Environment & Climate
Judge clears plan to cull Catalina Island's mule deer population
A tentative court ruling allows the Catalina Island Conservancy to begin a multiyear eradication plan aimed at protecting native plants and reducing fire risks.
The short version
- A California county judge tentatively denied a preliminary injunction, clearing the Catalina Island Conservancy to move ahead with eliminating nearly all of the island's estimated 2,000 mule deer.
- The eradication effort will span five years, starting with approximately 200 deer hunted over the next two months, followed by a final public hunting season from late October to mid-December.
- Ecologists argue the non-native deer decimate native flora and promote fast-burning invasive grasses, while opponents, including local officials and animal welfare advocates, have strongly protested the lethal cull.
Key facts
- A county judge tentatively denied a preliminary injunction filed by opponents attempting to block the deer eradication plan.[The Guardian]
- The California Department of Fish and Wildlife approved the Catalina Island Conservancy's restoration management permit in January.[The Guardian]
- The five-year plan aims to eliminate roughly 2,000 non-native mule deer, beginning with rifle hunting targeting an estimated 200 deer over two months.[The Guardian]
- The cull has faced vocal opposition, including a petition exceeding 32,000 signatures and a call from Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn asking Governor Gavin Newsom to intervene.[The Guardian]
- A limited number of deer near Avalon will be sterilized, and harvested meat will be supplied to local tribal groups and the California condor recovery program.[The Guardian]
What remains uncertain
- Whether the judge's tentative ruling will be modified before becoming a finalized order.[The Guardian]