A one-day hunt inside the perimeters of the Martha’s Vineyard Airport this week netted two deer, but more remain, acting airport manager Deborah Potter said.
“We would have preferred a higher tally,” Mrs. Potter said in an email to the Gazette Wednesday, one day after the controlled hunt. “A very rough estimate based on the reports I have received indicate that there may still be approximately four to five deer left that we will still be working on removing from the premises,” she said.
The airport was closed to flights from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday to allow the hunt to take place.
Mrs. Potter said it is unclear how the deer established themselves inside the airport perimeter fence. “I am not aware of any specific breaks in the fence over time so I would have to surmise that they either jumped the fence or are descendants of the few deer that remained after similar depredation occurred years ago,” she said.
There was only scant public notice about the airport closure and hunt. A standard Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) was filed with the FAA and displayed in brief abbreviations on the FAA website. There was no information on the airport website, and no information posted in the airport terminal. Airport staff, hangar owners and tenants, and airport commissioners were notified of the closure in an e-mail from Mrs. Potter on Dec. 1.
Aviation safety hazards from wildlife, including deer inside the airport perimeter, have been a point of contention with the Federal Aviation Administration following a series of inspections this spring and summer. The FAA gave airport management until Oct. 15 to submit a wildlife mitigation plan to correct the problem.
Mrs. Potter declined to provide the Gazette with a copy of the mitigation plan, because it has yet to be approved by the FAA.
According to airport officials, there was another hunt about two weeks ago during archery season, but they had no information about how many deer were taken.
The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife issued a special permit on Oct. 30 that allows the airport to arranged controlled hunts of many different birds and animals, including deer. There are a number of conditions. The permit holder is required to keep records of all wildlife taken under the permit, and provide a written report to the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife by Jan. 31, 2016. The permit encourages wildlife mitigation during hunting seasons.
Airport commission chairman Myron Garfinkle said managers coordinated the hunt with airport users to minimize disruption.
“To be super cautious we would make sure there were no planes, because now that we’re getting the deer to move, for all we know they could be moving toward the runway, which is not the plan,” Mr. Garfinkle said. “We felt it was safest to close.”
One of those inconvenienced was Mr. Garfinkle, who flew off-Island before the airport closed Tuesday. Late in the afternoon he was still on the mainland.
“I’m waiting here for the NOTAM to expire, so I can fly back home,” he said.
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