Lottery for bow hunting is July 26

Metro Parks, Serving Summit County will allow hunting by bow and arrow or crossbow in select areas by permit this fall as part of its ongoing deer management program.

Each permit, determined by lottery Friday, July 26, is good for up to three adults and three juveniles, all of whom must be Summit County residents.

The areas included during the 2013-14 season are:

* Pond Brook Conservation Area in Twinsburg Township

* The Columbia Run and Wetmore conservation areas in Boston Township

* The Waldo Semon Conservation Area in Boston Township and Northfield Center

* Riding Run Conservation Area in Richfield, Bath, Cuyahoga Falls and Boston Township

* Two areas within Furnace Run Metro Park in Richfield

* The TenBroeck Conservation Area in Hudson and Streetsboro

* A conservation area in Silver Creek Metro Park in Norton

* A conservation area in Clinton

Lottery applications are available online (summitmetroparks.org) and in person at three locations: Gander Mountain (330-405-2999), 2695 Creekside Dr., Twinsburg; Hadley’s Sports Center (330-882-6060), 5676 Manchester Rd., Akron; and The Marksman (330-745-2000), 3017 Barber Rd., Norton. Please call the ranges for hours.

Applications must be postmarked by July 18 and mailed to: Archery Program, P.O. Box 5250, Akron, OH 44334. Lottery winners will be notified by August 2, and the individuals named on permits will have to pass an archery test.

Two box blinds will be installed in locations for hunters requiring wheelchairs. Wheelchair-bound hunters may live outside of Summit County.

For details about the wheelchair-bound lottery, contact project manager Eric Fitch at efitch@summitmetroparks.org, 330-753-5789 or 330-475-1473.

Up to three hunting permits will be assigned per location. All areas are remote and have limited public access. Hunters must follow park rules and regulations and the hunting guidelines established by the Ohio Division of Wildlife. Hunting season is September 28 to February 2.

Regionally and throughout the state, changes in habitat and the elimination of natural predators have allowed deer herds to grow to unnatural densities, threatening biodiversity.

Through five previous seasons of the archery program, participants have taken 301 total deer. Sharpshooters have culled 1,735 deer in the Metro Parks since 2004, and the venison has been donated to the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. More than 4,300 pounds were donated last season. Since the start of the deer management program, almost 75,000 pounds of venison have been given to the Foodbank.