January 31, 2019                

Media Contacts:
Mark Miller, Administrator, Office of Public Information, 410-313-2022
Samuel Richardson, Deer Program Manager, Department of Recreation & Parks, 410-313-1675

ELLICOTT CITY, MD – The Howard County Department of Recreation & Parks has announced its winter schedule for managing deer populations through sharpshooting. This program is held to help maintain a stable, balanced, white-tailed deer population on county park lands where deer browsing has been shown to reduce biodiversity.  

The sharpshooting program is different from the managed hunts, which were announced in August. Specially trained and qualified personnel using highly accurate, noise-suppressed rifles, remove deer under a special permit issued by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. All the meat from this operation is donated to charitable organizations in the area, including the Community Action Council’s Food Bank. Venison is a lean source of protein and has fewer calories and a higher nutrient value than other types of meat. High in iron, B12, B6 and other vitamins, venison is relatively low in cholesterol compared to other meats. 

All properties will be closed to the public during the hours of operation, 3:00 p.m. to midnight, unless otherwise noted. The sites and schedule for this winter are as follows: 

Alpha Ridge Landfill
February 27; March 12, 26

Belmont Manor 
February 20; March 13, 27

Blandair Park North
March 18

Dorsey Hall Open Space 
February 21; March 4, 21

Fulton South Park 
February 25; March 11

Mount Hebron Open Space 
February 19; March 7, 25

River’s Edge Open Space
March 5, 14

Robinson Nature Center 
February 26; March 19

Timbers at Troy Golf Course
February 28

Worthington Park
March 6, 20, 28

Since deer population reduction programs, such as managed hunts and sharpshooting, are not possible in many areas of the county, the Department of Recreation & Parks has developed a Deer Management Reference Manual to help homeowners and gardeners live in harmony with white-tailed deer. The manual, which is available in all county library branches, contains information on the use of deer repellents, fencing to protect crops and property, how to avoid deer-auto collisions and Lyme Disease prevention. There is also information about the county’s deer management program available on the Department’s website at www.howardcountymd.gov/Departments/Recreation-and-Parks/Natural-Resources/Wildlife.  

The Department of Recreation & Parks and the University of Maryland Cooperative Extension Service also can arrange to have experts on the topic speak to homeowner associations, schools or other groups. Other Recreation & Parks’ deer management programs include an effort to reduce ticks on deer through the use of four-poster feeders which deliver an approved pesticide to deer attracted to a feeder baited with corn. Developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the devices have been shown to reduce tick populations by 90 percent or more. The Department is also collaborating with the University of Maryland and the U. S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service in an area-wide tick management study, which is investigating tick reduction practices and the movements of tick host species, such as deer and white-footed mice.

Since the deer management program began in 1998, there has been an observable improvement in habitat quality and vegetation abundance in many of the parks where managed hunting and sharpshooting has taken place. For more information on the program, call the Department of Recreation & Parks at 410-313-1675.

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