In 1980, there were about 50,000 feral deer in Australia and by 2002 the population was estimated to have grown to 200,000. Now, the population is likely to have reached more than 2 million.
Saying it’ll be the “next rabbit” etc.
Knew we had them, never knew they were becoming such a huge pest.
They were becoming a pest up on the mid north coast 20 years ago when I was a kid, used to sneak up and nibble at stuff in the house paddock at night time (as an aside they make a weird noise when disturbed). Hate to think how many must be in the bush up there now.
More recently I’ve seen a few bouncing across the road heading through the forestry areas on the way to Bega. Hope they don’t become too common as hitting one would be even worse damage/safety wise than collecting a large kangaroo and I do go up and down that way reasonably often.