SALEM, Ohio — The Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Ohio Wildlife Council is considering reducing white-tailed deer bag limits in Athens, Meigs, Morgan and Washington counties again due to the continued spread of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease in southeast Ohio.
EHD is a disease transmitted by infected midges that damages a deer’s blood vessels and causes internal hemorrhaging, often leading to death.
The Ohio Wildlife Council received a proposal at its regular meeting on Oct. 22 to reduce bag limits from two to one deer in Athens, Meigs and Washington counties. In Morgan County, the proposed bag limit would go from three to two deer.
This would be the second time ODNR has lowered bag limits in these counties this year due to the outbreak of EHD. In September, ODNR previously confirmed 7,486 dead or sick deer with EHD in the state, mainly concentrated in Athens, Meigs, Morgan and Washington counties.
As of Oct. 14, ODNR has recorded 9,082 dead or sick deer with EHD. The agency has confirmed 1,719 dead or sick deer with EHD in Athens County, 1,487 in Meigs County, 854 in Morgan County and 1,901 in Washington County.
The Ohio Wildlife Council will vote on these proposed reductions on Nov. 12. If adopted, the bag limit reductions will take effect starting Dec. 1, the opening day of the seven-day deer gun season, and it will remain in place until the end of the 2025-26 hunting season on Feb. 1. Athens, Meigs, Morgan and Washington counties will continue to have a three-deer limit until Nov. 30.
Deer bag limits remain the same for the rest of the state. For more information, visit https://tinyurl.com/54wev2y6.
