UPDATE: Hunters chosen by the lottery will be notified Nov. 1.

Initial story:

The Loudoun County Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Services (PRCS) this week opened the registration period for the second of two three-day managed hunts for antlerless deer at Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve. The hunts — Oct. 12, 15, 19 and Dec. 10, 14, 17 — have been planned to thin the herd at the preserve.

Personnel from PRCS and the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) have conducted deer herd health assessments at Banshee Reeks during the past four years, and according to a press release from PRCS, the assessments have determined that deer health is declining as a direct result of overpopulation.

Registration for the October hunt — archery only — is closed. The December hunt is a shotgun and archery event that will take place on Dec. 10, 14 and 17, 2012. Registration for the December hunt opened Oct. 1 and runs through Oct. 31.

Hunters wishing to participate can register for the lottery online at www.loudoun.gov/webtrac, using activity number 267501-01 for archery and 267501-02 for shotgun. On-site registration is also available Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. at the PRCS Administrative Office, 215 Depot Court SE, in Leesburg. The lottery registration fee is $10/ticket for Loudoun residents and $15/ticket for non-residents. There is an additional fee of $1.00 for all on-site registrations. There is no limit to the number of lottery registrations purchased by an individual.

Twenty-five shotgun hunters and eight archery hunters (plus eight shotgun alternates and four archery alternates) will be randomly selected and notified on Nov. 1. Participating hunters and alternates must have a Virginia hunting license, pass a qualifier at local ranges, attend a mandatory orientation at Banshee Reeks, and purchase a Loudoun County hunting permit at the orientation. Hunters selected through the lottery can attend the orientation on Nov. 17 or Nov. 18; however, they must participate in the first day of the hunt. Alternates must attend the orientation on Nov. 18 to learn whether or not they can participate in the hunt.

For more information about the managed hunt program, call 703-669-0316 or visit www.loudoun.gov/prcs.