Annual Deer Hunt Will Return In Livingston: See Dates, Locations

LIVINGSTON, NJ — Livingston will be running its annual deer cull again, township officials recently announced.

Livingston’s deer management program is held during the regular New Jersey state hunting season on township-owned land. This year’s cull will take place between Sept. 12, 2026 and Feb. 20, 2027.

This program is open to residents only and runs during the day, beginning one-half hour before sunrise and ending one half-hour after sunset each day. Only bow hunting is allowed, and all hunters shoot from tree stands downward toward the ground.

The lands used will be restricted, and the public is prohibited from accessing the property throughout the time the deer management program is active.

Here’s where the hunting will take place:

“Township-owned lands affected include: Prospect Park; East Hills Park (the area in which the dog park is located); Northland Park; Eisenhower Parkway behind Northfield Fire Station; the area of Cornell Drive, Veer Terrace, and Dougal Avenue; East Orange Water Property; areas off of Laurel Avenue. The area behind the Livingston Senior/Community Center on Hillside Avenue will also be affected each Friday afternoon through Saturday evening only.”

Livingston residents may see people participating in the cull parking on streets near the designated areas. Those vehicles must display a special vehicle parking permit in the front window.

According to the township, the Livingston Police Department will ensure public safety during the season. Participants are required to log in and out with the police department prior to and upon completion of their activities on the properties. They must also comply with all state hunting season laws enforced by the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife.

Venison from the deer is donated to local area food banks, the township noted.

For more information, click here or contact deerhunt@livingstonnj.org.

CULL CONTROVERSY

Essex County runs a similar annual deer cull at several of its reservations – which has been seeing some pushback from animal rights activists in recent years.

Supporters say the annual hunts are needed to help keep the deer population at a reasonable level. But other county residents have argued the opposite, demanding an end to the culls.

Some advocates like the Animal Protection League of New Jersey (APLNJ) have argued that these types of community hunts are “technical failures” that result in resurgent deer and significant taxpayer expense.

The group argues that two frequently cited reasons for deer culls – the spread of Lyme disease and car crashes – are more myth than reality.

“The white-tailed deer is a persecuted species, harassed and killed throughout most of New Jersey,” the APLNJ states on its website. “The situation is so bad, and so unacceptable, that many people say the sight of a white-tail family saddens them, because they know the animals will perish by a razor-tipped arrow or shotgun.”

“New Jersey’s mismanagement of its deer has failed the non-hunting public,” the group adds.

• Related: Activists Protest Essex County Deer Cull

Other groups, such as the nonprofit Hilltop Conservancy, have supported the county’s culls. According to the group's website:

"The Conservancy supports continued deer population reduction in the Hilltop Reservation in order to restore ecological balance, and we believe that Essex County’s deer management program is the most cost-effective and responsible way to achieve that objective. This is not a decision we make lightly – non-lethal methods such as immuno-contraceptives and surgical sterilization are very expensive and are ineffective in an unfenced environment like the Reservation (see Deer Control Methods Cost & Effectiveness Comparison)."

“In addition, lethal methods better reflect (however imperfectly) the predator-prey relationship found in nature – where large predators like wolves and mountain lions would otherwise keep deer numbers in check and in balance with their habitat,” the conservancy says.

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