Sharpshooters to Renew Deer Cull in Heart of Washington D.C.

Sharpshooters will renew culling the white-tailed deer population, growing fast in the heart of the U.S.

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sharpshooters will renew culling the white-tailed deer population, growing fast in the heart of the U.S. capital, as early as Thursday night, the National Park Service said.

The nighttime hunts by Department of Agriculture shooters in Washington's Rock Creek Park will continue until March 31, or until 106 deer have been killed, said Nick Bartolomeo, the park's chief of resources management.

The general public should remain out of harm's way because joggers and cyclists are generally barred from the park after dark, according to the park service.

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

The sharpshooters will deploy on unspecified nights as early as Thursday, when the 12-mile-long (19-km-long) park is normally closed. Park roads will also be temporarily closed as a safety precaution.

The three-year program is aimed at reducing the deer population to 15 to 20 per square mile (six to eight per square km) from 77 per square mile (31 per square km), Bartolomeo said during a conference call with reporters.

The first cull took place in March 2013, when 20 deer were killed in one night, he said.

The number of deer has soared in the last 20 years, with the animals eating nearly all the park's tree seedlings and preventing the forest from growing, according to a statement from the Park Service.

"There are no historic records of a white-tailed deer population in Rock Creek Park before 1960," said Park Superintendent Tara Morrison.

The deer meat will be donated to food banks and organizations for the homeless.

The number of U.S. white-tailed deer has exploded from a few hundred thousand in the 1930s to an estimated 30 million presently. The growth has been blamed on a lack of predators and growth of deer-friendly residential areas outside cities.

(Reporting by Lacey Johnson; Editing by Ian Simpson and Gunna Dickson)

It’s Time to Stand Up for Science

If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.

I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.

If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.

In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can't-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world's best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.

There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.

Thank you,

David M. Ewalt, Editor in Chief, Scientific American