- Dates
- 1962-04-12 – 1962-05
- Kind
- Conservation
- Where
- Beaver Island
- Carried out by
- Vernon Fitzpatrick
- Eras
- Modern era
- Concepts
- conservationenvironmentgovernance
- Within
- Beaver Island
Summary
On April 12, 1962, Vernon Fitzpatrick reported seeing a doe and fawn near the fishing-site entrance. The yearling fawn became impaled on a fence and died; Fitzpatrick reported a 60-pound weight against an expected 100–110 pounds and described physical signs he interpreted as starvation. He proposed either harvesting the herd to about 500 annually or improving deer yards through tree cutting and controlled burning.
Evidence and limits
The account preserves a local officer’s observation and recommendations. It does not establish a formal herd census, a medical or veterinary diagnosis, a management decision, or implementation of either proposal.
Sources
- Reports Fitzpatrick seeing a doe and fawn on April 12 near the fishing-site entrance, the fawn becoming impaled and breaking its neck, and the yearling weighing 60 pounds against an expected 100–110 pounds. It also records his accounts of browsed deer-yard vegetation and two proposed responses: reducing the herd to about 500 annually or improving range through tree cutting and controlled burning. These are reported observations and recommendations, not a formal wildlife survey or implemented program.data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1962-05_Beaver-Beacon
- The held six-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1962-05_Beaver-Beacon
Added 1 August 2026 · revised 3 August 2026. Recent changes
Cite this article
Beaver Island Archive, “Vernon Fitzpatrick reports a starvation-affected deer fawn and range-management proposals, 1962”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/events/beaver-island-deer-starvation-and-range-management-1962/, accessed [date], citing Beaver Beacon, May 1962, “Sports.” (and 1 further source listed on the page).
Last revised 2026-08-03. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.
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