Queensland’S Newest Invasion: Feral Urban Deer

Abstract:
Deer are not endemic to Australia and, until recent decades, were not a major component of the landscape. With the collapse of deer farming in the 1990s, subsequent deliberate release and translocation of deer from defunct farms, feral deer numbers are increasing dramatically. Historically, only urban centres associated with Royal National Park (New South Wales) have had to contend with urban feral populations. Recently deer have begun to encroach into other urban areas, including South Eastern Queensland. We interviewed stakeholders associated with urban deer management and concluded that awareness was poor there was a need to strategically deal with this emerging issue.