Tick Free Martha’s Vineyard (Tick Free MV) is hosting a public briefing and panel discussion on the aerial deer survey results later this month.
Panelists include Martin Feehan, deer and moose biologist at the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife), and Patrick Roden-Reynolds, public health biologist and director for the MV Tick Program. The panel will be moderated by Virginia Barbatti, executive director of Tick Free MV, and more panelists will be announced.
Tick Free MV commissioned the study and publicly released the report in mid-April. The survey was conducted by independent conservation nonprofit White Buffalo, which flew drones from more than 100 spots across the Island from mid-February to mid-March, and confirmed that the density of deer on the Island is approximately 53 per square mile. Certain hot spots, however, such as in Chilmark and Aquinnah, have two to three times higher densities of deer compared to other parts of the Vineyard.
The briefing and discussion is scheduled for Thursday, April 30 from 2 to 3 pm at the Agricultural Hall in West Tisbury.
The public can submit questions in advance at info@tickfreemv.org. The event will also be recorded and available for viewing at a later date.