Archers eager for suburb hunt

CAPE ELIZABETH — Police in this affluent suburb were flooded Tuesday with inquiries from bow hunters eager to sign up for a rare opportunity to kill three deer apiece in an intensive hunt designed to reduce crop damage to shrubs and vegetables.

The town council voted 5-1 Monday night to allow the hunt, brushing aside objections from animal rights advocates who characterized it as “an inhumane slaughter” and called on farmers to explore other methods to thin the deer herd.

News of the council’s decision unleashed a torrent of calls to police from hunters seeking information about the two-month special season that begins Oct. 1.

The special bow hunt had previously been approved by the state Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. But town council approval also was needed because strict guidelines governing the hunt required enforcement by local authorities.

Hunters faced a deadline of midnight Wednesday to have their names placed in a town computer from which 120 names would be selected.

By Tuesday afternoon, about 700 people had signed up for the lottery, according to Police Capt. Edward Tolan.

“It’s nothing more than what a landowner can do when his property is destroyed by wildlife,” said Fred Hurley, director of resource management at Fisheries and Wildlife.

Details of the hunt were worked out by landowners, town officials and state regulators, who agreed to set a bag limit of three deer of either sex.

“The limit of three is something the parties involved felt was reasonable. But under a depredation permit, there is no limit,” Hurley explained.

Most hunters in Maine are limited to one buck, taken either with firearms or bow and arrow.

Hurley said deer were extremely abundant in Cape Elizabeth. “There are probably over 50 deer per square mile,” he said, and “that’s impacting nurseries, truck gardens and even shrubbery around private homes.”

Hunters will be required to hold a Maine license and must demonstrate proficiency with bow and arrow before being allowed to participate in the program, officials said.

“They’re not going to let anyone just off the street go in and slay deer,” said fish and game spokesman Paul Fournier.