State: Ohio
Species available to On Your Own hunters
Link to - Ohio DNR
Ohio offers many species of wildlife. For the most part our big game is limited to White-tailed Deer and a few Wild Boars. For small game we have a good number of Turkey, Pheasant, Squirrels and Grouse are what we see the most of. You can find the complete list of wildlife at the ODNR’s web site listed below.
Ohio Huntable Species
The deer bag limit is different for each zone so you will have to go to the deer hunting section of the ODNR’s web page
2009-2010 Hunting Season Dates and Bag Limits
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SPECIES |
OPENING DATE |
CLOSING DATE |
DAILY BAG |
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White-tailed Deer: Archery |
September 26 |
February 7 |
Refer to Deer Hunting Section for details on zone and bag limits |
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White-tailed Deer: Early Muzzleloader |
October 19 |
October 24 |
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White-tailed Deer: |
November 21 |
November 22 |
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White-tailed Deer: |
November 30 |
December 6 |
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White-tailed Deer: |
December 19 |
December 20 |
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White-tailed Deer: |
January 9 |
January 12 |
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Wild Turkey: |
October 10 |
November 29 |
Refer to Turkey Hunting Section for details on seasonal bag limits |
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Wild Turkey: Spring |
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April 19 |
May 16 |
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Squirrel |
September 1 |
January 31 |
6 |
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Mourning Dove |
September 1 - Refer to Publication 298 or Small Game Section | |||
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Ruffed Grouse |
October 10 |
January 31 |
2 |
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Goose and Brant |
Refer to Waterfowl Season Dates or refer to Publication 295 Click here to review all Waterfowl Season Information |
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Ducks, Coots, Mergansers and Canvasbacks |
Refer to Waterfowl Season Dates or refer to Publication 295 Click here to review all Waterfowl Season Information |
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Cottontail Rabbit |
November 6 |
February 28 |
4 |
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Ringneck Pheasant |
November 6 |
January 10 |
2 (cock pheasants only) |
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Bobwhite Quail |
November 6 |
November 29 |
4 |
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Fox, Raccoon, Skunk, Opossum, Weasel |
November 10 |
January 31 |
No Limit |
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Crow |
June 5, 2009 |
March 14, 2010 |
No Limit |
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Coyote |
No closed season for hunting or trapping |
No Limit |
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Wild boar |
No closed season for hunting |
No Limit |
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Groundhog |
Closed during deer gun season only |
No Limit |
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2009-2010 Youth Hunting Season Dates
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YOUTH HUNT |
DATE |
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Youth Hunters Small Game Season |
October 24-25 and October 31 - November 1, 2009 |
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Youth Deer Gun Season |
November 21-22, 2009 |
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Youth Spring Wild Turkey Season |
April 17-18, 2010 |
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Youth Spring Wild Turkey Hunts |
Controlled hunts on selected areas during spring season April 19 - May 16, 2010 |
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Youth Waterfowl Hunting Days |
Saturday and Sunday in early October See Publication 295 |
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Youth Waterfowl Opening Day Hunts |
Selected areas only on Waterfowl opening day |
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Youth Controlled Deer Hunts |
Selected areas by application only |
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Youth Controlled Waterfowl Hunts |
Selected areas by application only |
All youth hunters: Please refer to the Youth Hunting Section for complete details on dates, areas, regulations, and procedures.
