51 impending extinction. It came close, but it stabilized and began to rise.15 They even began to restock deer into forests during the 1940’s and 1950’s. With that “Buck Only” laws were established, only allowing the hunting of bucks to save female deer. Today, they are back to even greater than their original numbers.16 The comeback is nothing short of amazing. In fact, it was so successful that hunting actually is helpful for the environment. Deer have become so plentiful that hunting now keeps their numbers as a much more sustainable number for the environment. There are many wildlife preserves and forests around the Fox River open for hunting during certain seasons.17 In fact, you can easily see deer in much of the bioregion. They opened the door to conservation. We are still feeling the effects of overhunting and the removal of habitat, but with the help of conservation, many species are making comebacks to the region. Otters, also facing extinction just like beavers, are making a comeback, and are prosperous in the rest of Illinois. Beavers too are making a historic comeback. Hunting has come from being a severely harmful and destructive practice, to more of an actually beneficial practice. It has had tremendous effects on the Fox River bioregion, but it is still improving. The bioregion has experienced much turmoil from hunting, but is beginning to stabilize and come back to a balance. We may never see it as it once was, but I like to take comfort in knowing that things are at least improving. 15 George, Emily. “The White-Tailed Deer: From Near-Extinction to Flourishment in the Southeast.” Realtree Camo, September 19, 2018. https://www.realtree.com/deer-hunting/galleries/the-white-tailed-deer-from-near-extinction-toflourishment-in-the-southeast. 16 Webb, Kent. “Estimated U.S. Deer Population, 1450 to 2016 Year 2000 to 2016 ...” 17 “Fox River National Wildlife Refuge.” FWS.gov. Accessed December 14, 2022. https://www.fws.gov/refuge/foxriver.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy Mjg3OTMy