SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Officials say the number of deer in Sioux City is dropping, but it's unclear whether the city ban on feeding deer and other wildlife should be credited for the decline.

In 2012 the City Council enacted the ban to reduce deer-vehicle accidents and damage to plants.

Doug Chafa is a wildlife biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. He told the Sioux City Journal that the ordinance is an important part of a deer management program. Chafa says the city's permitted hunts, as well as disease, have helped reduce the deer population.

Chafa says his staff's overnight count in 2012 was 47. The count in the same area in 2014 was 28.

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Information from: Sioux City Journal, www.siouxcityjournal.com