Ohio’s deer kill
continues with a total to-date animal count that’s ahead of where
the tally stood at the same point in 2017.
Based on data
provided via the Ohio Division of Wildlife’s electronic-based
tele-check system, 165,392 deer were killed as of Tuesday, January
2nd. That figure is 6,443 more animals than were taken for the same
period ending January 3rd, 2017 which was 158,949 animals.
Take note, too, that
the immediate previous reporting period ending December 26th, 2017
showed a then-to-date deer kill of 163,638 animals. Thus, only 1,754
deer were taken by hunters between the December 26th reporting
end-date and the January 2nd reporting end-date.
For comparison
purposes – and for statistics to be meaningful comparisons are the
holy grail – the 2016-2017 season spread from its December 27th,
2016 and January 2nd, 2017 reporting deadlines was even fewer deer;
1,592 animals, to be exact.
Which might be
surprising given the deep chill virtually all of Ohio’s been under
since about Christmas. You’d have thought the cold and the snows of
the past 10 or so days would have kept deer hunters at home in front
of the hearth. And in some cases that explanation appears to be true,
though apparently not in the case of every one of Ohio’s 88
counties.
Let’s look at the
current to-date deer kill figures from a couple of different angles,
shall we.
A few of Ohio’s 88
counties saw deer kill increases of fewer than 10 animals each
between the December 26th and January 2nd reporting periods. Among
them (with their January 2nd reporting period number followed by
their December 26th reporting period figure in parentheses) were:
Shelby County – 896 (889, for a gain of seven animals); Henry
County – 698 (695, for a gain of three animals); Huron County –
2,219 (2,210, for a gain of nine animals); Marion County - 819 (811,
for a gain of eight animals); Morrow County – 1,400 (1,391, for a
gain of nine animals); Clinton County -730 (728, for a gain of two
animals); and Gallia County – 2,353 (2,344, for a gain of nine
animals).
One county –
Fayette – failed to record a single additional deer killed between
the December 26th and January 2nd reporting periods: 318 animals for
each week-ending reporting period.
Even so, a few
counties bucked the cold/snow-hampering weather conditions.
Consequently, they each saw their respective deer kills produce
modest gains. Among them (with their January 2nd reporting period
number followed by their December 26th reporting period figure in
parentheses) were: Ashtabula County – 4,568 (4,532, for a gain of
36 animals); Coshocton County – 5,823 (5,756, for a gain of 67
animals); Guernsey County – 4,097 (4,040, for a gain of 57
animals); Lake County – 769 (739, for a gain of 30 animals);
Licking County – 4,384 (4,319, for a gain of 65 animals); and
Tuscarawas County – 5,054 (4,988, for a gain of 66 animals).
Going into the
present to-date tally as of January 2, there are five counties with
deer kills of at least four thousand animals each. These counties
(with their respective 2016-2017 to-date season numbers in
parentheses) are: Ashtabula – 4,568 (4,394); Coschocton – 5,823
(5,110); Guernsey – 4,097 (3,945); Licking – 4,384 (4,264);
Muskingum – 4,639 (4,355); and Tuscarawas – 5,064 (4,326).
Ohio still has four
counties with to-date deer kills of fewer than 500 animals each.
These counties (with their respective 2016-2017 to-date season
numbers in parentheses) are: Fayette – 318 (286); Madison – 473
(433); Ottawa – 422 (400); Van Wert – 473 (431).
How the next weekly
to-date deer kill reporting period – which ends January 9th –
will shake out is unknown, of course. Yet given that the first two
days of the statewide four-day muzzle-loading deer-hunting season is
forecast to feature sub-freezing and even sub-zero temperatures it is
entirely possible - and probably likely - that at least some hunters
will skip the activity. Such a decrease in participation would
certainly lend itself to a decreased deer kill for the season.
This season begins
Saturday (January 6th) and ends the following Tuesday (January 9th.)
Last year the four-day muzzle-loading season saw a total statewide
kill of 15,483 deer. In 2016 that figure was 12,503 animals, and in
2015 the like-statistic was 13,724 animals.
- Jeffrey L. Frischkorn
JFrischk@Ameritech.net
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