Although many Bellingham residents say they treasure their hooved neighbors, living alongside urban deer isn’t always easy, as evidenced by tall fences around yards and cages around precious gardens.
Controlling the population isn’t a simple task, either. Urban deer are notoriously difficult for state agencies to manage due to their dense populations and close ties with human-made habitats.
The deer on Bellingham’s streets are Columbian black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus), a subspecies of mule deer and the most common deer subspecies in Washington. They are native to Western Washington and normally inhabit coniferous forest, though they’re also partial to brushy and disturbed areas, such as recently logged forests. But that changed when human settlements began encroaching on these habitats.
Robert Waddell, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife district wildlife biologist for Whatcom and Skagit Counties, said deer are surprisingly well-suited for urban life.
“Deer are very adaptable,” Waddell said. “They see [urban areas] as a place they can take advantage of, if you will, and so a lot of these deer then start to raise young in urban areas.”
After generations of raising young in the city, most of the deer in Bellingham are now what is known as “resident” deer, or ones that have spent their entire lives in urban settings. These deer now forage, mate and raise fawns in between peoples’ backyards.
Still, experts are unsure how many deer are in Bellingham, largely because getting population estimates is tricky.
“[The deer] are a very difficult animal to survey because of the dense vegetation they live in,” Waddell said. “So where with something like elk we could just get into a helicopter and conduct a pretty good survey … we just can’t do that with black-tailed deer.”
WDFW is working on other methods of getting population estimates, such as trail camera surveys. In the meantime, whether they’re overpopulated or not remains unknown. Waddell said it wouldn’t be surprising though, due to the few natural predators and lack of human hunting pressure in cities.
At first glance, it would appear urban deer have integrated seamlessly into Bellingham life. Deer have been rumored to use crosswalks and even look both ways before crossing the street. (Waddell said while deer are savvy at avoiding cars, they probably don’t think of street crossings the same way humans do.) They also become acclimated to human presence more quickly than other wildlife, to the delight of some residents, and the chagrin of others.
“We love the deer,” said Melanie Whitley, a resident of the Geneva neighborhood. “It is a wonder to see nature up close, and they bring us so much joy.”
Roxanne Nelson, who lives in Sudden Valley, isn’t as enthused. Keeping the deer at bay is a constant battle, she said.
“When I first moved here, I didn’t know just how destructive the deer can be to your yard and garden,” Nelson said. “[Fences] are a necessity here if you want to grow stuff.”
Vehicle-deer collisions are also a risk in areas with large numbers of deer — especially at night when visibility is low — and can be deadly for all parties involved.
Another less widely discussed problem is that of overbrowsing, Waddell noted. Deer prefer to eat smaller bushes and trees, so areas undergoing ecological restoration can be set back or even halted by deer destroying native plantings. This behavior can have far-reaching ecological consequences: one study found that deer browsing hurt native butterfly populations by depriving caterpillars of their host plants.
“People don’t think about those [ecological] impacts,” Waddell said. “They may have an affinity for a certain species and say, ‘Hey, I love deer, I want to see them.’ I love seeing deer too, but if you’re potentially contributing to higher numbers [through feeding], that will have impacts on other species, and you will start to see some damage to habitats.”
Living alongside urban deer
Urban deer management is difficult, but experts agree on one thing citizens can do to help both themselves and their hooved neighbors: Don’t feed the deer.
“That’s my biggest message,” Waddell said. “It wouldn’t alleviate every problem, but boy, I think it would make a positive impact — not only for people but also for the deer.”
Feeding deer can lead to a multitude of issues. Most of the things people feed deer are not part of their natural diet and can hurt or even kill them — even if the deer appears to willingly consume it. It can also make them less afraid of humans, increasing the risk of an aggressive buck or mother attacking people or pets.
Waddell said one of the biggest threats urban deer face from human feeding is disease, which can be spread by multiple deer coming back to feed in the same backyard. Think: a buffet during a pandemic.
“You’re creating the perfect conditions for disease,” Waddell said. “We had an outbreak of adenovirus hemorrhagic disease in 2021 … and one of the biggest messages we were trying to get out during that outbreak was please stop feeding the deer. You are helping with the spread.”
WDFW is currently concerned about chronic wasting disease, a deadly illness of deer and related animals such as elk and moose that has spread around the country and was recently detected in Eastern Washington. Waddell said if the disease were to make it to Western Washington, feeding could lead to a mass outbreak in the urban deer population.
Future of urban deer
The future of Bellingham’s urban deer lies in the hands of its residents. Waddell explained it would be infeasible for WDFW to manage deer populations in urban areas using traditional methods like sharpshooting or controlled hunts.
Instead, Waddell favors community management plans, common in some East Coast cities.
This means citizens come together to:
- Assess the impacts deer have in the community. These can be negative, such as destruction of gardens and natural spaces, or positive impacts, like feeling connected to wildlife.
- Gather opinions from citizens on what they think should be done.
- Make a management plan that addresses those goals, with support from local agencies (WDFW in this case).
“I personally think these community-based deer plans have the best chances for success,” Waddell said. “It’s not that we [WDFW] don’t feel like making the effort [to step in] … it’s going to have to involve the communities as a whole coming together and working with us to address these situations. There is no cookie-cutter approach.”
Waddell recommended people interested in building deer management plans first look into Community Deer Advisor, a collection of resources published by Cornell University geared toward educating concerned citizens on urban deer management.
Ben Long is an environmental/science reporter, placed at CDN through the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Mass Media Fellowship. Reach him at benlong@cascadiadaily.com.
