Comprehensive Deer Management Program

Montgomery County, MD

Rob GibbsNatural Resources Manager

M-NCPPC, Montgomery Dept of Parks

Deer Impacts

Deer-vehicle Collisions (DVCs)

Depredation to agricultural crops

Impacts to natural vegetation – esp. in parks

Depredation to ornamental shrubs/gardens

Lyme disease

1993 - 2010 - Deer-vehicle CollisionsMontgomery County, MD - MCPD

Notes:- #s represent only accidents involving police response - The actual number is likely much higher.- DVCs are correlated with several factors including: # of deer, # of cars, speed of cars, etc.

14331244

17051891

2033 20032127 2047 1997 1969 1951 1945 193018411867

17741776

861

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

YEAR

No.

of A

ccid

ents

Agricultural Damage

Deer impacts to the ecosystem

Reduction of Wildlife food Cover Plant diversity Forest

regeneration Bird species Small mammals

14

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

220

Kent

Carroll

Howard

Queen

Anne's

Frederic

k Cecil

Calvert

Talbot

Caroline

Harford

Washing

ton

Montgo

mery

Somers

et

Anne A

runde

l

Baltim

ore

Charles

Wicomico

Worceste

r

Prince

Geo

rge's

Allega

ny

Baltim

ore C

ity

Garrett

Dorches

ter

St. Mary'

s

Inci

denc

e pe

r 100

,000

Lyme Disease Incidence, Maryland, 2007

Maryland overall: 45.1 / 100,000

Brief History 1993 - County Council appointed Citizen Task Force to

study white-tailed deer – published report April 1994.

1995 – Deer Mgt Work Group (DMWG) formed - charged with developing and implementing a deer mgt plan based on Task Force recommendations.

– Management plan approved August 1995.

– First managed hunts held in parks - Fall 1996, after extensive public process.

DMWG annually reviews data, publishes a report including deer mgt recommendations for upcoming year.

www.parksdeermanagement.org

Deer Management Work Group (DMWG)

M-NCPPC, Mont. Co. Dept of Parks Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources M.C. Police Dept. Maryland Cooperative Extension National Park Service Washington Suburban Sanitary Comm. USGS – Patuxent Wildlife Research Ctr.

Comprehensive Management Plan

Goal: Reduce deer-human conflicts to a level compatible with human priorities and land uses.Reduce Deer-vehicle CollisionsReduce depredation to agricultural crops and

ornamental shrubs/gardens reduce impacts to natural vegetation and preserve

natural diversity of MCDevelop countywide education program

Implemented to date:

Educational Efforts – 1

Informational brochure Reference materials available in public

libraries, through MCE, deer info web page.

Implemented to date:

Educational Efforts – 2 Educational Programs - local cable TV & Nature Centers

Homeowner workshops - over 1500 citizens and landscaping professionals have attended.

Developed by MD Cooperative Extension

Focus on home landscape protection - also address DVCs and Lyme disease

May 2008 – Lyme Disease Awareness Month – Brochure, webpage. (Dept of Health)

Implemented to date:

To Address Deer-vehicle Collisions Improved data collection and mapping Seasonal PSAs to remind and warm public Safety info on Cable TV traffic stationWork with Road Agencies to improve Fencing, and road design

– especially bridgesWork with Washington Area Council of Govts (COG) wildlife

subcommittee to identify and address regional DVC issues Produced a 12 minute video Fall 06 – cable TV, driver’s Ed classes

Implemented to date:To reduce damage to landscaping Fencing, repellents, habitat alteration used in parks and

by the public. Changed County Code to allow 8’ deer fencing in side

and back yards and all agricultural land.

Implemented to date:To manage deer populations:

Adjustments to legal bag limits – DNR• To increase antlerless harvest.

