Extended hunting hours, a new hunting season and different limits for the number of deer a hunter is allowed to shoot per season are among some of the rule changes that could help keep Ohio’s deer population in check.
The Ohio Wildlife Council will review a set of proposed rule changes from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife for the 2013-2014 hunting season that could better manage Athens County’s deer population.
Athens County’s bag limit, or maximum amount of deer a hunter can shoot in one season, will be lowered from six to four, said Mike Tonkovich, deer program administrator for the Division of Wildlife’s Southeast district office.
However, the division is proposing a new antlerless-only white-tailed deer muzzleloader-hunting season in addition to extended hours that they hope will better manage Ohio’s deer population, Tonkovich said.
“We still need to reduce the (deer) population in Athens County,” Tonkovich said. “The new rules are complementing each other.”
The proposed bag-limit changes would not have a significant effect on the total number of deer shot, Tonkovich said, since the number of hunters who shoot five or six deer in a season is insignificant.
The division is also suggesting removing the current December antlerless season, Tonkovich said. Instead, a new hunting season in October and an extra half hour of hunting after dark could be implemented in the upcoming season to better manage the number of deer in the state.
The additional season would be from Oct. 12 to 13 and hunters would only be able to shoot antlerless deer with a muzzleloader gun, according to the news release.
A muzzleloader is a firearm that can only shoot one projectile at a time before needing to be reloaded, said Mike Reynolds, wildlife biologist for the ODNR.
It is more effective to have a larger number of hunters out on one weekend than spread out over time because hunters are more successful when deer are moving, Tonkovich said.
Tonkovich said the extra half hour of hunting that would be allowed after sunset will also help hunters to be successful because it is a time when deer are the most active.
Wes Gilkey, president of the Ohio University Second Amendment Club and local hunter, said deer population control is still a major issue.
“There are so many deer out there you could probably open deer season up all winter before you could have a huge impact on the deer population,” Gilkey said.
The Ohio Wildlife Council will review the proposed changes and vote at its April 17 meeting. Residents can voice their opinions at an open house, which will be held at the Southeast Ohio Division of Wildlife District Four Office, 360 E. State St., on March 2 from 12 to 3 p.m.
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