Community Projects
Feral deer, ranging across private and publicly managed areas, demand collective community action. Individuals, property groups, organisations, and entire communities can actively participate in Community Feral Deer Management (CFDM). CFDM involves engaging the community in managing local feral deer impacts through a range of activities listed below. Consistent application of CFDM significantly reduces feral deer impacts, with communities playing a pivotal role in managing populations and contributing crucial data for a comprehensive understanding of deer spread.
Engage and collaborate with neighbours: Collaborate with neighbouring properties by forming groups to exchange ideas, share management strategies, and engage in conversations to understand neighbours’ concerns regarding feral deer impact on their property.
Develop a control plan: Create a property-scale control plan using resources from PestSmart to aid in planning and preparing effective pest control measures.
Utilise DeerScan App: Report deer sightings through the DeerScan App or website, where private groups can be formed to share information within the community.
Establish community groups: Create community groups to raise awareness, make community-led decisions on effective control methods, and engage other stakeholders (private, industry, and local government) in collaborative efforts. Whether dealing with a small or large feral deer population or addressing a new incursion, collaborative community efforts can make a significant impact.
Monitoring and control methods: Implement a wide range of methods and tools, including vegetation monitoring, public education programs, and implementing both removal and non-removal measures such as exclusion fences.
Whether there is a small or large established feral deer population, or a new incursion- you can make a difference by working together in a community.
Find out about community projects in your area
Group Name |
| What they do | Contact Details |
Centre for Invasive Species Solutions (CISS) | A national collaborative research, development and extension organisation, tackling the ongoing threat from invasive species. CISS brings together government, industry and research partners to develop coordinated and collaborative RD&E portfolios and innovation that meet national invasive species challenges.
Recently CISS have released the Annual costs of feral deer in Australia report and the Glovebox guide for managing feral deer Other documents include: Using exclusion fencing to manage feral deer impacts in Australia | Email: communications@invasives.com.au | |
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Group Name | Location | What they do | Contact Details |
Limestone Coast Landscape Board
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| As an entity, the Limestone Coast Landscape Board works with landholders to support the sustainable management of our landscapes – soil, water, pest plants and animals, and biodiversity. Underpinning this approach is the Landscape South Australia Act 2019. We estimate that there are roughly 24,000 feral deer in the region, and we are in the process of implementing a monitoring program to gain a better understanding of the scale of the problem.
The Board has coordinated a feral deer aerial shooting program since 2009, with two five-day aerial shooting programs being delivered in 2021 on both public and private lands.
We are also coordinating a professional ground shooting program on private lands, with the goal of extending this program as a trial to public lands in 2021.
Our control programs are funded through a variety of sources, with Landscape Levy funds, Commonwealth funds and occasional State Government grants or support.
Reason for control: Primary production, conservation, road safety.
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Group Name | Location | What they do | Contact Details |
The Northern Rivers Feral Deer Alert Project
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| A group of Councils has come together with the Tweed Landcare and Border Ranges-Richmond Valley Landcare networks to raise awareness in The Northern Rivers community.
Currently the region is listed as having absent feral deer; however, recent sightings indicate feral deer are present in low numbers.
We are working across a regional, cross tenure landscape that includes world heritage National parks, agricultural production, private, indigenous, and public lands. The project is being funded by the federal government (DAWE) until December 2021.
The project aims are to prevent the establishment of Feral Deer in the region, to protect the high diversity ecosystems, reduce the impacts to motorists and the public and preserve the regions strong agricultural presence. | |
Illawarra Wild Deer Management Program | Illawarra region of NSW – Wollongong, Shellharbour and Kiama Local Government Areas | The Program, one of the largest of its kind in Australia, aims to sustain a collaborative approach for the community to mitigate the negative impacts of deer across the Illawarra.
The Program goal will be achieved by focusing on four outcomes:
The Program is about suppression / reduction of large numbers of deer in the Illawarra along with asset protection:
Control is undertaken by Contractors appointed via tender process across land owned / managed by Councils, large public land holders through to private land managers. While Local Land Services provided a co-ordinator for the program, control is funded via contributions from Local Governments, large land holders (public and private), Government Statutory Bodies and Government grants.
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MidCoast Council | MidCoast Council is located on the mid north coast of NSW.
With deer control projects at Cattai (near Coopernook) and in the area between Old Bar and Green Point.
| MidCoast Council is part of a stakeholder working group implementing deer control in specific, high-priority locations.
The deer control programs respond to: 1. Controlling sambar deer on council-owned land at cattai, which is a regional deer control priority (sambar deer outlier) and human safety and environmental risk to a significant conservation reserve. 2. Manage deer in expanding peri-urban populations near coastal villages including Forster, Green Point and Hallidays Point, because this is a community priority and has safety risk management and environmental considerations.
In the last decade or so, feral deer have expanded their population and range significantly in the Council area and two regional control priorities are identified.
We work on Council-owned land mainly, but also with private land as well as a partnership with NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. We have received state funding support for our programs, which is combined with Council’s environmental rate funds and staff time in-kind.
Reason for control: road safety, conservation, and community issues
| Email: mathew.bell@midcoast.nsw.gov.au
Phone: Matt Bell on 0438 245 299 |
Stuart Town Biosecurity Group
| Stuart Town NSW
| Focused on wild dog, Pig and Deer control as well as weeds.
Deer numbers are the high in this area and the highest density population in the CWLLS district. We have reduced deer numbers with aerial shooting over the last 3 years but there are still pockets of deer where numbers are high where we have not been allowed to aerially shoot. The country is hilly grazing country running with a mix of private and public land that is leased to local landholders.
