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Ohio’s White-tailed Deer Hunting Season Is a Success
Darke County harvests 809 deer, compared to 687 the previous year
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio’s white-tailed deer hunters concluded the
2019-2020 hunting season by harvesting 184,465 deer, according to the
Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. Deer
hunting in Ohio began Sept. 28, 2019, and concluded Feb. 2, 2020. The
final harvest total represents all deer taken during archery, gun,
muzzleloader, and youth seasons. During the 2018-2019 deer hunting
seasons, 172,670 deer were checked.
“It was another productive season for Ohio’s deer hunters. Ohio
has a world-class deer population and continues to offer one of the
best hunting experiences in the nation,” said Division of Wildlife
Chief Kendra Wecker. “Even as this year’s deer season concludes, many
are looking forward to spring wild turkey hunting and will begin
preparations for the next deer season. Plan to take someone new with
you this year to share your passion and knowledge of Ohio’s wildlife
and hunting traditions.”
Top 10 counties for deer harvest during the 2019-2020 seasons
include: Coshocton (6,715), Tuscarawas (5,781), Ashtabula (4,949),
Muskingum (4,929), Licking (4,878), Knox (4,746), Guernsey (4,524),
Holmes (4,507), Carroll (3,843) and Trumbull (3,668).
Ohio’s youth hunters harvested 6,234 on Nov. 23-24, 2019. During
the 2019 weeklong and two-day deer-gun seasons, hunters checked in
77,187 deer. Muzzleloader hunters added an additional 10,615 deer from
Jan. 4-7, 2020. On Feb. 2, archery hunters concluded their season with
88,860 deer taken. Archery hunters accounted for 48% of deer checked in
2019-2020. Ohio’s record deer harvest was in 2009-2010, when 261,260
were checked.
Ohio is a popular hunting destination for many out-of-state
hunters. During the 2019-2020 hunting seasons, more than 34,000
nonresident Ohio hunting licenses were sold. The top five states for
purchasing a nonresident hunting license in Ohio include: Pennsylvania,
Michigan, West Virginia, North Carolina and New York.
The Division of Wildlife wants to hear from you. Each year,
Division of Wildlife biologists present proposed hunting and fishing
regulations to the Ohio Wildlife Council. Ohioans are encouraged to
provide comments on the proposals and may do so in person or online.
In-person comments can be submitted during the weeklong open house
period from March 2-6, 2020, at any Division of Wildlife district
office. Online submissions can be made at wildohio.gov beginning
Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. A complete list of proposed changes can be found
at wildohio.gov.
Each year, Ohioans take an estimated 171 million outdoor
recreation trips and contribute $5.9 billion to the Buckeye State’s
economy, according to a report titled Economic Valuation of Natural
Areas in Ohio, recently released by The Ohio State University.
Anyone interested in learning to hunt or becoming a mentor to a
new hunter can visit the Wild Ohio Harvest Community Page for
information on how to get started, hunting-related workshops as well as
special hunting opportunities for mentors and new hunters.
The Division of Wildlife can help you take advantage of all the
hunting opportunities Ohio has to offer. Follow us on Twitter and
Facebook for instant news stories, outdoor recreation ideas, local
wildlife information and so much more. The Your Wild Ohio Hunter
Facebook page provides hunting tips and useful information as you get
outside this season. Visit wildohio.gov to find locations to hunt,
fish, trap and view wildlife. And don’t forget to follow us on
Instagram to view the best of Ohio’s wildlife photography.
Editor’s Note: A list of all white-tailed deer checked by hunters
during the 2019-2020 hunting seasons is shown below. The first number
following the county’s name shows the harvest numbers for 2019-2020,
and the 2018-2019 harvest numbers are in parentheses. Harvest numbers
below are subject to change.
Adams: 2,793 (2,965); Allen: 1,118 (878); Ashland: 3,378 (2,962);
Ashtabula: 4,949 (4,895); Athens: 3,360 (3,455); Auglaize: 960 (826);
Belmont: 2,936 (2,629); Brown: 2,315 (2,278); Butler: 1,454 (1,273);
Carroll: 3,843 (3,476); Champaign: 1,266 (1,115); Clark: 761 (748);
Clermont: 2,412 (2,308); Clinton: 772 (703); Columbiana: 3,180 (2,799);
Coshocton: 6,715 (6,063); Crawford: 1,256 (1,123); Cuyahoga: 903 (930);
Darke: 809 (687); Defiance: 1,763 (1,588); Delaware: 1,519 (1,408);
Erie: 1,058 (1,021); Fairfield: 1,857 (1,799); Fayette: 340 (290);
Franklin: 735 (736); Fulton: 795 (707); Gallia: 2,191 (2,499); Geauga:
1,922 (1,858); Greene: 842 (809); Guernsey: 4,524 (4,307); Hamilton:
1,550 (1,549); Hancock: 1,387 (1,145); Hardin: 1,459 (1,163); Harrison:
3,594 (3,214); Henry: 783 (675); Highland: 2,565 (2,283); Hocking:
3,163 (2,803); Holmes: 4,507 (3,934); Huron: 2,291 (2,104); Jackson:
2,821 (2,855); Jefferson: 2,077 (1,684); Knox: 4,746 (4,271); Lake: 849
(799); Lawrence: 1,552 (1,806); Licking: 4,878 (4,587); Logan: 2,163
(1,949); Lorain: 2,134 (2,080); Lucas: 778 (721); Madison: 555 (484);
Mahoning: 1,884 (1,908); Marion: 926 (788); Medina: 2,141 (2,084);
Meigs: 2,910 (3,083); Mercer: 814 (674); Miami: 879 (735); Monroe:
2,472 (2,282); Montgomery: 770 (701); Morgan: 2,920 (2,940); Morrow:
1,596 (1,487); Muskingum: 4,929 (4,663); Noble: 2,914 (2,909); Ottawa:
517 (476); Paulding: 1,114 (969); Perry: 2,570 (2,447); Pickaway: 800
(727); Pike: 1,901 (1,877); Portage: 2,503 (2,295); Preble: 1,036
(979); Putnam: 849 (699); Richland: 3,469 (3,263); Ross: 2,974 (2,758);
Sandusky: 880 (832); Scioto: 2,030 (2,162); Seneca: 2,054 (1,776);
Shelby: 1,100 (901); Stark: 2,848 (2,788); Summit: 1,498 (1,469);
Trumbull: 3,668 (3,462); Tuscarawas: 5,781 (5,245); Union: 960 (923);
Van Wert: 553 (495); Vinton: 2,439 (2,392); Warren: 1,213 (1,130);
Washington: 3,292 (3,110); Wayne: 2,411 (2,082); Williams: 1,660
(1,558); Wood: 1,050 (909); Wyandot: 1,562 (1,451).
2020 total: 184,465
2019 total: (172,670)
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