Managing Ohio's Deer Herd - Ohio Department of Natural Resources

tance on the part of hunters to abandon traditionalsites and seek areas with lower access andhigher deer densities and a reluctance on thepart of landowners to grant access to their lands.Hunters must work harder to cultivate positivelandowner-hunter relationships.Landownerscan help by allowing deer hunting and activelyrecruiting good deer hunters. Additionally, landownersare encouraged to take an active role inthe management of the deer on their property byimplementing their own “harvest management”guidelines. If herd reduction is the goal, it maybe appropriate to limit the harvest to antlerlessdeer or use an “earn-a-buck” strategy, wherebyonly those hunters harvesting antlerless deer firstwould be able to harvest a buck. A good ruleof-thumbis that landowners annually need toharvest 35 percent of the deer they believe areon their property and about 75 percent of theseshould be antlerless deer. In so doing, landownerswill be managing for stable deer populations.Otherwise, reduced harvests will result in increasingherd size.Special ManagementTechniques for Urban andAgricultural ProblemsBy managing for optimum deer populationlevels on a county basis, we expect to prevent oreliminate widespread agricultural problems withdeer. However, some localized crop damage isstill likely to occur. Even with a county populationat goal, deer will move to and concentrate inareas of good habitat. Farm fields and orchardsin proximity to good deer cover are especiallyvulnerable.In situations where deer need to be killed toreduce property damage, landowners or lesseesmay be issued Deer Damage Control Permits(DDCP) at the time the damage is occurring.These permits allow landowners/lessees and theiragents to kill deer during the dates and under theconditions specified on the permit. For most agriculturalproblems, these permits will only bevalid for the period of January 1 until the start ofthe archery season. Under limited crop damagecircumstances, permits may be extended untilthe start of the youth gun season. In specific circumstances,permits may be valid year-round tocontrol damage at orchards, nurseries, inside municipalities,and for safety purposes at airports.Regardless of the situation, DDCPs will expire nolater than December 31 of the year in which thepermit is issued. Except in the case of rub damageto trees, permit holders are strongly encouragedto kill antlerless deer. Permit holders mustsurrender all antlers to the Division of Wildlife.Additional information about this program canbe obtained from your local state wildlife officeror by writing to the Division of Wildlife, WildlifeManagement and Research, 2045 Morse Road ,Columbus, Ohio 43229-6693. Information isalso available by calling 1-800-WILDLIFE.In response to increasing numbers of deervehicleaccidents and low harvests, the Divisionof Wildlife established five Urban Deer Zonesencompassing all or portions of 19 urban countiesin 1994. Local ordinances permitting, hunterscould harvest two additional antlerless deerwithin the Urban Deer Zones. In 1995, the baglimit was doubled. Permit sales and harvest increased378 percent and 28 percent, respectively.Publication 87 (R408)An Equal Opportunity Employer - M/F/HTed Strickland, Governor • Sean D. Logan, DirectorDavid M. Graham, Chiefwww.wildohio.com1-800-POACHER