Sportsmen's Input Needed

[Fletch]

Definitely the out of state people. 40,000 tags seems like a lot.

Yup.... Tops on the list would be to get rid of all the non-resident hunters.... They are killing YOUR DEER... So just eliminate non-resident license sales... PERIOD... 40,000 deer tags went to non-resident ??? I DOUBT IT !!!! According to this article originating from ODNR.... There were 415,710 deer tags sold in Ohio.... 5 states with the most non resident license sales were listed.... Pennsylvania had the most with 8808 and the state with the least amount sold had 3699.... Therefore since Ohio wasn't even in the top five, there must of been less than 3699 Ohio deer tags sold to non-residents.... WOW THATS A FAR CRY FROM 40,000.....

https://ohiodnr.gov/discover-and-learn/safety-conservation/about-ODNR/news/ohios-final-2023-24-deer-harvest-report

So wanna improve deer hunting???
1... Eliminate all baiting...
2... Eliminate cross guns for all... Make them legal for people with handicaps ( doctors note needed ) and seniors 65 and older...
3... Shoot a button buck and you gotta use your buck tag on it....
4... Reciprocal license fees would be a good thing....
5... Increasing the amount of game wardens would be good...
6... Have antler restrictions ( 3 points to a side )

 

[Fletch]

Thinking back on that article I might of interpreted wrong... Maybe those 5 states listed were actual residents from those states that purchased Ohio tags... Not non-resident sales for those states... If so... My bad... Sorry bout that... Maybe someone can find out the actual number of sales in Ohio...

 

[Wiley E Coyote]

I love the early bow hunting ideal only because I'm selfish and want to shoot a velvet buck in Ohio. I'm pretty sure as far as deer hunting goes the state is pretty proud of their efforts on the deer herd. Money drives a lot in the deer hunting world and I don't see that changing. So I'm happy with the way they are doing things because they are going to keep the deer hunting how they see fit! Not that I don't have a wish list but I know it's not inline with what they are going to do. I feel the deer hunting is pretty good in our state over all. EHD has been the only bad issue for my hunting in the last ten years and I can only blame mother nature on that. Open raccoon season and a bobcat season are needed. Not sure if they can help the grouse but wish they could. And we are just screwed on pheasant and quail in most of the state thanks to agriculture practices unfortunately. As for public access here in SW Ohio it's a mess! Invasive plants have taken away our public hunting areas. Can't even hike through the woods let alone try to hunt or shoot. Would be nice if some type of effort was put forward to curb this issue!

 

[Bigcountry40]

Lots of great things mentioned already

Create some kind of regulation around being a outfitter in the state of Ohio.

Have conservation nonprofit groups be more transparent with their money, focus it on public access/habitat restoration and stop focusing on hunter recruitment.

 

[Buckmaster]

Want to grow your business? Create more hunting/fishing public access. If you build it; they will come.

 

[bonemonger]

Eliminate buck hunting after gun season,doe only the rest of the season. Stop all those bucks being shot over corn piles in the late season

 

["J"]

Gun season from the Monday after thanksgiving until New Year’s Day.
Muzzleloader season the remainder of January…..
Gun and Muzzleloader season need expanded. You still tote whatever version of archery gear you like….

 

[Reagan]

This state isn’t perfect but it’s pretty good. I would not make any major changes.

I would open bobcat season.
No closed season on coons.
Ban baiting.
No fall turkey until the population rebounds.

 

[ThatBuckeyeGuy]

 

[jagermeister]

Think bigger fellas…

I need to flesh out the ideas more but…

1. Creation of an access program to open up more private land to hunting. Yes, I know there is a small scale program in place now but it needs to be 10x what currently exists.

2. Creation of a grand scale habitat program for upland birds and pollinators on public and private that benefits wildlife, sportsmen, and the entire ecosystem. This in turn would benefit deer and turkey but the only reason we don’t have pheasant and quail anymore is habitat, habitat, and habitat.

I like where your head is at but both of these things are already in place.

The OLHAP program has a ton of momentum and isn’t anything I would consider “small scale” at this point. It has grown each year that it’s been in place and, so far, shows no sign of slowing down. The proof of concept is there. I think the next logical step is to increase the funding and help it continue to grow, not create a new program.

Habitat improvement incentive programs have existed across the state for decades. CRP, CREP, EQIP, WHIP, H2Ohio, etc etc etc… These programs are readily available to private landowners who are eligible and willing to enroll. Some are quite lucrative. Almost all of which result in improved upland habitat where they are implemented. The problem is NOT the lack of a program… It’s lack of interest, trust, and commitment by landowners.

And anyone saying they want to bring back the in-person deer and turkey check-ins… I just can’t wrap my head around why you’d want that. Please don’t change this. The convenience of checking-in a deer instantly from my phone, while in the field, is waaaaayyyy better than driving 15 minutes into town just so I can high-five some locals gathered around a truck.

 

[Stressless]

Ban baiting for deer.
X5 the $ fee for out of state hunters.