Streamlined Deer Management Permit program for farmers - DNR

Managed hunts and sharpshooting operations in selected State & County parks – DNR, MC Parks

Deer Populations in Selected Parks

‘96 ‘97 ‘98 ‘00 ‘01 02 03 07 Little Bennett RP 125 142 101 88 63 61 37 28 Ag/History FP 163 259 155 100 128 108 78 47 N. Branch SVP 73 116 124 110 107 130 64 Black Hill RP 138 170 85 34 86 16 Rachel Carson CP 207 113 133 100 71 37 Goshen Rec. P 136 153 169 127 91 94 Rock Creek RP 118 170 135 215 155 136 54

All numbers represent deer per square mile. Counts done in late winter before fawning.

Annual Deer-auto Collisions on roads near Managed Hunt Sites - by Year

Location

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Change ‘96-‘02

Seneca Crk State Park

101

50

37

20

16

8

11

-90 (89%)

Little Bennett Reg. Park

43

29

9

11

10

10

7

-36 (84%)

Ag/History Farm Park

40

29

42

38

31

39

27

-13 (33%)

Deer Reduction Methods Lottery-Based Managed Shotgun Hunting

• Parkland with site constraints• Need to control deer, with additional supervision required for

public safety

Group Hunting Program (Suburban Whitetail Management of Maryland Inc. (SWMM)• Large tracts in low populated areas• Need to control deer, with minimal public safety concerns

Sharpshooting Program • Highly sensitive, highly developed areas

Lottery-Based Managed Hunts

Open to public who meet our requirements• DNR license, shooter qualifications, statement of

hunter ethics, background check, etc.

Hunters chosen by lottery Hunt at pre-determined,

marked locations Parks are closed to public

during hunting days

Group Hunting Program

Work with Hunting Group Requirements:

• Insurance, shooting standards, background checks, demonstrated ability to harvest deer, etc.

Under park guidelines, the Group does much of the hunt coordination – site selection, hunter schedules, data collection

Requires limited Park staff supervision

Sharpshooting Program Used in smaller parks in more developed

areas Specially trained Park Police Shooters Coordinated by Park Wildlife Staff Operate between 6:00 PM and 1:00 AM Utilize suppressed rifle, red lens spotlight &

vehicles with elevated shooting platform Minimum community disturbance with

maximum productivity All animals processed by volunteers All meat donated to charity

Sharpshooting

Park Deer Harvests

Deer harvests for M.C. Park’s Deer Population Management Program by Year.

Fiscal Year ‘97 ‘98 ‘99 ‘00 ‘01 ‘02 ‘03 ‘04 ‘05 ‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10 ‘11 Totals

Lottery Hunts 180 252 251 228 457 316 350 300 178 296 256 253 243 241 464 4,265

SWMM Coop Hunts 105 286 327 202 213 151 270 268 1,822

Tenant DMP Hunts 39 58 53 51 37 41 66 74 77 496

Sharpshooting 19 258 214 164 399 450 535 350 351 350 383 596 4,069

Total Deer Harvest 180 252 270 228 715 569 572 857 965 1,158 845 858 810 968 1,405 10,652

Countywide Deer Program Harvests

Totals Antlerless % Antlerless

County hunting harvest (DNR) 5,969 4,320 72.37%

Sharpshooting (mont Co Parks) 596 560 93.96%

DNR Deer Mgt Permits (Mont. Co) 322 283 87.89%

Total County Harvest 6,887 5,163 74.97%

M-NCPPC Park program total 1,405 1,312 93.38%

Dickerson -MC-DSW 128 121 94.53%

Seneca mgt hunts (all) 386 289 74.87%

WSSC mgd hunts (Mont Co only) 110 86 78.18%

Total County Deer Program Harvest 2,029 1,808 89.11%

Percentage of total county harvest 29.46% 35.02%

Deer harvests for all hunts associated with County Deer Program.

Comprehensive Deer Mgt. Plan County level program Deer Mgt. Work Group Public input Cooperative efforts: Private landowners, Govt.

and Non-govt. agencies

Goal: to reduce deer impacts in order to reach a balance between deer and human needs.

Goal: to reach a balance

Humantolerance

Deerpopulation

Education &non-lethal mgt.

Populationmanagement

Low

High

Goal: to reach a balance

Humantolerance

Deerpopulation

Education &management

Populationmanagement

Goal: to reach a balance

Humantolerance

Deerpopulation

Education &management

Populationmanagement