MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The warm weather and lack of snow are having a positive effect on Minnesota’s deer population.

The Big Game Coordinator for the Department of Natural Resources, Lou Cornicelli says the lack of snow and warm weather has made food abundant for the deer population.

“We’ll probably see more deer on the landscapes this year,” said Cornicelli. “But it’s pretty tough to notice after one season.”

NewsRadio 830 WCCO’s Edgar Linares Reports

Cornicelli says there are two contributing factors in the winter when it comes to the mortality of deer. They are “snow depth” and “temperatures.”

“Snow depth is far more important and deer are great at handling cold weather,” said Cornicelli. “What you often see when there’s a lack of any kind of winter or lack of nutritional stress, you’ll have deer going into the spring in better shape and you may see slightly higher fawn production.”

As for the Minnesota moose population the warm weather is not good news for them.

“They’re a cold adaptive species,” said Cornicelli. “In Minnesota, they’re on the southern end of the range. So, when the temperatures warmer they go through thermal stress and they’ll pant.”