2009-2010 Trapping Season Dates
|
Season |
Opening Date |
Closing Date |
| Fox, Raccoon, Opossum, Skunk, Weasel |
November 10, 2009 |
January 31, 2010 |
| Mink, Muskrat |
November 10, 2009 |
February 28, 2010 |
| Mink, Muskrat, Raccoon, Opossum, Skunk, Weasel (Erie, Ottawa, Sandusky, and Lucas County east of the Maumee River) |
November 10, 2009 |
March 15, 2010 |
| Beaver: Statewide |
December 26, 2009 |
February 28, 2010 |
| River Otter (See map) |
December 26, 2009 |
February 28, 2010 |
A Fur Taker Permit is required (except for coyote) to hunt or trap furbearing animals in Ohio
2009-2010 Geese and Brant Season Dates, Bag and Possession Limits
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SPECIES |
OPEN SEASON |
DAILY BAG LIMIT |
POSSESSION LIMIT AFTER FIRST DAY |
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Canada Geese |
LAKE ERIE ZONE NORTH ZONE SOUTH ZONE |
2 |
4 |
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Light Geese |
10 |
20 |
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White-fronted Geese |
1 |
2 |
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Brant |
1 |
2 |
2009 Migratory Game Bird Hunting Seasons
- DAILY HUNTING HOURS ARE SUNRISE TO SUNSET
• Only non-toxic shot may be used to take waterfowl, rails, snipe and gallinules. Doves and woodcock may be taken with lead shot.
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SPECIES |
OPEN SEASON |
DAILY BAG LIMIT |
POSSESSION LIMIT AFTER FIRST DAY |
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RAILS |
September 1 - November 9 , 2009 |
25 15 |
25 30 |
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COMMON (Wilson’s) SNIPE |
September 1 - November 29, 2009 |
8 |
16 |
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MOURNING DOVE |
September 1 - October 25, 2009 |
15 |
30 |
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WOODCOCK |
October 10 - November 23, 2009 |
3 |
6 |
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TEAL (blue-winged, green-winged, cinnamon teal only) |
September 5 - September 20, 2009 |
4 |
8 |
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Early statewide* CANADA GOOSE |
September 1 - September 15, 2009 |
4 |
8 |
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*The Mercer Canada Goose Zone will not be open during Mandatory Reporting Zones for geese have been eliminated. These zones were originally created to protect local giant Canada geese from over harvest and were crucial to the reestablishment of Canada geese in Ohio. As Ohio’s goose populations grew, the need to protect local birds diminished and was replaced by a desire to protect interior birds critical to the aboriginal people in Canada, particularly the Cree First Nation. |
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2009-2010 Duck, Coot, Merganser and Canvasback Season Dates, Bag and Possession Limits
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SPECIES |
OPEN SEASON |
DAILY BAG LIMIT |
POSSESSION LIMIT AFTER FIRST DAY |
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Ducks |
NORTH ZONE SOUTH ZONE |
6* |
12 |
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Coots |
15 |
30 |
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Mergansers |
5* |
10 |
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| *Daily Bag Limits Ducks: Daily bag limit of 6 ducks not to include more than 4 mallards (only 1 of which may be a hen), 3 wood ducks, 1 black duck, 2 redheads, 2 scaup (bluebill), 1 canvasback, 1 mottled duck, or 1 pintail. Mergansers: Daily bag limit of 5, not to include more than 2 hooded mergansers. Coots: Daily bag limit of 15. |
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If you are looking for licenses, the licensing department can be found at http://www.ohiodnr.com/wildlife/dow/regulations/vendor.aspx. You can buy them online or do a search for a local licensing agent. If you purchase them online you just print them out and your ready to hit the field.
Most everyone knows that white-tailed deer like the terrain breaks and bottlenecks. In southeast Ohio we have many hills and ravines that offer a lot of bottlenecks. A great tool is the wildlife maps the ODNR offers for download. Grab the map where you think you want to hunt and load up Google Earth and start looking around before you go out. That will give you good idea of where to start scouting.
When I saw On Your Own Adventures for the first time I said “This is our family”. I got to get in contact with them. Most average hunters can not afford to pay a guide service, or they chose to hunt On Their Own. Use the maps the internet or contact the Wildlife department. A lot of times they can tell you the deer population in a given area.
Remember to leave the land in the same condition it was in when you got there. Don’t be afraid to pickup a piece of trash some dingbat left behind.
Good Luck and happy hunting!
Ohio Resource information provided by Roy Glaze
Maps
Weather
