Syracuse’s annual deer cull will begin Dec. 15, 2025, and continue through March 2026, according to the mayor’s office.
An important part of the city’s Tick and Deer Management Plan, the cull is just one of several taking place in local municipalities in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, including Camillus, Solvay, Dewitt, Fayetteville and Manlius.
The program aims to reduce the number of vehicle and deer collisions, prevent destruction of green spaces by grazing deer, and decrease the prevalence of tick-born illnesses such as Lyme disease.
Specially trained USDA sharpshooters will operate only on suitable sites meeting strict Department of Environmental Conservation criteria in the east, west, and south sides of the city, and with explicit written permission from property owners. All sites are either private or closed to public access when work is conducted.
Sharpshooters will conduct the work only at night, between the hours of dusk to dawn. No wildlife management officer should be accessing private property without permission. Residents should call 911 if they see suspicious activity on public or private property at any time.
City funding for the Tick and Deer Management Plan is authorized by the Syracuse Common Council. Primary funding is provided by Onondaga County with support from County Executive J. Ryan McMahon, II and the Onondaga County Legislature.
Syracuse killed 137 deer in city neighborhoods between January and March 2025. That’s the second largest tally since the program began in 2019, when USDA sharpshooters killed 159 deer.
All meat from culled deer is processed and donated to the Food Bank of Central New York. To date, the city has given 16,500 pounds of venison, equivalent to 60,000 meals, according to the mayor’s office.
Want to become a city deer diarist? Contact the Office of the Mayor by email at mayor@syr.gov or by calling Cityline at (315) 448-CITY(2489).
Property owners who have a property they want to be considered for deer management activities can contact the Parks Department by phone at (315) 473-4330 or by email at parks@syrgov.net.