DNR Announces 1st Plan to Manage Minnesota Deer Population

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) _ The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has outlined the state's first deer management plan.

The plan announced Tuesday seeks a target harvest of 200,000 whitetails. The plan is the result of a two-year effort that included meetings around Minnesota and input from a 19-member citizen advisory committee.

DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr says the agency has listened, "and the plan reflects that.''

The Minnesota Deer Hunters Association had advocated for a yearly target harvest of 225,000 deer. The plan calls for an annual harvest of 200,000 deer after DNR deer biologists pushed for a target of 190,000 deer.

The plan also calls for annual ``deer management discussions'' around Minnesota.

The DNR says responding to chronic wasting disease in Minnesota's wild deer herd will be a top priority.