Whitemarsh Township's archery-based deer cull will expand to three new parcels next season after the Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 on Thursday, Aug. 13, to approve the growth.
The three township-owned sites joining the existing Miquon location are:
- Off Thomas Road near the Whitemarsh Township Authority
- The Kline Lower area off Cedar Grove
- The Hamilton Drive Tract adjacent to Union League Liberty Hill
Delaware Valley Wildlife Management, the contractor running the program since its 2024 launch, presented the expansion proposal at the meeting. Supervisor Vincent Manuele was absent.
The program uses vetted archers hunting from fixed positions on public land, focusing primarily on does to reduce the breeding population. Adult deer have no natural predators in Whitemarsh or neighboring communities, and the growing herd has contributed to property damage, vehicle collisions, Lyme disease risk and over-browsing that accelerates erosion and invasive plant spread, according to the township's deer management page.
Results have grown each year. In the program's first season (2024-25), hunters harvested 16 deer on the township parcel. The 2025-26 season, which ran from Sept. 20, 2025, through Jan. 24, 2026, with a break in mid-December, produced a total area harvest of 68 deer across the township parcel, the adjacent Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education site and private properties, according to the township's end-of-season report.
A portion of the venison goes to food banks. Each hunter receives 40 pounds of venison, with the remainder delivered to the Community FoodBank of New Jersey in Hillside. The program's butchering fee is $15,000.
Several residents at the meeting asked for clarification on the exact property boundaries of the new sites. The township's deer management page notes that positive results from the 2025-26 season allowed DVWM to make new contacts with large private landowners, setting the stage for further expansion in the 2026-27 hunting season.
Delaware Valley Wildlife Management has operated since 1995 and has harvested more than 3,500 deer from properties across the region, including sites managed for the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, Morris Arboretum and Friends of the Wissahickon.
The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to hold a public hearing Sept. 10. Residents can check the township calendar at whitemarshtwp.org for additional meeting dates and agendas.
