Causes of the Endangerment of Key Deer

Key deer (odocoileus virginianus clavium) are a subspecies of the Virginia white-tailed deer. They are the smallest of all white-tailed deer; measuring approximately 24 to 32 inches high. Key deer are found only within Big Pine Key, Florida, and its surrounding areas. Since the establishment of the National Key Deer Refuge in 1957, the deer's population has increased and stabilized. Causes of the endangerment of Key deer are a direct result of a decrease in its habitat.

  1. Uncontrolled Hunting

    • Key deer populations were estimated at fewer than 50 in the 1940s because of uncontrolled hunting. Successful conservation efforts and an increase in law enforcement have resulted in the species becoming stabilized. As of 2000, population estimates were approximately 600 to 800 deer, with 75 percent of the animals being found on Big Pine and No Name Keys.

    Development and Tourism

    • Originally, Key deer inhabited the majority of Big Pine Keys. In the year 2000, human populations rose from 500 to 5,000, forcing the animals to search for food and water in outlying areas and into dangerous traffic. Because of the increase in human populations, development and tourism multiplied as well. The rapid decrease in the Key deer's habitat resulted in their isolation to a six mile area.

    Highway Mortality

    • Due to a severe decrease in the Key deer's habitat, highway mortality was a significant reason for its rapid decline. The deer crossed several busy roads and a major highway that connected the Florida Keys to the mainland in search of food and water. According to Defenders of Wildlife (defenders.org), from 1970 to 1992, a total of 1,023 road kills were recorded, of which 526 occurred along US-1 on Big Pine Key. As of 2000, highway mortaelity rates accounted for 50 percent of all key deer deaths.

    Disease

    • Diseases among Key deer include brain abscesses and stomach worms. Brain abscess is the result of a bacterial infection, which typically affects older Key deer bucks. Symptoms are expressed as decreased coordination, open sores on the body and head lesions. Key deer affected by brain abscesses are vulnerable to drowning and becoming victims of road kill. Large stomach worms attack the male and female Key deer equally; however, they are more commonly found in deer less than 1 year old.

    Other Factors

    • Other causes of the endangerment of Key deer include drowning, dog attacks and entanglement in private property fencing within its natural habitat. Typically, a male deer's survival is lower than a female's.

    Solutions

    • The National Key Deer Refuge (fws.gov/nationalkeydeer) was established to protect and preserve the Key deer. The refuge is in the lower Florida Keys and consists of approximately 9,200 acres of forests, marshes and wetlands. The habitat is critical to conservation efforts for the Key deer and its long-term survival. Since 2000, the Florida Department of Transportation (dot.state.fl.us) has implemented successful programs to protect the Key deer, including a no-passing zone, reduced speed limits and deer-crossing signs along roads and highways. As of 2011, the Florida Department of Transportation, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Key Deer Refuge began working together to create a wildlife crossing beneath a major highway in Big Pine Key, to enable the deer to safely pass through its habitat on both sides without becoming victims of highway mortality.