This group covers the area south of Burrendong Dam off the Macquarie River. We have had access to LLS Pest Levy funding for deer control though this is not a stable source of funding going forward.
| Phone: 0428 462 474 |
Group Name | Location | What they do | Contact Details |
Nillumbik Shire Council – Environment and Biodiversity | Shire of Nillumbik, north-east Melbourne, Victoria | Council provides a range of environmental services for the local community including land management education and advice, and on-ground works to support biodiversity, improve land management practices and control pest plants and animals.
Nillumbik has a mix of urban, rural, bushland and peri-urban landscapes, which makes control of deer complex. Numbers of deer are increasing steadily, with damage evident in many areas.
Council environment officers work with private landholders, neighbouring Councils, water authorities and Parks Victoria to assist with or lead delivery of deer management and control projects, which are usually funded by State and Federal grants. We also provide advice and some financial assistance to groups of residents working together to manage deer impacts on their land.
We undertake and support deer control to help protect biodiversity, water and agricultural assets, as well as increase road safety. |
Email: nillumbik@nillumbik.vic.gov.au
Phone: 9433 3111 |
Manningham Council | |||
Victorian Deer Control Community Network | The Victorian Deer Control Community Network will provide a platform for state-wide collaboration over matters related to feral deer. The purpose of the VDCCN is to substantially reduce the impact and distribution of feral deer in Victoria.
Our vision is that by 2030, a healthy and respectful collaboration of community, interest groups, institutions and government has resulted in the substantial and sustained reduction in the distribution of feral deer and the impact of feral deer on the community, environment, and the economy.
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Cardinia Deer Management Coalition | Beaconsfield Upper and surrounds | Our mission is to Connect community to protect Cardinia Creek catchment biodiversity through humane deer reduction. We are not a hunter group. We advocate, educate and work to help private landowners control deer on their properties. We have mainly fallow and sambar, both in large numbers. Our land is on the outskirts of Melbourne, a rural urban interface, with mainly smaller holdings but also some larger properties, all surrounded by extensive bushlands. Our funding comes mainly through grants, but a small amount through membership fees.
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Email: info@cardiniadeer.org.au |
Chum Creek Landcare | Chum Creek valley
| Our group has been focused on revegetating riparian areas, weed education and control biodiversity education and pest particularly deer control. Unless we fence or do deer culls our revegetation programs don’t survive. We work mainly on private land. Our funding is mainly from state sources
Reason for control: Conservation of revegetation and gardens |
Contact:
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Bunyip Landcare Group
| Bunyip, Tonimbuk
| Pest plant and animal control, revegetation, soil health. To the north we have Bunyip State Park with pig deer population
| Email: facilitator@wpcln.org.au
Phone: 0490 955 168 |
South Gippsland Landcare Network
| No program – received from landholders
| Focus landholder/farmer in South Gippsland. Particularly Bunurong Coast on farm deer sightings near PV. Work on mix public and private lands. Apply for variety of funding bodies
Reason for control: conservation, primary production
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Group Name | Location | What they do | Contact Details |
Watergum Community inc. | Watergum works predominantly in South East QLD but also has projects that extend into Northern NSW and Nationally
| Watergum is an action oriented, non-political organisation that links community and environment through on-ground work. We have an excellent business model and a governing committee which is a balanced mix of professionals, volunteers, and businesspeople. Careful planning guides our direction, and all decisions are underpinned by sound financial data.
Watergum is the umbrella organisation for environmental groups in the Gold Coast providing support, insurance and auspicing services for 48 member groups. Watergum has 6 year-round citizen science programs, organises 4-6 major environmental events annually and is currently managing and co-managing in excess of 20 restoration and rehabilitation projects.
Watergum does not coordinate a deer program at this time, however it is something that is of great concern to us and we are very interested in networking with others about possible collaboration in deer control. Our primary reason for starting a deer control initiative or collaborating with an existing initiative would be for conservation reasons.
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Email: invasivespecies@watergum.org |
Livingstone Shire Council, Pest Management. | Within the Shire of Livingstone
| Deer are spread out throughout the shire mostly in small, isolated populations in both rural and urban locations.
We are targeting deer in two ways. A ground control program on private land in specific locations where feral deer population are close to the main roads and a trapping program wherever we believe our trapping chances are most likely.
We have received $2000 from QPWS for the purchase of Deer Trap Gate (M.I.N.E Trapping System). Otherwise all funding is from our council.
Reasons for control: Road Safety, Conservation |
Group Name | Location | What they do | Contact Details |
Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area – Deer Control Project 2023 | Walls of Jerusalem National Park | The project goal is to trial thermal technology in the eradication of wild fallow deer within the WoJNP and reduce numbers of wild fallow deer within the CPCA to alleviate migration pressures into the WoJNP. |
Email: Deer.Project@parks.tas.gov.au |
Wild Fallow Deer Management Game Services Tasmania | 13 sites outside of the ‘sustainable hunting zone’ in eastern Tasmania | Game Services Tasmania have been working to estimate deer numbers and new distributions in priority control areas using a census, aerial surveys, FeralScan reports from the community, and camera traps Priority control areas were chosen based on the threats of deer to conservation, farm livelihoods, and public risk The population estimates will be used to guide strategies to eradicate deer in priority areas | Website Email: deermanagementplan@nre.gov.au |
Contribute to National Collaboration
A key approach to achieving the goals in our Action Plan are national coordination and collaboration.
This plan promotes a network of local and regional feral deer control leaders, who can drive coordination, motivation and best practice and share knowledge at local and regional scales.
We want to hear about your program and/or project, approach to monitoring impact to vegetation and how deer have impacted you. Please fill out the relevant forms below and send it to our email.