KENT COUNTY, Mich. — Sitting in the backseat of a truck, two researchers shone spotlights into front yards and side yards as they slowly drove down a residential road. Careful not to point the beams directly into houses, they scanned the darkened neighborhoods for deer.
For two weeks in December, a team from Grand Valley State University (GVSU) has conducted field-data collection in Kent County in an attempt to estimate the densities of its deer population. The research began Phase 2 of the Kent County Deer Management Coalition Project, a collaboration between townships, cities and the county meant to address concerns over deer-related car crashes and apparent overpopulation.
READ MORE: Deer Sheriff: Kent County road worker has picked up nearly 50,000 carcasses
“Our native landscapes are important to preserve,” said Rob Larson, an affiliate professor at GVSU. “Anytime a species is out of balance, it can have negative impacts on a system.”
On Tuesday night, Larson drove the marked truck while two others, Prof. Ali Locher and student Griffin Thompson, collected data.
When they spotted a deer, they’d stop, measure its distance from the truck and document its surroundings. Typically driving at a pace of less than 10 miles per hour, Larson often waved oncoming traffic around the truck as overhead flashers illuminated the route.
“So many times, we get so focused on small areas that we forget that landscapes, land covers are all interconnected,” said Larson, emphasizing the "holistic" approach being taken by GVSU and Kent County.
That night, Larson and his team worked in a neighborhood in north Grand Rapids. At the conclusion of the data collection on Dec. 16, GVSU will have covered 36 separate two- to five-mile sections of Kent County. In January, they’ll do it all again.
Kent County, Thompson says, "isn’t simply throwing darts at the wall, hoping something sticks. Through a research-based approached, it's setting itself up to find options for deer management that benefit not only the people but the environment.”
“I think it’s important to have the complete picture before decisions are made,” Larson added.
Phase 1 of the Kent County Deer Management Coalition Project included a public-opinion survey, which is open through Dec. 14. Click here to take the survey.
