L. Merion deer shoot starts tonight

Beginning tonight, the hunt will be on in Lower Merion Township.

A deer cull is set to run nightly though Thursday, from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., in areas where an overpopulation of the animals has resulted in environmental damage and vehicle crashes, as well as cases of Lyme disease, according to the township.

Officials say they hope ultimately to reduce the herd by 576 deer. In a survey in the township, the U.S. Department of Agriculture found 696 deer, about 58 per square mile. The appropriate number for a suburb such as Lower Merion would be 6 to 10 per square mile.

Residents in the targeted areas have been notified, but, officials say, they are unlikely to hear the small team of professional sharpshooters at work. The marksmen, from the USDA, will use noise-suppressed rifles and night-vision optics.

The deer will be donated to the local food bank, according to the township's Web site.

Another cull is set for December. After that, the program is to be evaluated.

The Lower Merion shoot comes at a time when a plan to kill about 1,500 deer in Valley Forge National Historical Park has drawn protests - and a lawsuit filed last week - by two animal-rights groups, the Friends of Animals and Compassion for Animals, Respect the Environment.

Valley Forge officials want to reduce the herd, which they say is destroying the forest, by 86 percent in the next four years. Approximately 500 deer are to be shot the first year.

In Lower Merion, high deer-vehicle collision areas include Black Rock Road, Conshohocken State Road, Mill Creek Road, Old Gulph Road, and Waverly Road in the Gladwyne area, as well as Montgomery Avenue near Villanova University.

In 1996, licensed bow hunters were allowed onto private property in Lower Merion in an effort to control the herd.

Other jurisdictions have also scheduled culls.

Swarthmore College plans to reduce the deer population in the Crum Woods area over its winter break, beginning in mid-December, according to spokeswoman Nancy Nicely. Deer have been eating away at the forests where faculty and students conduct research.

During the last five years, an average of 70 cases of Lyme disease have been reported annually in Montgomery County. In 2008, there were 3,818 cases statewide, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.