Meet Dr. Jim Bevilacqua, the newest member of the Deer & Tick Committee
The newest member of the Deer & Tick Committee, Dr. James Bevilacqua, hopes to bring ‘a little bit of science’ to discussions.
The Deer & Tick Committee has been a member shy for several months, but last week, Dr. Jim Bevilacqua M.D. joined the group, hoping to “add a little bit of science” to discussions.
Dr. Bevilacqua has been coming to Shelter Island since he was a child when his parents bought a house near North Ferry. He and his wife, Sally, live in Hilo Shores and split their time between Shelter Island and Massachusetts, where they still have family ties. Their daughter, Ali Bevilacqua, is co-owner with her husband Keith Bavaro of SALT, the popular eatery at the Island Boatyard.
The Bevilacquas have three other children — Elizabeth, Michael and Christine.
Now retired, Dr. Bevilacqua served as chief radiologist at Brockton Hospital in Brockton, Massachusetts.
He volunteered to join the Deer & Tick Committee because he “felt an obligation” to give back to the Island he loves. But it’s also a bit more personal. He’s a bowhunter, a sport he hopes to share with his 11-year-old grandson, but that can only happen if there are deer here to hunt, he said.
The proliferation of deer and ticks is “the new normal,” and it’s not just on Shelter Island, Dr. Bevilacqua said. The committee needs to find “a nice, happy medium” between culling the herd and still maintaining some deer for hunters, he said.
As for the ongoing debate about the effectiveness and safety of permethrin, the tickicide used on 4-poster units, he believes long-term consequences have to be determined.
“You don’t put anything in nature unless you have to,” Dr. Bevilacqua said. It’s important to determine possible unintended consequences of actions taken today, he said.
He agrees with those who eschew bringing sharpshooters to the Island, noting that there are a number of local “woodsmen” who hunt and fish regularly. It’s something he wants to perpetuate because it’s part of the Island’s culture, Dr. Bevilacqua said.
As for working with the committee, he said he’s a believer in the collective wisdom of a group.
“But God gave you one mouth and two ears so you should listen twice as much as you talk,” he said.
