UK must cull 50% of deer population to save woods

Half of the Britain's deer population needs to be culled to preserve woodlands and birdlife, said a scientific study published on Thursday. The Journal of Wildlife Management report claimed that the current population of 1.5 million was unsustainable and causing serious damage to woodlands. The University of East Anglia researchers called for a tightly-regulated venison market to be created to deal with the cull. "We know deer are eating out the... vegetation of important woodlands, including ancient woodlands," said university ecologist Paul Dolman, "Deer are implicated as the major cause of unfavourable conditions in terms of woodland structure and regeneration. "There is evidence that deer reduce the number of woodland birds - especially some of our much loved migrant birds species like Blackcap and Nightingale, and resident species like Willow Tip," he added. "We have a problem." The Royal Society for the Protection of Animals demanded that any cull be humane, controlled and backed by "strong science".