– There are more and more deer. It creates challenges for some farmers and landowners, says wildlife manager Pål Sindre Svae. Herds of deer have caused extensive damage to several fields in Indre Østfold. They subsist roughly on grass and grain. Now the municipality and the farmers will try to trick the deer into choosing another food dish. Local wildlife authorities have now planted their own areas for the wild animals. – The purpose is to try to get the deer to graze in a different area than where the cow will eat, says Svae. May lose more than half of the crop Even before today’s grain has been harvested, a farmer in Askim has sown the next crop, on top of the old one. The deer will get the next crop. The plan is to have an available deer pasture before winter and into spring. Pål Sindre Svare hopes the deer will like the new method. Photo: Stein Ove Korneliussen / news – In the municipality, the deer population is around 50. Some are GPS marked, but they will not arrive until winter. When they come, the challenges come, says the wildlife manager. In some places in Norway, farmers can lose more than half of their crops to deer, according to research at the University of Oslo. In Indre Østfold, they hope that the deer will prefer the new grain and leave the food grain alone. Deer researcher: – Exciting and new The project in Indre Østfold is being followed with interest by one of Norway’s foremost deer researchers. – It is exciting and new. Utilizing land that is usually used for grain production. I am not aware that this has been done in Norway before, says Erling Meisingset. He is a researcher at the Norwegian Institute for Bioeconomy (NIBIO). The farmers have adopted cover crops to maintain a green plant cover throughout the winter and spring. Photo: Stein Ove Korneliussen / news Meisingset is excited to see how the deer will react – he thinks it will depend on taste. – There must be such a high level of objectivity that the deer actually likes it. It remains to be seen, but the idea is very good. In Indre Østfold, they have used captive plants and seeded the field with a drone. They hope the oat mixture and rye will be to the liking of the deer. Good for the climate Game manager Svae believes that the measure we will reduce grazing damage. In addition, it also offers several benefits for the climate. – It provides better soil health. You get some air in the soil by having a plant cover there. Not least, it keeps the industry better. With a drone, the farmer in Askim has cultivated catch crops in the field to lure the deer here and away from the other grazing areas. Photo: Stein Ove Korneliussen / news Now he hopes that the method can be an inspiration to others in Norway. – There is great potential for offering deer game a pasture using captive breeding. In our areas there are deer, but elsewhere it may be roe deer or geese that are the challenge. Now we can perhaps start to think a little differently with regard to captive breeding, agriculture and game.
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Will lure the deer away from the field – news Oslo og Viken – Local news, TV and radio
