Police To Shoot Deer On Md. Golf Course
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) -- Police sharpshooters will kill deer at a Montgomery County golf course this winter to control the population.
County officials say the Department of Parks was asked to manage the population because of increasing vehicle accidents involving deer, Lyme disease from deer-borne ticks and damage to native plants that is affecting birds and other animals that rely on the plants.
The Sligo Creek Golf Course will be closed from 5:30 p.m. until sunrise in January, February and March while sharpshooters reduce the deer population. Park police will patrol during sharpshooting and signs will also be posted saying the park is closed.
County officials say contraceptives were considered, but that requires deer to be captured, tagged and injected by hand. And they say contraceptives used in other areas have not proven effective.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
