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States / OH / DMU Crawford

DMU Crawford, Ohio

Game found here
White-tailed DeerWild Turkey
Northeast OhioSee on map →0 questions

Unit info

Game species
White-tailed Deer, Wild Turkey
Group
Northeast Ohio
Area
N/A
Public land
N/A
White-tailed Deer — season & harvest
Reported harvest
1,775

Draw odds for White-tailed Deeraren't on file for this unit yet. Check your state wildlife agency website for current draw statistics.

Season & harvest data is published for White-tailed Deer so far. Wild Turkey also occur here — that data can be added as the community contributes.

About this unit

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Crawford County sits in north-central Ohio's agricultural heartland, draining into the Sandusky River watershed through a landscape of rolling cropland broken by woodlots and riparian timber. It is a productive farmland deer county with harvest numbers that consistently exceed the statewide three-year average — 888 deer taken in the 2025 weeklong gun season versus a 707 average. Public hunting access is limited but real: the 35-acre Sandusky Wildlife Area in Bucyrus offers mixed oak-hickory woods and river-bottom fields for Crawford County residents, and Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area (9,054 acres) straddles the Wyandot/Marion county lines just to the southwest. Portions of Crawford County — specifically Bucyrus, Dallas, Tod, and Holmes townships — fall within Ohio's CWD Disease Surveillance Area, triggering mandatory check-station sampling and carcass transport restrictions. Tag structure is generous: hunters hold one antlered deer statewide plus unlimited antlerless deer management permits; hunters in the DSA may take up to six deer total per license year. Hunting pressure is moderate for Ohio farmland, ranked approximately 48th in the state by firearm harvest per square mile at 1.23 deer/mi².

Terrain & elevation

North-central Ohio agricultural plain; rolling cropland with woodlot breaks and Sandusky River riparian corridor; mixed oak-hickory timber patches; relatively flat to gently rolling, elevation 900–1,100 ft

Hunting pressure

Moderate for Ohio farmland. Ranked approximately 48th statewide in firearm harvest per square mile at 1.23 deer/mi². Private-land access dominates; public parcels see concentrated pressure during gun seasons.

Tags & permits

Statewide structure: 1 antlered deer per license year regardless of method. Antlerless deer management permits (DMPs) are available statewide and valid through Dec. 21 during gun season. Hunters in the CWD Disease Surveillance Area (Bucyrus, Dallas, Tod, Holmes townships) may harvest up to 6 deer total per year. No county-specific antlerless quota cap — DMPs are issued statewide on a first-come basis.

Species & seasons

2025-26 seasons (statewide): Archery Sept 27 2025 – Feb 1 2026; Youth Gun Nov 22–23 2025; Gun Dec 1–7 and Dec 20–21 2025; Muzzleloader Jan 4–7 2026. Hunting hours 30 min before sunrise to 30 min after sunset. CWD DSA townships require mandatory sampling of all deer harvested during first two days of Early Gun and Statewide Gun seasons at staffed stations or self-serve kiosks; carcass transport out of DSA restricted (boned meat and cleaned hides only, or deliver to certified processor within 24 hrs). Wild turkey seasons also apply; mixed-terrain woodlots and agricultural edges support spring gobbler hunting.

Highlights

Above-average gun harvest relative to county size — 888 deer in 2025 gun season (25% above 3-yr avg of 707). Sandusky River corridor produces sizable bucks with limited hunting pressure on the small public tract. Proximity to Killdeer Plains WMA expands access significantly for hunters willing to draw permits. CWD DSA designation opens an elevated bag limit of 6 deer/year for township-specific hunters, making antlerless harvest opportunities among the most liberal in the state.

Questions, tips & discussion

Ask anything about DMU Crawford— or drop a tip or trick: access points, where game holds, glassing spots, conditions, crowding, gear that worked. This is where the unit's species-specific intel gets built, hunter by hunter.

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Boundaries: ODNR official county-based deer management units. Community info last updated 16d ago.