First day deer take down for Gallia

Staff report

COLUMBUS - Hunters took 39,629 white-tailed deer on opening day of Ohio's deer-gun season, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife.

The deer-gun season remains open through this Sunday and then reopens for two days: Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 16-17.

The preliminary figure from deer check stations throughout the state shows a slight increase from last year's opening day total of 38,695. Counties reporting the highest numbers of deer checked on Monday included Tuscarawas, 1,858; Guernsey, 1,615; Coshocton, 1,503; Washington, 1,451; Holmes , 1,304; Harrison, 1,244; Licking, 1,192; Muskingum, 1,127; Athens, 1,101; and Meigs, 1,054.

Hunters took 710 deer in Gallia County on the season's opening day, down from the 2005 first day total of 775.

East Central Ohio has been the state's top deer hunting region for many years. Good habitat and a rich hunting tradition in the area sustain its reputation as a deer hunting hot spot.

“The deer-gun season is a fun time for Ohio's hunters. Without a doubt this is Ohio's most popular hunting season,” said Steven A. Gray, chief of the ODNR Division of Wildlife. “Each year, more and more hunters come from out of state to Ohio to enjoy our good deer hunting.”

Many out-of-state hunters cite the health and quality of Ohio's deer herd as the reason for making the Buckeye State their deer-hunting destination.

Deer hunting in the state was already off to a good start with both early archery and youth deer-gun season figures up from 2005. When combining the results of Monday's harvest, along with those from the early muzzleloader season, the first six-weeks of archery season and the recent youth deer-gun season, a total of 94,491 deer have been killed so far this deer hunting season - compared to 89,276 last year at this time.

In all, hunters took a total of 209,513 deer during all of last year's hunting seasons.

“We think Ohio's deer herd is in great shape. However, it takes constant management to control the deer population through hunting. Key to the management concept is taking an adequate number of does each season,” Gray said.

Around 400,000 hunters are expected to participate in the statewide deer-gun season. Ohio's deer population was estimated to be 600,000 prior to the start of the fall hunting seasons.

Hunters who wish to share their success can submit a photo of themselves and the deer they killed this year. The web address for submitting a photo is ohiodnr.com/wildlife.

Deer hunting contributes an estimated $266 million to Ohio's economy each year and helps to support thousands of jobs. Venison is a nutritious meat, low in fat and cholesterol. It is the number one wild game served by hunters in Ohio. Deer hunters also contribute thousands of pounds of venison to organizations that help feed less-fortunate Ohio residents through special programs.

A detailed listing of deer-hunting rules is contained in the 2006-2007 Ohio Hunting Regulations, available wherever licenses are sold, and online at ohiodnr.com. .