Doe permits could be lost

http://www.outdoornews.com/March-2014/Doe-permits-could-be-lost-in-27-counties/

Doe permits could be lost in 27 counties
BY MIKE MOORE EDITOR
March 13, 2014

Columbus — A proposal is on the table that would eliminate antlerless permits in 27 primarily southeast counties, according to the DNR Division of Wildlife.

The $15 antlerless tags have been in place since 2007 when they were first introduced to be used statewide with an expiration date just before deer gun season.

“As evidenced over the past six years of very liberal regulations, this incentive has worked very well,” said Division of Wildlife Chief Scott Zody. “Many of our counties are either at or very near their (population) goals.”

The Ohio Wildlife Council will determine the fate of the proposal when it votes on deer regulations in April.

From the outset, the goal of the $15 antlerless permit was to incentivize hunters to take more does and to do so early on in the season, Zody said.

“In looking at those counties ... we feel like we’re at or very, very close to being at (population density) goal,” Zody said. “We want to continue to maintain a sufficient harvest pressure in those counties to

maintain and stabilize the numbers. But, we no longer feel we need to utilize the tool of the antlerless permit in those counties.”

Antlerless deer may still be killed in those counties without the low-cost permits.

“What we’re saying is that you can still harvest three deer in those counties, but you just have to do it with the either-sex tags, which are good for the entire season,” Zody said.

Zody said this should not be interpreted as a move to entirely eliminate the antlerless tags.

“I don’t think we’ll ever totally eliminate (antlerless tags) as a tool,” he said. “We’re still going to have a need for these permits in your urban areas and in your controlled hunt situations.”

Still, the permits’ effectiveness will be subject to a year-to-year, county-to-county evaluation, Zody said.

“We want to be sure we’re using this as a tool,” Zody said. “When you use it, get it out of the toolbox and put it back when you’re finished. That doesn’t mean you lock it up forever. It just means you’re careful when and how you use it.”

Division of Wildlife deer project manager Mike Tonkovich said the antlerless permits have worked as intended, but now is the time to take some of the pressure off in those counties.

“This will always be a part of the deer management tool box in Ohio,” said Tonkovich. “ ... They’ll always be available to effect change in harvest. We’ll just adjust the numbers that we’re allowing to be sold, like we are doing here.”

Zody said the goal is not to discourage the taking of antlerless deer, but densities in those 27 counties are closer to population goals than the rest of the state.

“We’re not saying in the other counties ‘don’t shoot a doe,’” Zody said. “We’re just not going to provide that incentive for you to go out there and do it like we are in some of those other counties.”

The state, if the proposal is approved, stands to lose money, but money is not driving the decision, Zody said.

“This is not a monetary decision, it’s a deer management decision,” he said. “There is the potential for us to have a little bit of lost revenue. A lot is going to depend on how our hunters react and how they behave with respect to buying tags.”

This article appears in the March 2014 issue of Outdoor News
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Final deer kill drops below 200,000 again in Ohio
DNR REPORT
February 27, 2014

Columbus — Deer-archery season ended Sunday, Feb. 2, bringing all deer hunting seasons to a close. Ohio hunters checked 191,459 white-tailed deer during the 2013-2014 hunting season for all implements.

Hunters checked 218,910 deer during the 2012-2103 hunting season. This expected decline in the deer hunter harvest comes following several years of liberal bag limits and deer regulations, which helped bring Ohio’s white-tailed deer population closer to target levels.

“This year’s white-tailed deer harvest indicates we are on target to maintain a high-quality deer herd,” said DNR Division of Wildlife Chief Scott Zody. “Ohio remains one of the best deer hunting states in the nation.”

The ODNR Division of Wildlife remains committed to properly managing Ohio’s deer populations through a combination of regulatory and programmatic changes. The goal of Ohio’s Deer Management Program is to provide a deer population that maximizes recreational opportunities, while minimizing conflicts with landowners and motorists. This ensures that Ohio’s deer herd is maintained at a level that is both acceptable to most and biologically sound.

Until recently, the populations in nearly all of Ohio’s counties were above their target numbers. In the last few years, through increased harvests, dramatic strides have been made in many counties to bring those populations closer toward their goal. Once a county’s deer population is near goal, harvest regulations are adjusted to maintain the population near that goal.

The Ohio counties that reported the most checked deer for all implements during the 2013-2014 season are: Coshocton (6,270), Tuscarawas (5,774), Licking (5,711), Muskingum (5,547), Guernsey (5,307), Ashtabula (4,981), Harrison (4,533), Knox (4,529), Carroll (4,203), and Athens (4,053). Coshocton County also reported the most deer harvested in 2012-2013 (7,413).

Hunters continue to utilize various methods to report deer kills. Since the deer season began on Sept. 28, 2013, 47 percent of hunters phoned in their report, 32 percent reported online, 11 percent traveled to a license agent’s location, and 10 percent used the new mobile-friendly website.

Ohio's first modern-day deer-gun season opened in 1943 in three counties, and hunters checked 168 deer. Deer hunting was allowed in all 88 counties in 1956, and hunters harvested 3,911 deer during the one-week season.

This article appears in the February 2014 issue of Outdoor News
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I know around where I live there isnt near the amount of deer there used to be, not even close.

Nobody can tell me that deer numbers are not declining around here. I think a one to one kill ratio is sufficient.

I know Hank and i talk about this all the time ,we say remember when you could go for a drive and it was nothing to see many many deer in one night ,or take a walk and spook a few .Heck we have been on hikes and even just sitting in the woods and it was so dead quiet and nothing moving. We have never seen it so bad to go a whole season and the only deer that you even see are two fawn.