Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department is hosting two deer management hunts at Griffy Lake on Nov. 15-16 and Nov. 22-23. The preserve will be closed to the public those two weekends.
Hiking, fishing, boating and other recreational activities will be prohibited during the hunts, which align with the DNR firearms hunting season.
The annual hunts started in 2017. Mary Welz, Bloomington’s natural resources manager, said the hunts were designed to mitigate overpopulation of white-tailed deer at the nature preserve.
“Deer were negatively impacting some of the native plant communities at Griffy, which has overall effects on diversity of plant life as well as diversity of wildlife,” Welz said.
In its first year, 62 deer were removed from the park. That number has largely decreased in the years since, with Welz saying the city expects around 20 this year.
The city is spending about $30,000 for the two-weekend hunt, which includes a contract with White Buffalo, the company that handles hunter background screening, event security, and staffing.
“We have a lot of deer pressure, and we don't have an alternative other than these managed hunts to keep that down,” Welz said.
Welz said the 24 participating hunters had to complete a background application, proficiency screening and safety screening before they were chosen. The application for next year’s management hunt will open in May or June.
