Fighting for the forest

In 1779, George Washington's Continental Army spent a cold winter at Jockey Hollow, a spot that seemed to offer safety from British attack. Today, it remains an impregnable redoubt -- not for soldiers but for white-tail deer.

The hollow, part of the Morristown National Historical Park, is the federal hole in the doughnut of a regional effort to deal with an overpopulation of deer, standing alone among its southern Morris County and northern Somerset County neighbors in prohibiting hunting.

But the New Jersey Audubon Society and the Morris County Park Commission, concerned about the ravaging of the forests by the exploding deer population, are teaming up to pressure the federal government to change its policy at Jockey Hollow. They will formally ask federal officials to deal with the deer situation and hope to enlist neighboring towns to join the effort.