Economic Values of White-tailed Deer in Texas: Part II

Authors: Shraddha Hegde, Alison Lund, Jacob Dykes, Tammi Johnson, Angelica Lopez, Roel Lopez and Kevin Skow

The direct spending made by white­tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus; WTD) hunters and landowners generates economic contributions that cause a ripple effect, reaching beyond local economies. The primary goal of this report was to determine an annual measure of economic activity generated by WTD hunting in Texas. Using direct spending reported by stakeholder groups in our 2022 survey, we estimated the indirect and induced economic contributions and defined five types of economic activity for each: 1) number of jobs, 2) labor income, 3) value added, 4) tax revenues and 5) total economic output. Understanding the size of economic contribution WTD hunting plays in Texas is an important step in better defining management and policies that protect ecological and economic benefits garnered from this important resource. 

This report is part of a series evaluating the economic values of white-tailed deer from surveyed hunters and landowners. Read Part I here. 

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