Archers will begin culling the deer population in Fairfax County on Saturday.
Bright orange signs are posted in parks and around the county about the Fairfax County Deer Management Archery Program that runs through Saturday, February 15, 2025. The parks will be open while the hunting occurs.
Qualified, licensed bowhunters, who have been screened by the police department, will reduce the white-tailed deer population on more than 100 properties across the county. Reducing the population will reduce the possibility of collisions, reduce the potential spread of diseases and of damage the animals can do, the county said.
The hunters are allowed to bag deer from 30 minutes before sunrise until 30 minutes after sunset Mondays through Saturdays, but no hunting is allowed in county parks on Sundays.
“Because of its proven track record of safety, archery is a preferred deer management method in Fairfax County,” a news release from the Fairfax County Police Department said. In Virginia, bowhunters have not injured any bystanders since the state started tracking hunting injuries in 1959. The effort is in collaboration with the Fairfax County Park Authority, NOVA Parks, and other public landholders.
Last year, hunters harvested 703 deer using bows and arrows. The program accounted for 91 percent of the total harvests in the Fairfax County program.
During the last hunting season, no new cases of Chronic Wasting Disease were found. Since fiscal year 2020, the county has tested over 1,250 deer for the fatal neurological disease that was first detected in Virginia in 2009.
Fairfax County has had its archery program in place since fiscal year 2010.
Feature image by George Schmiesing/stock.adobe.com
For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine’s News newsletter.
