Supervisors Say No to Additional Deer Hunts

The Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to oppose a plan by the state Department of Fish and Game that would allow additional deer hunting in the Cleveland National Forest area.

The state proposal called for up to three additional hunts this year that would have resulted in the deaths of up to 80 does.

County parks officials expressed concerns that the hunts would affect the area’s deer population and deprive mountain lions of a natural source of prey, causing them to enter developed areas.

County staff and supervisors also complained that the state was unable to provide solid evidence that additional hunting would not harm the local deer population.

“I see too much guessing and not enough data,” said Supervisor Thomas W. Wilson, who himself is a recreational hunter.

State wildlife biologists and several hunters defended the plan at Tuesday’s meeting, saying that the three hunts could actually benefit the surviving deer by easing competition for food.

“There is no scientific evidence to support opposing these hunts,” Anaheim Hills resident Dennis Anderson said.