Summary Report

2023 Yarra Ranges Shire Deer Cull in Steels Creek

Executive Summary:

This report details the successful execution of the 2023 Yarra Ranges Shire Deer Cull program within Steels Creek, specifically focusing on the culling of 46 deer from over 100 sighted across 16 properties. The implementation of thermal drones, community engagement, and positive outcomes are highlighted, along with identified opportunities for improvement to enhance future culling initiatives. 

Whilst this report is focused on Steels Creek, it's interesting to note Chum Creek Landcare have a local program using local shooters that’s been successfully running for the last few years achieving comparable cull numbers of 40 over a 6 month period with similar participant support and very positive feedback making the final cull numbers 86 across the broader local area.

The Yarra Ranges Shire program for 2023 has focused on multiple areas including Steels, Dixon & Chum Creek, Healesville, Coldstream, Yellingbo and parts of the Dandenong's with some good initial outcomes.  They are also working with adjoining local councils and Parks Victoria to achieve greater overall results and recognise programs across the entire state will need many years of effort to significantly see less deer numbers damaging our environment, farming, cultural and social areas. Yarra Ranges had 34 control nights achieving a reduction of 221 deer from 545 identified within the control areas (which includes the Steels Creek stats).  Species identified are Samba and Fellow at a 2.5:1 ratio.

Key Achievements:

1. Thermal Drone Demonstration:

   The utilization of thermal drones proved highly successful, enhancing the precision and effectiveness of the deer culling operation conducted on 5 nights within a 5 week timeframe.  The drone demonstration identified 20 deer within the first 10 minutes and the provision of thermal monocular's to the audience to scan the surrounding area was highly rated as it provided an excellent opportunity to see firsthand how well the technology functions within the hands of experienced users.

2. Community Engagement:

   An impressive 87% of property owners (14 out of the 16 properties) participated for the first time in deer culling, emphasizing a high level of effort from the Steels Creek Landcare committee with the community for support and involvement in addressing the challenge of deer overpopulation and the various issues impacting the area.

3. Communication and Shooter Behaviour:

   All participating property owners expressed a high degree of satisfaction with the behaviour and communication exhibited by the 4 professional shooters, fostering positive relationships and trust within the community.

4. Future Participation:

   A unanimous 100% of property owners conveyed their willingness to participate in future culling programs, showcasing a strong commitment to ongoing initiatives and the positive experience with the shooters.  All participants agreed that a Shire run program with completed background checks formed a major part in wanting to become involved.

5. Common Reasons for Culling:

   Property owners shared common motivations for participating, including the reduction of the deer population for environmental, biosecurity and community benefits, and the strategic goal of minimizing increasing numbers of illegal shooters entering the area which is an issue state wide where deer are prevalent.

6. Efficiency in Timeframe:

   The cull achieved a good reduction of deer over a short timeframe, conducted on five nights over five weeks, demonstrating efficiency and effectiveness.  All deer were removed and sent for further processing as premium dogfood to ensure no waste.

Opportunities for Improvement:

• Extended Timeframes:

  Evaluate the potential benefits of longer timeframes between each cull visit, allowing for a more strategic approach to deer population control as it will likely achieve a higher cull result due to a greater number of deer returning to the area.

  Larger Cull Area:

• Explore the possibility of expanding the cull area across the length of Steels Creek rather than just a small pocket to address a wider range of ecological, agricultural and community concerns.

• Seek more property owners wanting to participate with the aim of grouping access together for a larger consolidated area for the cullers, making it an easier culling effort, potentially optimizing resources and achieving higher cull numbers.

Recommendations:

• Community Consultation: Further engagement with the Steels Creek community to discuss and implement changes to culling strategies, seek further landholder support and participation and ensuring community input and support.

• Collaboration with Yarra Ranges Shire: Work with the Shire's program manager to seek confirmation if further funding for the program in 2024/2025 has been approved and assess the feasibility and impact of expanding the cull area and longer time frames between visits.

• Collaboration with private cullers: Look at options of providing a list of cullers others have used in the area (with positive reviews/feedback) that landholders can privately engage particularly if funding for the program is not available.  This has been a successful model utilised by the Chum Creek Landcare area for several years on a small scale.

• Expanding community consultation into Dixon Creek:   Look at opportunities to expand and reach out to the Dixon Creek community which had an initial poor response partially due to tight timeframes for the initial engagement.

Observations:

• The 2022 Deer survey had 83% (59) of responses expressing a desire to participate in future deer culls with 60% having never performed this activity.  The 2023 program had 16 participants and potentially indicates a lot of respondents are waiting to see how the program went and more importantly what was the feedback from those involved. 

Conclusion:

The Yarra Ranges Shire Deer Cull in Steels Creek has been a success, with very strong support and positive outcomes from those in the community that participated. The identified opportunities for improvement present avenues for enhancing future culling initiatives to ensuring sustained success over a long term multi-year program in addressing the challenges posed by deer overpopulation. (dependent of further government funding and/or engagement of other private cullers)