Another rant about cats and deer

Two species have a deleterious effect on Pennsylvania’s natural environment–cats and deer.  House cats kill millions of birds each year.  The Audubon Society reports that many bird species are in major decline, and one of the big reasons is cats.  We actually have a local organization that takes care of feral cats, raises money for them, and feeds them.  The cats are neutered, but neutered cats kill birds.  But the cates are so cute and furry and cuddly.  No, they aren’t.  They are killing machines.

And deer.  Tonight I counted 23 deer in our fields behind our house.  We rent out those fields to a friend and nearby farmer.  This year I will tell him not to pay me.  With a deer herd that big eating soybeans down to the ground, how can he make any money?  In the Poconos you can see though the forest.  There’s a “browse line.”  The deer eat all the vegetation as far as they can reach.  And people feed them!  But the fawns are so cute.  No, they aren’t.  They are destroying crops and forests.  The only natural predators are coyotes, and there aren’t nearly enough of them.