| OCR Text |
Show Wildife Officers Study Damages From Game ) Animals in Utah f Wildlife biologists with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources have been coping with the problem of big game damage to agricultural crops for many years. Apple orchards have traditionally been a prime target for deer wintering in lower valleys throughout the state, and a source of continuing concern among orchard owners and wildlife managers. Problems associated with big game damage to orchards can be categorized into two areas. One area deals with attempting to control animals doing damage. The other assesses the dollar value of actual big game damage. Both areas have many unanswered questions. Control methods include fencing, frightening devices, chemical repellents, herding, luring deer to alternate areas, and killing depredating animals. Fencing is effective though very expensive; frightening devices, chemical repellents and herding are only temporarily effective and require constant attention; feeding in alternate areas appears to work reasonably well, but has several negative aspects including costs and congregating of animals; and hunter harvest of depredating 1 animals is effective but obviously E limited in its application. Some research is being conducted into ; control methods of Utah State University and elsewhere. Research involving damage assessment is sparse, partially due to the technical difficulties and also because, until recently, damage ' problems adn associated-costs were minor. However, since maximum damage payments were dramatically raised from $200 to $2000 per year by the 1977 Utah Legislature, accurate damage assessment has become very important. im-portant. Damage ' assessment methods currently used, although simple and relatively quick to apply, often result in disagreements about actual revenue losses between landowners and Division of Wildlife Resources personnel. Furthermore, little consideration is given to residual losses incurred two or more years after the initial orchard damage was inflicted. Clearly, a need exists to develop an accurate method which can be rapidly used by field personnel. |
