1. Wildlife Management Update
Ohio Wildlife Council
March 6, 2013

2. WILDLIFE RULE CHANGES:
A SUMMARY OF PARTICIPATION & COMMENTS
Division of Wildlife Open Houses
Saturday March 2, 12:00 – 3:00 PM
Open House Locations Attendees
District 1 37 (58)
District 2 46 (58)
District 3 127 (93)
District 4 70 (112)
District 5 70 (77)
O.W.C. 24 (NA)
Fairport F.U. 25 (NA)
Total: 399* (398)

3. WILDLIFE RULE CHANGES:
A SUMMARY OF PARTICIPATION & COMMENTS
Division of Wildlife Open Houses
Saturday March 2, 12:00 – 3:00 PM
Major Comment Areas Totals
Deer Regulations 329
Furbearers & Trapping 41
Waterfowl 29
Wild Turkey 27
Small Game Seasons 21

4. Division of Wildlife Open Houses
Saturday March 2, 12:00 – 3:00 PM
WRITTEN COMMENTS
DEER REGULATIONS
ISSUE: Allowing the Use of Rifles and/or Pistol-
caliber Long Guns
197 – Support (67%)
80 – Oppose (27%)
15 – No opinion (6%)

5. Division of Wildlife Open Houses
Saturday March 2, 12:00 – 3:00 PM
WRITTEN COMMENTS
DEER REGULATIONS
ISSUE: Create a 2-day Statewide Antlerless-
only Muzzleloader Season on second weekend
of October
32 – Support
12 – Support if the season was either-sex
35 – Oppose

6. Division of Wildlife Open Houses
Saturday March 2, 12:00 – 3:00 PM
WRITTEN COMMENTS
DEER REGULATIONS
• 31 – Deer gun season hours: ½-hr after sunset (4
opposed)
• 13 – Eliminate Extra Deer Gun weekend (13 opposed)
• 6 – Opposed Eliminating Urban Zones
• 3 – Opposed to Eliminating Special Early ML Season
*Wolf Creek Cap Snapper Muzzleloader Club
• 1 – Keep Zones instead of County Bag Limits

7. Division of Wildlife Open Houses
Saturday March 2, 12:00 – 3:00 PM
WRITTEN COMMENTS
WILD TURKEY HUNTING
• 7 – Allow unused Spring permits to be
used in the Fall

8. Website Comments – 824 total e-mails
Over 2 months for small game 1 month deer
ISSUE: Allowing the Use of Rifles and/or
Pistol-caliber Long Guns
577 – Support (81%)
119 – Oppose (17%)
14 – No opinion (2%)

9. Website Comments
DEER REGULATIONS
• 134 – Support proposed Statewide Early Muzzleloader
season second week of October
• 249 – Oppose the Statewide Early Muzzleloader season
second week of October
• 107 – Deer gun season hours: ½-hr after sunset (26
opposed)
• 69 – Eliminate Extra Deer Gun weekend (70 opposed)
• 8 – Support Eliminating Urban Zones (19 opposed)
• 1 – opposed to Eliminating Special Early ML Season
*Wolf Creek Cap Snapper Muzzleloader Club
• 76 – Support Zones County Bag Limits instead of Zones
(24 opposed)

10. From Our Constituents:
• Ohio Farm Bureau- APPROVES the proposed deer
changes; Opposes the decrease in overall bag limits
and the cut-off date for use of antlerless tags
• Buckeye Buckmasters- APPROVES of the proposed
deer changes
• East Central Ohio QDMA- APPROVES of the
proposed deer changes.

11. Proportion of Hunters who would CONSIDER
supporting an early-muzzleloader, antlerless-only
season (5,770 total surveyed in 2012 via Internet, Mail,
Open House)
• Overall, 63% of hunters support the idea
• Support (74%) is greatest among firearm-only
hunters ( 23% of all licensed hunters)
• Those who hunt exclusively with a bow (13% of all
hunters) represent the greatest opposition. Still,
43% of this group supports the idea.
• Among our largest group of hunters – those that
hunt with bow and firearm (64%), 62% support the
idea

12. Adopt all wildlife rules as proposed except:
• Move Youth Deer Gun Season to November 23- 24
• Make quail season end Sunday after Thanksgiving
• Eliminate the aggregate bag limit for 2-deer. 3-deer,
and 4-deer counties.

13. Any Questions?