Final 2022-23 Deer Harvest Report

Article Presented By Scioto Valley Dumpsters…

(ODNR) – Ohio’s 2022-23 white-tailed deer hunting season concluded Sunday, Feb. 5, with 210,977 deer checked, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. The final total represents all deer harvested during archery, gun, muzzleloader, and youth hunting seasons since Sept. 10, 2022.

“Ohio is consistently one of the nation’s best states for deer hunting, and this season reaffirmed that status,” said Division of Wildlife Chief Kendra Wecker. “Ohio hunters have enjoyed a long season with many chances to get afield. This is the first time since 2012-13 that the number of deer taken surpassed 200,000.”
 
Ohio’s statewide deer harvest, by year:

• 2022-23: 210,977
• 2021-22: 196,988
• 3-year average (2019-2021): 193,058

Ohio’s 2022-23 statewide deer harvest, by individual season:

• Archery: 99,742
• Weeklong and two-day gun seasons: 87,095
• Four-day muzzleloader season: 13,617
• Two-day youth season: 9,515
• Controlled firearm hunts: 1,008

Top 10 counties for 2022-23 deer harvest:

1. Coshocton (7,590). Last season, Coshocton County also led the state with 7,144 deer checked.
2. Tuscarawas (7,028)
3. Muskingum (5,982)
4. Ashtabula (5,592)
5. Knox (5,477)
6. Licking (5,467)
7. Holmes (5,183)
8. Guernsey (5,073)
9. Carroll (4,866)
10. Trumbull (4,251) 

Most popular hunting implements:

1. Crossbow: 71,701 (34%)
2. Straight-walled cartridge rifle: 56,437 (26%)
3. Shotgun: 36,398 (17%)
4. Vertical Bow: 28,041 (13%)
5. Muzzleloader: 17,854 (9%)
6. Handgun: 546 (1%) 

Deer harvest, by type:

• Bucks: 86,645; 41% of the total
• Does: 101,141; 48%
• Button bucks: 19,851; 9%
• Bucks with shed antlers and bucks with antlers less than 3 inches: 3,340; 2%

Permit sales
Ohio hunters purchased 409,672 permits across all hunting seasons. Hunters from all 50 U.S. states purchased deer permits in Ohio for use in the 2022-23 seasons. States outside of Ohio with the highest nonresident permit sales include:

1. Pennsylvania (9,365)
2. Michigan (6,420)
3. West Virginia (4,367)
4. North Carolina (4,284)
5. New York (3,878)

Hunting drives $866 million of spending in Ohio each year through the sale of food, equipment, fuel, lodging, and more, according to the Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation’s Economic Impacts of Hunting and Target Shooting Technical Report. An estimated 479,000 hunters enjoy the state’s excellent outdoor recreation each year. The economic benefits of hunting-related industries translate to 15,500 jobs in Ohio, $68 million in state and local taxes, and $753 million of the state’s GDP.

A county list of all white-tailed deer harvested during the 2022-23 deer hunting seasons is shown below. The first number following the county’s name shows the harvest numbers for 2022-23, and the three-year average of deer taken from 2019-2021 is in parentheses. A three-year average provides a better overall comparison to this year’s harvest numbers, eliminating year-to-year variation because of weather, misaligned season dates, crop harvest, and other unavoidable factors. Numbers below are raw data and subject to change: Adams: 3,180 (2,959); Allen: 1,288 (1,072); Ashland: 3,994 (3,575); Ashtabula: 5,592 (5,268); Athens: 3,332 (3,361); Auglaize: 1,293 (1,006); Belmont: 3,087 (2,901); Brown: 2,568 (2,497); Butler: 1,268 (1,566); Carroll: 4,866 (4,054); Champaign: 1,623 (1,356); Clark: 842 (789); Clermont: 2,547 (2,548); Clinton: 850 (682); Columbiana: 4,058 (3,393); Coshocton: 7,590 (6,883); Crawford: 1,479 (1,334); Cuyahoga: 929 (930); Darke: 1,081 (842); Defiance: 2,060 (1,912); Delaware: 1,734 (1,597); Erie: 942 (1,003); Fairfield: 2,223 (2,043); Fayette: 416 (328); Franklin: 818 (816); Fulton: 975 (872); Gallia: 3,031 (2,417); Geauga: 2,477 (2,109); Greene: 923 (892); Guernsey: 5,073 (4,812); Hamilton: 1,193 (1,489); Hancock: 1,760 (1,534); Hardin: 1,485 (1,463); Harrison: 3,744 (3,598); Henry: 1,009 (861); Highland: 2,953 (2,749); Hocking: 2,802 (2,905); Holmes: 5,183 (4,748); Huron: 2,654 (2,448); Jackson: 3,171 (2,727); Jefferson: 2,587 (2,219); Knox: 5,477 (5,094); Lake: 1,066 (952); Lawrence: 1,889 (1,620); Licking: 5,467 (5,224); Logan: 2,257 (2,201); Lorain: 2,368 (2,340); Lucas: 829 (754); Madison: 644 (610); Mahoning: 2,074 (2,007); Marion: 988 (974); Medina: 2,790 (2,482); Meigs: 3,437 (3,171); Mercer: 1,075 (875); Miami: 980 (863); Monroe: 2,721 (2,481); Montgomery: 861 (839); Morgan: 3,369 (3,095); Morrow: 2,085 (1,738); Muskingum: 5,982 (5,144); Noble: 3,417 (3,095); Ottawa: 635 (565); Paulding: 1,375 (1,240); Perry: 2,940 (2,643); Pickaway: 910 (701); Pike: 2,105 (1,842); Portage: 2,825 (2,555); Preble: 1,127 (1,057); Putnam: 1,083 (887); Richland: 3,937 (3,733); Ross: 2,952 (3,033); Sandusky: 1,123 (1,016); Scioto: 2,453 (2,087); Seneca: 2,275 (2,063); Shelby: 1,355 (1,098); Stark: 3,625 (3,096); Summit: 1,889 (1,669); Trumbull: 4,251 (3,892); Tuscarawas: 7,028 (6,081); Union: 1,114 (1,071); Van Wert: 731 (590); Vinton: 1,986 (2,327); Warren: 1,055 (1,234); Washington: 3,971 (3,302); Wayne: 2,711 (2,559); Williams: 2,053 (1,823); Wood: 1,139 (1,064); Wyandot: 1,873 (1,713).