The Mayor and Council will receive a report at their Monday, April 26 meeting on a recent managed deer culling pilot program, held in the John G. Hayes Forest Preserve.
All told, 21 deer in total were culled without incident by experienced bow hunters during weeklong periods in November, December and January. The deer were donated to programs to help feed the homeless.
A pilot, the archery-only hunt was intended to bring the white-tailed deer population to a more sustainable level in concert with other measures, such as data collection, education and participation in a countywide deer-management working group. As the number of deer have increased regionally, so has the risk of vehicle accidents, damage to landscapes and forest ecosystems, and Lyme disease.
Additional recommendations to control the burgeoning deer population will be discussed at the Mayor and Council meeting, potentially including ending or continuing the program, or expanding it.
For more details nearer the time and to see the meeting agenda, visit www.rockvillemd.gov/AgendaCenter.