Ohio's deer kill numbers make it through traditional mid-week slump

Ohio’s wildlife officials have begun showing the on-going/to-date tally of deer killed during the state’s seven-day firearms deer-hunting season.

What the data suggests is the huge difference in deer kill numbers from, say, Opening Day Monday through to the mid-week “Beggar's Day” Wednesday and Thursday.

For example, the scorecard as assembled by the Ohio Division of Wildlife via the agency’s cold and heartless - but analytically sound - electronic game-check system says that statewide on Monday, November 30^th, the total Opening Day deer kill was 22,256 animals.

In refining the math further by comparing the to-date kills on a daily basis we see that on Tuesday, December 1^st, hunters had killed 10,341 animals, or less than one-half of what hunters shot on Monday, November 30^th.

And the figures continue to demonstrate an easing of hunting pressure as Ohio’s deer kill drops daily by mid-week.

Figures compiled and released by the Wildlife Division say that as of Thursday, December 3^rd, Ohio’s hunters had killed a total to-date figure of 46,576 deer. Thus, on Wednesday, December 2^nd and Thursday, December 3^rd, Ohio hunters had killed an additional 13,979 animals for this entire two-day/mid-week period.

Typically, Wednesday and Thursday of Ohio’s seven-day general firearms deer-hunting season record the lowest daily kill numbers, almost certainly due to their low point in the numbers of deer hunters in the field.

 What happens between today through Sunday, December 6^th when the books close on the 2015 general firearms deer-hunting season will be determined – as always – on hunting pressure.

Influencing that pressure will be a compilation of things like the weather, the approach of the holidays, hunter fatigue and all of the other factors that can make or break a sportsman’s desire to be afield.

Jeffrey L. Frischkorn
JFrischk@Ameritech.net

Jeff is the retired News-Herald reporter who  covered the earth sciences, the area's three county park systems and the outdoors for the newspaper. During his 30 years with The News-Herald Jeff was the recipient of more than 125 state, regional and national journalism awards. He also is a columnist and features writer for the Ohio Outdoor News, which is published every other week and details the outdoors happenings in the state.