Bow-hunting deer season opens Saturday
As summer wanes and temperatures cool, many area residents turn their attention to hunting the thousands of deer that make Ohio home.
First will come the archers, since Ohio's statewide deer archery season opens Saturday, according to officials of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife.
"Our bow season is going to start," said Abby Ditomassi, wildlife communications specialist for ODNR. The archery season will run from Saturday (Sept. 24) through Feb. 5.
An Ohio tradition
"Deer hunting is a tradition in Ohio," Gov. Mike DeWine said in an ODNR news release. "Throughout the season and beyond, hunting-related tourism, equipment sales and license sales generate revenue in Ohio from hunters across the nation, with much of that revenue being directed back to the state's wildlife."
According to Division of Wildlife figures, a record 95,303 deer were taken with bows in the 2021-2022 season, amounting to 48% of the total deer harvest. Approximately 71% of Ohio's bow harvest was with a crossbow. Longbows, compound and recurve bows also remain popular with Ohio deer hunters.
During last year's season, Tomassi said, bow hunters took 563 deer in Sandusky County and 312 in Ottawa County.
According to the Division of Wildlife, deer-hunting presents a unique challenge, particularly when using archery equipment. The division encourages hunters to practice with their equipment to accomplish clean, ethical shots, recommending local public shooting ranges as safe, accessible places to hone one's skills.
Ohio' gun season starts Nov. 28
Hunters younger than 18 are permitted to hunt deer with firearms during youth gun season, the weekend of Nov. 19 and 20. The seven-day gun season runs Nov. 28 to Dec. 4, with a bonus weekend Dec. 17-18. Deer muzzleloader season will be Jan. 7 to Jan. 10.
In 2021, hunters in Sandusky County took 1,014 deer with firearms, while gun hunters in Ottawa County harvested 560, Ditomassi detailed. This year, in both counties, she said, hunters will be permitted to take one antlered deer, with a bag limit of three per county, and a total of six, by hunting in other counties. The non-antlered deer may include does and button bucks, she said. Antlered deer are considered to be those with at least one antler of more than three inches.
Deer hunters can download the free HuntFish OH mobile app to buy licenses and permits, view maps of public hunting areas, see the current hunting regulations, or check game even without a cellular connection, according to the division. The app is available through the OLHAP program.
Safety is stressed
Ditomassi also encouraged everyone participating in this year's deer hunt to do so as cautiously as possible.
"Be safe, wear hunter orange and all that good stuff."
magnuson@gannett.com
419-332-2674
This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Deer Season to open