DeerHQ

Deer management decision support

Deer management at scale.

Deer don't stop at the boundary fence. DeerHQ shows where it matters, how hard it is and who is involved across a whole deer range, then helps plan the cull, the fencing and the forest. Every estimate carries its uncertainty.

Register interest See how it fits
ForestsEstatesLandscapes & catchmentsEarly-stage product

How it fits together

Nine capabilities, one loop.

Data builds a picture of the landscape. The picture drives decisions. Records of what happens on the ground are imported and tracked, and they update the density estimates and the plan.

How DeerHQ's nine capabilities fit together Public data and your own records, imported in any format (culls, drone thermal, pellet and camera counts, impact surveys) are imported into the landscape picture: 1 sensitive habitats and priority areas, 2 density estimates, 3 difficulty maps and 4 landowners. These inform decisions: 5 the management plan, 6 cull effort, 7 fencing planner and 8 forest design. Decisions become action on the ground, and the records you import from it are tracked over time (9). Tracking loops back to update density (2) and the plan (5). INPUTS THE LANDSCAPE PICTURE DECISIONS ACTION OVER TIME Public data Land cover Terrain Roads & buildings Protected habitats Deer records Land registry plans Import anything with AI Cull returns · effort logs Drone thermal counts Pellet / dung counts Camera trap · spotlight Sightings · vehicle strikes Impact · regeneration surveys Fence inspection records 1 Sensitive habitatsPriority areas to protect 2 Density estimatesWith stated uncertainty 3 Difficulty mapsWhy management is hard 4 LandownersWho to talk to, and how many 5 Management planBrings it all together 6 Cull effortEffort a target may take 7 Fencing plannerFence, guard or cull? 8 Forest designRides, glades, deer lawns On the ground Culls and stalking Fences and guards Rides, glades, lawns Impact surveys 9 Track over time Imported culls · counts · sightings · browsing & damage · other inputs illustrative New records update density and the plan How DeerHQ's nine capabilities fit together Inputs feed the landscape picture (1 sensitive habitats, 2 density, 3 difficulty, 4 landowners), which feeds decisions (5 plan, 6 cull effort, 7 fencing, 8 forest design), then action on the ground, then 9 tracking over time of imported records, which loops back to update density (2) and the plan (5). INPUTS Public data Land cover · terrain · roads · buildings Protected habitats · deer records Land registry plans Import anything with AI Culls · effort logs · sightings Counts: drone thermal · pellet · camera Spotlight · vehicle strikes Impact & regeneration surveys Fence inspection records THE LANDSCAPE PICTURE 1Sensitivehabitats 2Densityestimates 3Difficultymaps 4Landownercoordination DECISIONS 5Managementplan 6Culleffort 7Fencingplanner 8Forestdesign On the ground: culls, fences, rides, glades 9 Track over time Imported culls · sightings · browsing updates density & plan

Every score taken apartOpen any result to see its components, sources and confidence. Weights are yours to change.

Assistants explain and citeThey put results in plain language and cite sources. They never invent numbers or apply legal rules.

Rules stay rulesSeasons, firearms law and safety rules are fixed rules with citation and date. Never scored.

Capabilities

What DeerHQ does.

Nine connected tools. Each one decomposes into sourced parts, and none of them pretends to know more than the data says.

1Landscape picture

Sensitive habitats and priority areas

Protected habitats, native woodland and young planting mapped against the deer range, so protection effort goes to priority areas first.

2Landscape picture

Deer density estimates

Estimates with stated uncertainty and each method's known biases. They tighten as you import cull effort and count data.

3Landscape picture

Deer management difficulty maps

Terrain, roads, houses, access and ownership, each mapped separately. Never blended into one number.

4Landscape picture

Landowner coordination

Land registry plans show how fragmented ownership is within a deer range: which holdings to approach, and how many people are involved.

5Decision

Deer management plans

A desk-based plan for a forest, an estate or a whole landscape, that you can take apart line by line.

6Decision

Estimate cull effort

How much stalking effort a target may take, given density, difficulty and access. A planning range, never a promise.

7Decision

Fencing planner

Where a fence is worth its cost, and where culling or tree guards make more sense. Costs shown only where a source exists.

8Decision

Forest design for deer management

Candidate rides, glades and deer lawns. Irish native woodland schemes allow up to 15% open space, which can include lawns designed for deer management.

9Over time

Track deer management over time

Import anything with AI: handwritten notes, custom spreadsheets, other apps' exports. Culls, sightings, counts, browsing and damage assessments, season by season. New imports update the density estimates and the plan.

The small graphics are illustrative sketches, not real data.

Difficulty, taken apart

Why is this site hard? Each reason on its own line.

A steep site near houses with many owners is a different problem from a flat one with high density. One number hides that.

Never blended into a single score
Confidence and source on every row
Fragmented ownership shown as its own dimension
Difficulty of management
Example upland conifer block · mixed ownership
Illustrative
Density & pressureWide interval: sparse effort data
ModerateLow
Terrain & slopeSteep north-facing ground
HighMed
Roads & backstopsFew natural backstops near the road
HighMed
Houses & urban edgeScattered dwellings on one side
ModerateHigh
AccessForest road to most compartments
LowHigh
Landowners to cooperateFragmented ownership across the range
HighMed
Seasons, licences and permissions are listed from the rules, with citation and date. Not scored.
Illustrative example only. Not real data or a real site. Confidence: High / Med / Low.

Where we start

Ireland first. Then Scotland and other European countries.

Now

Ireland

Sensitive habitats, density, difficulty and landowner coordination for woodland, restoration and planting sites.

Next

Scotland

Built around existing deer plans and habitat impact assessment practice.

Later

Other European countries

Adapted to each country's hunting law, practice and browsing surveys.

FAQ

Straight answers.

What does "at scale" mean?

Deer range across forests, farms and estates, so planning has to as well. DeerHQ works from a single forest up to a whole landscape with many owners.

Does DeerHQ count my deer?

No. DeerHQ doesn't count deer or run surveys. It gives estimates with stated uncertainty, says which biases remain, and tightens them as you import the cull, effort, drone thermal, pellet or dung, camera, spotlight and survey data you already have.

Does it replace my field tools?

DeerHQ doesn't replace your field tools. It brings their outputs together. It has no counting, survey, drone or camera app of its own.

What format does my data need to be in?

Any. Import anything with AI: handwritten larder books and stalkers' notes, photos of paper cull returns, your own custom spreadsheets, CSVs, and exports from other apps and survey tools. AI reads them into a common format, and you check each record before it is used. Including effort (hours or outings) alongside culls makes the estimates much stronger.

Does it tell me where it is safe to shoot?

No. It suggests candidate positions, rides and glades for a qualified person to assess on the ground. Safety and legality remain the shooter's responsibility.

Is there AI in it?

Expert assistants explain results and cite their sources. They don't compute scores, invent numbers or apply legal rules. Seasons, firearms law and safety rules are deterministic.

Where does landowner information come from?

From land registry plans, which carry boundaries but no names. They show how fragmented ownership is within a deer range and how many parties need to cooperate. Names come only from your own contacts or a folio search you make yourself.

Can I change the assumptions?

Yes. Weights and thresholds are settable, defaults are labelled, and every score shows its parts.

Is it available now?

DeerHQ is at an early stage, starting in Ireland. Register interest and we'll talk about your forest, estate or landscape.

Decision support, not authority. Safety and legality remain the shooter's responsibility.

Managing deer across ground you care about?

Tell us about your forest, estate or landscape. We're starting in Ireland.

Register interest