Crossing The Watchable Wildlife Line

By Diane Tipton and

Tim Feldner, Montana

Fish, Wildlife and Parks

Montanans’ avid interest in watching wild animals can, for some folks, make the temptation to feed them nearly irresistible. While feeding birds, squirrels, and even raccoons is legal, feeding big game — deer, elk, moose, bear and such — is not. It is the law — big game animals may not be fed.

Even feeding wild birds and squirrels is a big responsibility that can have unexpected consequences. For example, sunflower seeds in a bird feeder are also attractive to other wildlife, including bears. Accidentally or purposefully feeding a bear is not only unlawful, but it can cause the bear to become too comfortable and even aggressive around humans. Most often these bears must be destroyed. Montana’s bear managers are very familiar with this sad sequence of events. If a female grizzly bear is involved it can even set back grizzly bear recovery in Montana.

The issue of feeding wildlife is further complicated for consumers by the easy availability in Montana of salt and mineral licks, grain, seeds and other foods that deer, elk, birds and rodents — to name a few — are happy to use. Sometimes these products are specifically advertised for deer.

When it comes to feeding wildlife and remaining within the law, the burden is on Montanans to know state law, to be savvy wildlife stewards, and to resist the power of advertising.

Wildlife managers say the main issue with feeding deer is that the animals tend to have more contact with each other than usual. That makes it easier for diseases to be transmitted from one animal to the other.

Imagine five or six deer licking up oats in shallow depressions made in the snow. One deer eats what it wants and moves on, the next animal comes to see what is left, licking the same spot in the snow. Saliva born diseases are transmitted on salt and other flavored animal licks in a similar way.

Wildlife managers identify brucellosis, chronic wasting disease and tuberculosis as some of the serious transmissible diseases that may affect deer grouped for feedings. Other less threatening but still debilitating diseases that spread from animal to animal may include various types of parasites and a wart that is fairly common in some urban deer populations.

Feeding big game animals can also disturb their seasonal migratory patterns and encourage unnatural groupings on the landscape.

Another compelling reason to think carefully about feeding even small wild creatures is the way nature’s food chain works. One wild animal appearing at the same time and place day after day for a hand-out will naturally attract its predators. For wild rabbits that might be coyotes, for deer it could be mountain lions.

So, don’t be misled about the law, or about what is best for Montana’s wildlife. There are good reasons why it is a violation of Montana law to attract and feed big game, and FWP issues citations to those who violate this law.