Dennis Anderson: In NE Minnesota, DNR staff, habitat and deer all decline

MINNEAPOLIS — Jeff Lightfoot was a northeast Minnesota Department of Natural Resources wildlife manager from 1980 to 2015. He first served as assistant area manager and deer habitat specialist in International Falls and later was area wildlife manager in Virginia, Minn., before being promoted to regional wildlife manager in Grand Rapids. In the interview below, Lightfoot said DNR office closings, staff reductions and the elimination of deer habitat efforts in the northeast are major reasons the region's whitetail numbers have plummeted.

— Q: Your first job was as a deer habitat specialist, a position the DNR no longer employs in the northeast.

— A: Throughout the 1970s there was a lot of concern, as there is today, about declining deer numbers, not only in the northeast but statewide. The '60s were deer-hunting glory days, but the population dropped off significantly, leading to a statewide closed season in 1971.

— Q: Were you the only deer habitat specialist in the northeast?

— A: There were six or seven of us. A group called Save Our Deer, the predecessor to the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association, with legislative support from Bob Lessard and others, got a $1 surcharge added to deer licenses. The money funded me and specialists in Grand Rapids, Virginia, Cloquet and Aitkin.

— Q: What were your responsibilities?

— A: To establish working relationships with DNR foresters, to influence timber sale locations and designs, and to design and develop deer habitat improvement projects. That had never been done before systematically. To facilitate this effort, the DNR had instituted a forest wildlife coordination policy, which was comprehensive.

— Q: What was the timber market like at the time?

— A: Near mills in the Falls or Grand Rapids, it was OK but not great. DNR Forestry had established annual harvests based on a statewide timber inventory. Those of us on the wildlife side made sure that regeneration plans were in place and that deer wintering areas were protected. We also wanted to make sure wildlife openings were created and seeded with a grass mix to feed deer in spring and fall. Ultimately, our goal was to influence the location, design and timing of timber harvests.

— Q: Did DNR Forestry buy into your efforts?

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