The DWR translocation of urban deer program that brought city deer to live in the Uintah Basin and other rural areas of the state has been discontinued. According to the announcement by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, the decision was made in order to limit the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease. The program received significant media coverage since its launch in 2014 as it provided Utah’s urban cities with a non-lethal option for wildlife removal. “A recent DWR study tracked the deer that were removed from urban areas and relocated,” shares the announcement. “It found that about half of the deer did not survive after being relocated. In contrast, the average mule deer adult survival across the West is around 85%. Rather than having a large portion of the animals die after relocation, lethally removing them allows the meat to be utilized to help people in need.” For more information about the DWR decision, visit
www.wildlife.utah.gov
.
