Deer management operations will take place at Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park Unit 1 and Rock Creek Stream Valley Park Unit 2 beginning January 10, 2016.
SILVER SPRING, MD—Montgomery Parks, part of Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission announces the expansion of its deer management operations for winter 2016. The expanded program includes the following park sites:
- Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park Unit 1 in Darnestown, MD between Esworthy Road and Turkey Foot Road
- Rock Creek Stream Valley Park Unit 2 in Kensington, MD between Stoneybrook Dr. and Connecticut Ave
Park Police-based Sharpshooting will take place from January 10 – February 28, 2016, from 6 p.m. through 6 a.m. when the parks are closed to the public; and recur annually as necessary. Information about the operations will be posted on signs throughout the park, on the Montgomery Parks’ homepage, ParksDeerManagement.org and communicated via Park Police patrols. All deer harvested through the effort will be donated for consumption at local soup kitchens.
The parks, located in Darnestown/Travilah and Kensington have been selected to address damage caused by an increasing population of deer, including deer-related automobile accidents, damage to natural resources, and increased potential of communicable diseases. The decision to add these parks to the deer management operations was made after review of citizen complaints and input, and with strong support from the community.
The new park sites are additions to the 40 other parks in the Montgomery Parks’ system selected for deer population management through managed hunts and police-based sharpshooting during the fall 2015 – winter 2016 season. Dates and locations remaining for 2015 – 2016 deer population management operations including Lottery-based Managed Deer Hunting, Cooperative Managed Deer Hunting, Tenant-based Managed Deer Hunting, Archery Managed Deer Hunting (Pilot Program) and Park Police-based Sharpshooting Operations are listed below.
Archery Managed Deer Hunting Pilot Program
[No Park Closure – parks remain open to normal use]
- Great Seneca Stream Valley Park Unit 1 (Germantown)
- Watts Branch Stream Valley Park Units 1 & 2 (Potomac)
Lottery-Based and Cooperative Managed Deer Hunting Programs
[Parks Closed from Sunrise – Sunset]
January
2 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
8 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
9 – Woodstock Equestrian Park (Beallsville)
15 – Black Hill Regional Park: 10 Mile Creek Segment (Boyds)
15 – Bucklodge Forest Conservation Park (Boyds)
15 – Little Seneca Stream Valley Park (Boyds)
16 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
22 – Woodstock Equestrian Park (Beallsville)
29 – Black Hill Regional Park: 10 Mile Creek Segment (Boyds)
29 – Bucklodge Forest Conservation Park (Boyds)
29 – Little Seneca Stream Valley Park (Boyds)
30 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
Tenant-based Managed Deer Hunting Program
[Park is closed to public access year-round]
- Goshen Recreation Park (Goshen)
Park Police-Based Sharpshooting Program
[Parks Closed from 6:00PM – 6:00AM daily, January 10 – February 28]
- Agricultural History Farm Park (Derwood – including attached segments of Rock Creek Stream Valley Units 15 & 16)
- Black Hill Regional Park [Day Use Area] (Boyds)
- Cabin John Regional Park (Bethesda)
- Martin Luther King Jr. Recreational Park (Silver Spring)
- Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park Unit 1 (Darnestown/Travilah)*
- Needwood Golf Course (Rockville)
- North Branch Stream Valley Park Units 2 & 3 (Norbeck)
- North Branch Stream Valley Park Unit 4 (Olney)
- Northwest Branch Recreation Park (Aspen Hill – including Layhill Local Park in Wheaton)
- Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park Unit 7 (Norwood)
- Northwest Golf Course (Wheaton)
- Paint Branch Stream Valley Park Units 5 & 6 (Silver Spring – including Pilgrim Hill Local Park, Valley Mill Special Park, Tamarack Neighborhood Park and Paint Branch Neighborhood Park)
- Red Door Store Historical Cultural Park (Sandy Spring)
- Rock Creek Regional Park (Rockville)
- Rock Creek Stream Valley Park Unit 2 (Chevy Chase)
- Rock Creek Stream Valley Park Unit 2 [expansion into area north of I-495] (Kensington)*
- Rock Creek Stream Valley Park Unit 7 (Aspen Hill)
- Sligo Creek Golf Course (Silver Spring)
- Wheaton Regional Park (Wheaton)
- Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park (Sandy Spring)
The Deer Management Program began in 1996, following recommendations from the Montgomery County Deer Management Work Group (DMWG), and in response to citizen concerns about the increasingly adverse impacts of the burgeoning deer population on local neighborhoods.
To learn more the Department’s Deer Management Program, visit www.ParksDeerManagement.org.
About The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission Montgomery Parks
Montgomery Parks manages more than 36,000 acres of parkland, consisting of 417 parks. Montgomery Parks is a department of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), a bi-county agency established in 1927 to steward public land. The M-NCPPC has been nationally recognized for its high quality parks and recreation services and is regarded as a national model by other parks systems. www.MontgomeryParks.org.
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