Deer are a point of division in the hunting community.
I don't know the rules for all the states, but I can highlight the different approaches different places have with just 2 examples.

In Victoria, they only want to hunt deer "sustainably", so they have recognised "Deer Habitats".
It's also illegal to hunt them at night with a spotlight (the easiest method, they'll literally stand still and look at the light) or use a thermal scope (which of course helps silhouette a naturally camouflaged animal), even during the day.

In South Australia, we have shoot on sight laws - as in you're legally obliged to attempt to humanely kill feral deer when possible.

Kind of says it all, doesn't it?

Side note, does anyone else associate popping off with farting?

If they're that pestiferous we should be encouraging people who have an interest in venison to do something about it.

Opposite side of the globe, in winter North East USA, more deer out this year than I've seen in the winter this season as well.

I think the temp changes (light early winter, sporadic freeze and snow now) have messed up their behavior and now they're out all the time instead of bunking down for the cold.

It's 20 degrees f out (-0 c) and there were two family's of deer cross the roads on my way home yesterday. Usually would not see that until spring.

They were becoming a pest up on the mid north coast 20 years ago when I was a kid, used to sneak up and nibble at stuff in the house paddock at night time (as an aside they make a weird noise when disturbed). Hate to think how many must be in the bush up there now.

More recently I've seen a few bouncing across the road heading through the forestry areas on the way to Bega. Hope they don't become too common as hitting one would be even worse damage/safety wise than collecting a large kangaroo and I do go up and down that way reasonably often.

A pest, yes. But a tasty, tasty pest.

We are in outer suburban Melbourne. A woman at the pub last year had her work Ute written off when a deer ran across the Princes Highway in a built up residential area adjacent to some unmaintained bush and hobby-farm-land.

Later last year, my SIL was taking my niece to work and a huge 12-point stag was dead on the side of the highway at the same location. By the time she went to pick her up from work, some dirty Bogan had decapitated it (in daylight), obviously to mount it on their Mancave wall.

Back in the good old days, hunters used to cull the feral deer, take them home and butcher them.

Professional taxidermists used to mount their racks, and they would take pride of place in their lounge room.

It would be in violation of HACCP for a Professional Butcher to prepare feral venison steak and sausage, but it would be a a good Cash-In-Hand income stream.

I always wondered whether it was worth catching them for meat, but apparently they just get trapped and shot

https://clarencevalleynews.com.au/new-tool-to-tackle-wild-deer-population-in-port-macquarie/

They're everywhere at Gariwerd Halls Gap

How do things keep getting out of control in Australia, I thought everything was deadly down there? Where are all of the spiders and snakes and gators and shit when it's being overrun?