photo #9428734

California approved wiping out Catalina Island’s entire mule deer herd while families on the island are literally eating those same deer, and now I’m being told the real cost will be $2,000 PER DEER. A source familiar with the project, whose identity is being protected, says internal discussions have placed the potential cost near $2,000 per animal, rather than the $200–$400 figures publicly discussed. Instead of expanding hunting opportunities, selling additional tags, and allowing families to use the venison, California approved a plan to eliminate every deer on the island using professional wildlife removal crews. But there is another interesting connection. Alison Wrigley Rusack is chair of the Catalina Island Conservancy, the organization behind the eradication plan, and co-owns Rusack Vineyards. Published reporting has documented deer feeding on grapes there. The Conservancy says the eradication is necessary to protect native plants and restore the island’s ecosystem. However, the connection between its leadership and a vineyard that has experienced deer damage is a clear conflicts of interest. Meanwhile, families who have hunted these deer for generations are facing the permanent loss of a hunting tradition and food source. The reported $2,000-per-deer cost has not been independently verified through public financial records, but it raises another question. Why spend that kind of money killing deer when hunters could help manage the population and put thousands of pounds of venison on dinner tables? The controversy isn’t just about removing deer. It’s about who benefits from wildlife management decisions, who pays for them, and why hunters are being pushed out of the equation. — Stephen Ziegler Outdoor writer | Owner, DeLong Lures See less