that ask for the meat," Dickson said.
About 10 miles away, the Village of East Aurora hopes to find a similar approach to control a growing deer problem in their community.
WATCH: Western New York communities tackle problems with growing deer population
Police Chief Patrick Welch says geography presents challenges for their deer management efforts.
"The Village of East Aurora doesn't have many places at all to safely discharge a firearm for the purposes of hunting or running a deer population program," Welch said.
Right now, the village doesn't have a deer control plan, but it's something they're working on after numerous complaints. Welch says it could be costly if officers get involved to help control the deer.
"We haven't gotten that far yet. I take guidance from the village board. They ultimately get to decide if a program like this takes place," Welch said.
Village of East Aurora officials say they're still trying to figure out how to move forward with developing a program to get this growing issue under control. West Seneca officials say they're hoping to sharply reduce the number of deer in the area.
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