Dundee Township approves culling 20 deer for Salamander Springs
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ plan to cull 75 deer in Kane County to test for chronic wasting disease came one step closer to reality after the Dundee Township Board voted unanimously to allow 20 deer on township property to be killed for the testing.
According to Dan Ludwig, the IDNR regional wildlife biologist who made the presentation to the board, a diseased deer was found in the area of the nearby Binnie Forest Preserve sometime in December. That prompted a plan to test 75 white-tail deer within a 25-mile radius of where the diseased deer was found.
On Thursday night, the Dundee Township Board gave the IDNR permission to cull deer in its Salamander Springs site, a 100-acre nature area north of Binnie Road and east of the Binnie Forest Preserve, bordering Carpentersville’s western boundary. According to the township’s website, the property is a “passive recreation” area containing woods, ponds and wetlands, and with trails in the southern half but not readily accessible to the public in the northern half.
With the approval to kill and test 20 deer in the Salamander Springs area, the IDNR still needs to get permission to cull the other 55 targeted deer. The 25-mile targeted radius currently holds a population of 482 deer, officials have said.
With the permission to go ahead with testing, sharpshooters will come in and begin shooting deer sometime late this week or the following week. Ludwig said the collecting of the deer will go on until March 31. Sharpshooters will only be on site from late afternoon (4 to 5 p.m.) Monday through Thursday, said Ludwig, who stressed that safety will be the highest priority as personnel shoot and collect the deer.
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