Wildlife crop damage a concern for farmers
As Rich Burd sat at the kitchen table the other night, he looked out the window and was taken aback at what he saw.
无毛视频淭here were 14 deer eating soybeans,无毛视频� said Burd, who grows corn and soybeans on his 1,100-acre Burd Farms in Fayette County. 无毛视频淭hey are a scourge. Crop damage from deer has exploded, especially in the past two years. They are eating our crops at a rate I无毛视频檝e never seen.无毛视频�
Crop damage from wildlife 无毛视频� especially deer 无毛视频� is a major concern for farmers across Pennsylvania. It ranks among the top states in the country experiencing crop losses due to wildlife damage.
According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, farmers in Pennsylvania lost more than $20 million on corn and $15 million on soybeans in 2017 alone.
Burd estimates that last year he lost $175,000 in crops due to deer.
Jim Lindley sees the damage caused by deer every day as he walks among the rows of corn on his farm in Scenery Hill, Washington County.
无毛视频淭hey无毛视频檙e a huge problem. They无毛视频檙e everywhere. They无毛视频檙e tucked down in there all the time. We无毛视频檙e seeing so many more deer, and they无毛视频檙e foraging on entire farms. It无毛视频檚 putting so many farmers in dire straits,无毛视频� said Lindley, who said he lost approximately $200,000 on his soybean and corn crops last year.
Mark Duda, owner of Duda无毛视频檚 Farm Inc. in Fayette County, has experienced significant crop damage from the deer.
无毛视频淭he deer issue is literally catastrophic. I无毛视频檓 worried about growing food in our area. It无毛视频檚 as bad as I无毛视频檝e ever seen,无毛视频� said Duda. 无毛视频淭he population is growing and they are eating more and more crops. It无毛视频檚 almost overwhelming.无毛视频�
Duda also is contending with crows and other birds that have destroyed watermelons and tomatoes.
无毛视频淓verywhere you look, you see holes in the watermelons,无毛视频� said Duda. 无毛视频淭housands of watermelons are destroyed. Same with corn. The birds fly down and land on top of the ear and they peck it.无毛视频�
Burd said woodchucks used to be the biggest wildlife problem on his farm.
无毛视频淏ut the deer problem is so bad now. They are eating us out of house and home,无毛视频� said Burd. 无毛视频淒eer are coming in and eating half of your paycheck.无毛视频�
The Pennsylvania Game Commission runs an Agricultural Deer Control (AG Tag) Program that authorizes farmers to enlist the aid of hunters to remove antlerless deer causing damage on their farms. The permit is valid from Aug. 1 to Sept. 15 and Feb. 1 to April 15, excluding Sundays.
In July, the Senate approved a bill to allow more Sundays for hunting and to create an agriculture access permit list of hunters who are willing to help farmers address crop damage problems.
While some farmers are putting up fencing, it can be cost-prohibitive. Other farmers are using wildlife propane cannons 无毛视频� a device that produces a boom, similar to the sound of a cannon 无毛视频� to scare off deer and other wildlife that eat their crops.
On Friday morning, J.R. Lindley, who farms with his dad, Jim, toured a 28-acre soybean field and a 15-acre corn field they farm.
无毛视频淚 was out here last night and we saw 30 deer,无毛视频� he said as he leaned down to look at soybean plants that had been eaten by the deer. He pointed to a woodchuck hole nearby and stood up to point out turkeys walking through the upper field. 无毛视频淚 can tolerate groundhogs; they don无毛视频檛 hurt as much. But when you see 30 or 40 deer walking through eating every single plant, it frustrates you. Wildlife is the most destructive thing.无毛视频�
The swelling deer population and other challenges, including drought, are causing some to reconsider farming, although Burd, who loves farming, isn无毛视频檛 one of them.
无毛视频淚 have a friend in Greene County who quit and offered all his land to a neighbor and his neighbor said, 无毛视频榃hy would I want more land to farm?'无毛视频� said Burd. 无毛视频淲ith the deer, it无毛视频檚 just an epidemic. And now, to add insult to injury, we have this horrible drought. This is my 51st crop, so I无毛视频檝e seen a bunch of stuff in my lifetime, and this is a bad one. This is going to put some people out of business.无毛视频�
Lisa Wherry, president of the Washington County chapter of the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, said farmers and legislators need to work together to find a solution to the deer problem.
无毛视频淪omething has to be done now because it无毛视频檚 really out of control. It无毛视频檚 affecting yields, farmers are not making a profit and if they无毛视频檙e not making a profit, they无毛视频檙e not turning over for next year either,无毛视频� said Wherry. 无毛视频淲e无毛视频檙e trying to work with the Game Commission and local legislators and they need to understand how important it is to get the deer population under control.无毛视频�
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