A few years ago, Gary Alt, a top wildlife biologist in Pennsylvania, had this idea: if the state managed its deer herd for the benefit of the entire ecosystem, everyone would win--bird watchers, grouse hunters, hikers, fishermen, land owners--but especially deer hunters, the state's most fervid outdoorspeople by a long shot.
Alt didn't invent ecosystem management, but for many state wildlife agencies it remains a revolutionary, poisonous treatise. What hunters want--deer, deer everywhere--isn't good for the ecosystem or even the quarry they pursue. Pennsylvania is a leading example of that conundrum. For decades, its hunters resisted efforts to reduce the deer...