Ohio considers extending deer season

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources is considering entending the state's deer gun season an extra weekend for the 2006-2007 season, according to an article in the Toledo Blade.

The season, which last year ran for a week during the first week of December, allows hunters to harvest either one, two or three deer depending on your location in the state. In addition, up to two extra permits are available for hunters shooting deer in areas designated as urban zones in need of herd reduction.

From my own experience, most hunters either get their deer or give up after the first few days of the season. I'm not sure adding additional hunting time is going to help check a growing deer herd. I have killed my maximum four deer each year since we returned to Ohio (two regular tags plus two urban tags) and I don't see any effect on the herd. If anything, it's increasing. As anecdotal evidence, last week I counted 17 deer in our main hay field one afternoon.

If Ohio is serious about trimming the herd, it needs to liberalize harvest numbers.

In a related matter, I was happy to see the state enact the Apprentice Hunting and Trapping Bill. This program allows very young hunters to enter the sport without a Hunter Education Certificate as long as they are under the immediate direction of a mentor.