09/16/2026
California approved wiping out Catalina Islandโs entire mule deer herd while families on the island are literally eating those same deer, and now Iโm being told the real cost could be closer to $2,000 PER DEER. A source familiar with the project, whose identity Iโm protecting, tells me internal discussions have put the actual cost close to $2,000 not the $200-$400 numbers being publicly discussed. Meanwhile, instead of expanding hunting, selling tags and letting people turn these deer into food, California approved professional crews killing them at night as part of a plan to eventually remove every deer from the island.
But this is California, so it gets worse. Alison Wrigley Rusack is chair of the Catalina Island Conservancyโs and co-owns Rusack Vineyards. Her family retained El Rancho Escondido, where the Catalina vineyard sits, and published reporting has specifically documented deer as one of the animals eating their grapes. That relationship is real, and when an organization is pushing to eliminate every deer while one of its prominent benefactor leaders owns a vineyard that has had problems with those deer, the conflict-of-interest is obvious.
This is California in a nutshell. Families are hunting these deer and putting venison on their dinner tables, while wealthy interests want the deer gone and the state approves complete eradication. California has already shown us how spectacularly expensive government-backed projects can become, its high-speed rail project has consumed billions without carrying a passenger yet, and now Iโm being told this deer removal could approach $2,000 an animal. Why not expand access, sell the tags, bring hunters in and turn thousands of pounds of venison into food? This looks a whole lot more like powerful interests getting their way while everyday families lose a hunting tradition and a food source.
โ Stephen Ziegler
Outdoor writer | Rack Junkies Podcast
