Low Deer Count Causes Complaint Among Ohio Hunters

A low deer count in Ohio has caused multiple complaints among hunters who have consequently bagged far fewer animals this season, according to reports.

A group of 90 outraged northeast Ohio hunters took their grievances to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources over the weekend at one of five deer hunting summits held around the state.

In the meeting, they noted that the current deer-hunting season, which ends Feb. 1, has been one of the worst in the last 15 years. State estimates say that about 180,000 deer will be killed during the 2014-2015 season - that's nearly 11,500 fewer deer than last year's season.

"It's been horrible. ... People can't shoot deer because they aren't even seeing deer," taxidermist Pat Betts of Barberton told the Akron Beacon Journal.

The white-tailed deer population in Ohio is currently at 700,000, which is positive for these animals considering their numbers were around 400,000 a decade ago. However, many of these plant-eaters can be found in urban areas where hunting is not permitted, adding to the low deer count this hunting season.

Ohio's deer seem to be doing better, but still state officials are enforcing tighter deer management plans. According to the Division of Wildlife, it's waiting for the region's deer population to reached desired levels, and they are not there yet. There's still some evidence that the herd's condition is in decline, due to habitat loss.

There is also concern over what is called chronic wasting disease, said agency spokesman Doug Miller, which is a degenerative brain disorder related to mad cow disease that afflicts deer, elk and moose and can be fatal. The disease was first seen last October, and while no wild deer are reportedly infected in Ohio's herd, scientists are still conducting tests to see if it's affecting population numbers.

But deer numbers in others areas of the country have warranted deer hunts to control their population. In August, the National Parks Service tentatively approved the killing of more than 2,800 white-tailed deer at three Civil War battlefields in Maryland and Virginia over the next five years. This was in an effort to prevent local damage to plants and trees.

For more great nature science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN).