While many nonlethal forms of population control have been studied (including surgical sterilization of does and pharmaceutical fertility control), these methods are costly and the results have not been entirely fruitful [5]. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) recognizes such measures as a needed intervention to make in place of game hunting [5]. Despite this, in most landscapes, regulated hunting has been found to be amongst the most effective means of managing the population [5].

When hunting regulations are implemented, hunting is able to maintain populations below the biological carrying capacity, eliminate organisms that would otherwise die in the winter season, as well as change population behaviors [2]. The key to this is biologically sound game management; read more to learn about how the ODNR utilizes technology to plan harvest regulations on a yearly basis.

GIS (Geographic Information Systems) plays a vital role in the work of ODNR employees as well as the life of hunters in the state. GIS is used to aid in decision-making at an organizational scale and can be used to direct hunting activity at a community scale. As discussed with Wildlife Officer Darin Abbott (listen to the interview here), GIS is utilized by the state to map two major layers of data: ecological data and community input. When determining the harvest limits for each new season, wildlife officers and DNR employees consider the cultural carrying capacity and the biological carrying capacity of the area [10]. Using GIS, biologists will consider population estimates, public perception of deer population counts, and local biodiversity alongside each other to make the proper call for deer harvesting.

1. Chitwood, M., Peterson, M., Bondell, H., Lashley, M., Brown, R., & Deperno, C. (2015). Perspectives of wildlife conservation professionals on intensive deer management. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 39(4), 751–756. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.607

2. Conover, M. R. (2001). Effect of Hunting and Trapping on Wildlife Damage. Wildlife Society Bulletin (1973-2006), 29(2), 521–532. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3784176

3. Côté, S., Rooney, T., Tremblay, J.-P., Dussault, C., & Waller, D. (2004). Ecological impacts of deer overabundance. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics, 35(1), 113–147.

4. Fairbanks, C. (n.d.). Hunting 500 Years Ago. National Parks Service. Retrieved April 17, 2022, from https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/regional_review/vol6-1-2b.htm

5. Gamborg, C., Sandoe, P., & Palmer, C. (2020). Ethical management of wildlife. lethal versus nonlethal control of white‐tailed deer. Conservation Science and Practice, 2(4). https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.171

6. Hanberry, B. B., & Hanberry, P. (2020). Regaining the history of deer populations and densities in the southeastern United States. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 44(3), 512–518. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.1118

7. Hewitt, D. G. (2015). Hunters and the conservation and management of white-tailed deer (odocoileus virginianus). International Journal of Environmental Studies, 72(5), 839–849. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207233.2015.1073473

8. Kniowski, A. B., & Ford, W. M. (2017). Predicting the intensity of white-tailed deer herbivory in the central Appalachian Mountains. Journal of Forestry Research, 29(3), 841–850.

9. Newsom, J. (1969). History of Deer and Their Habitat in the South. White- Tailed Deer in the Southern. Forest Habitat.

10. Ohio Department of Natural Resources. (n.d.). Managing Ohio's deer herd. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://ohiodnr.gov/static/documents/wildlife/wildlife-management/Managing%20Ohio's%20Deer%20Herd%20pub087.pdf