Final deer hunting numbers show lower harvest

Every county in the region saw fewer deer harvested during the 2011-12 hunting season compared to a year ago, according to final numbers released Monday by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

The results mirrored those of the state, which saw 219,698 deer taken during Ohio’s 2011-12 hunting season, compared to 239,379 in the 2010-11 season.

Allen County recorded 1,037 deer harvested, which was 254 fewer than last year. Logan County had the top deer harvest in the region with 2,283, just 32 fewer than it had a year ago.

The totals for other area counties: Auglaize (737, down 6); Hancock (1,189, down 276); Hardin (1,189, down 229); Mercer (225, down 27); Putnam (732, down 185); Shelby, (1,008, down 103) and Van Wert (646, down 189).

The top three counties with the highest number of deer taken this season were: Coshocton (7,969), Licking (7,275) and Tuscarawas (6,950).

Ohio’s first modern day deer-gun season opened in 1943 in three counties, and hunters reported 168 deer. In 1956, deer hunting was allowed in all 88 counties, and hunters harvested 3,911 deer during a one-week season.

The white-tailed deer is the most popular game animal in Ohio and is frequently pursued by generations of hunters. Ohio ranks eighth nationally in annual hunting-related sales and 10th in the number of jobs associated with the hunting-related industry. Each year, hunting has an $859 million economic impact in Ohio through the sale of equipment, fuel, food, lodging and more.