Ohio's 2018 to-date deer kill is on a rapid rise

Ohio’s archery deer hunting appears to have lit a fire with the arrival of much cooler weather.

The to-date deer kill as of October 23rd stands at 19,626 animals; a figure that represents a 1,502 animal gain in deer killed over the comparable October 24th, 2017 to-date figure, a look at the weekly tally provided on-line from the Ohio Division of Wildlife each Wednesday afternoon. The tallies continue through to the end of Ohio’s various deer-hunting seasons in early February.

Likewise, the to-date figure is a 6,576 animal increase over last week's reporting period.

Up until this current reporting period the 2018 numbers were trailing their respective 2017 counterparts. Most experts attributed the shortfall to the unseasonably – and even, record-breaking -warmth that stalked Ohio during October’s first couple of weeks.

And an abundant hard mast crop has not aided hunters, either. The Wildlife Division also notes in another report that the statewide proportion of white oak trees bearing acorns (hard mast) is up 22 percent over last year. White oaks are a preferred forage for deer. It is widely held that when mast is heavy that deer need not wander far and wide to feast, thus making themselves less visible to hunters.

Conversely, the red oak mast -a less desirable deer food source – is said to be down 10 percent this year, though some areas did see a greater supply of this nut, too.

Back to the current to-date deer kill. Of Ohio’s 88 counties, 65 showed gains over their previous respective October 24, 2017 reporting period while two counties – Erie (127) and Shelby (107) – reported respective identical weekly reporting figures. The remaining 21 Ohio counties saw declines between the two periods.

Among the counties posting gains between their respective 2017 and 2018 to-date reports (with their 2017 numbers in parentheses) were: Ashland – 347 (292); Brown – 253 (203); Coshocton – 695 (579); Defiance – 182 (130); Gallia – 186 (158); Geauga – 260 (254); Guernsey – 356 (316); Hancock – 154 (120); Hardin – 152 (106); Holmes – 481 (442); Knox – 483 (406); Medina – 330 (263); Meigs – 264 (198); Mercer – 105 (67); Noble – 248 (185); Paulding – 110 (81); Portage – 351 (311); Seneca – 227 (174); and Warren -162 (139).

Among the counties posting declines between their respective 2017 and 2018 to-date figures (with their 2017 numbers in parentheses) were: Adams – 299 (318); Ashtabula – 598 (650); Cuyahoga -245 (277); Fayette -26 (31); Franklin – 117 (139); Highland – 200 (233); Lake – 152 (173); Lorain – 317 (316); Lucas – 114 (150); and Trumbull – 609 (620).

In terms of antlered deer being taken to date, for the October 24th, 2017 reporting period the number was 5,824 animals while for the October 23rd, 2018 reporting period the figure was 6,735 animals.

- Jeffrey L. Frischkorn
JFrischk@Ameritech.net