It’s deer hunting season. On this edition of River to River, hunting concerns in Iowa, including the problem of poaching.
A substantial number of Iowa deer are taken illegally each year, which not only takes away deer from ethical hunters; but it's also a form of stealing, as it takes potential revenue from the state of Iowa.
"The economic impact overall is about $300 million from deer hunting activity," says Wildlife Research Supervisor at the Iowa DNR, Willie Suchy.
Suchy says the money spent on Iowa hunting licenses goes directly into wildlife activities, like law enforcement, research, water quality, and conservation.
Ben Kieffer talks with Suchy as well as Iowa DNR supervisor, Jeff Swearngin, and several hunters from around the state. They talk about poaching, deer populations, chronic wasting disease, and other deer hunting issues.
“If you can take white tailed deer, you can hunt any other game species there is in North America…they’re just that crafty,” says Elkader hunter Dan Beck. “They’re an extremely smart animal.”
