A History of Ohio Wildlife is a blueprint for every State to take note of................. the rise, fall and re-wilding of our native predators and prey..........Special interest for me as I went to College in Athens, Ohio, home of Ohio University(nicknamed the bobcats).........this part of Southeastern Ohio is having a renaissance of rewilding with Bobcats coming back strongly...................Ohio, like all of America and Canada in the Colonial period was rich in animal populations............Bison were part of the Eastern fauna during this era as were all of the top carnivores and hoofed browsers

Ohio Wildlife History Timeline

1770---Washington mapped Ohio lands given tosoldiers whofought in theFrench andIndian War.Wolves, cougars,bear, bison, andelk were foundacross the state.

1803--  Last bisonreported in thestate was killed inLawrence County.Bison will beeliminated fromevery state east ofthe Mississippi

1804---Settlers who were eager forsomething to read started theCoonskin Library in Athens County.To raise money for books, they sold hides from bears, wolves and raccoons. $73.50worthof furs purchased 51 books.

1807--Squirrels wereso numerousthat a law waspassedrequiringtaxpayers tokill them andturn theirscalps in to thecounty clerk.

1818--Athens County drops its bounty onwolves and cougars. Until then, theirscalps could be turned in for money. Thecounty paid $3 for young animals and $4for adults. This is also theyearof theGreat Hinkley Hunt. Thousands ofanimals were killed around Hinkley, Ohio.

1829--The first Ohio law was passed toprotect a wild animal. The lawmade it illegal to kill muskrats fromMay 1 to October 15. This markedthe first time Ohioans recognized
that wildlife should be conserved

 
1839-Ohio led the nation in wheatfarming. Almost all of the originalforests have been replaced by thegrowing number of farms and small

1840--Elk, once found across thestate, are nowgone. The lastreport of theselarge (up to 800pounds)members of thedeer familycame fromAshtabula

1855--There are no finalrecords, but by thistime bobcats,wolves, andmountain lions havebeen eliminated fromthe state. Mostfarmers despisedthese animalsbecause thesepredators preyed onsheep, pigs

1857--First law enacted for protection offish. First non-game protection lawpassed, protecting songbirds

1875-- The Great BlackSwamp is drainedafter a decade ofditch work anddraining. Thisenormous wetland innorthwest Ohio waslikely the lastwilderness in thestate. It now boastssome of the state'slargest farms

1881--The last known black bear reported inOhio was killed in Paulding County

1883--Ohio's original forest land coveredmore than 24 million acres. By now,only 4 million acres remain. Most ofthe trees up to this time were simplycut down and burned.

1909-turkeys andwhite-tailed deerare declaredextinct in Ohio.Widespread lossof forests anduncontrolledhunting isblamed.

1919--First coyote is seen in Ohio. Theseanimals have been spreading fromthe western states into new areasas forests were cleared and wolves were eliminated.

1943-State allowshunting again. Deer,which had becomevery scarce prior to1900, have beenmaking a slowcomeback. Onlythree counties wereopen for hunting:Adams, Pike, andScioto. 164 buckswere taken.

1947-A survey ofbeaverpopulationsturned up only100 animalsscatteredacross 11counties.

1956--Wild turkeys are reintroduced. Wild birdsare brought from other states and releasedinto southeast Ohio, where forests arerecovering. First statewide deer season

 1966--First wild turkey season in limitedcounties. Endangered SpeciesPreservation Act is established. It ismodified for 6 years until the currentEndangered Species Act isestablished in 1973

1970--Blue pike extinct in Great Lakes

1975--Bald Eagle population issuffering from theeffects of DDT andother pesticidepoisoning, as wellas the loss ofwetland habitat.Only 4 pairs ofeagles remainalong Lake Erie.

1978--Blizzards this winterdecimate Ohio'sbobwhite quailpopulation. Thebeaver populationtops 10,000 for thefirst time in decades.Beaver have becomere-established acrossthe eastern parts ofthe state.

1986 --River otters arereintroduced into 4Ohio watersheds.123 animals werereleased over thenext 5 years intothe grand river,Killbuck Creek,Stillwater Creek,and the LittleMuskingum Creek

1987--Sandhill cranes return to Ohio.These large birds built a nest in amarsh near Wooster. This is thefirst nesting pair since 1926.They are still rare today.

1988
--Pegrein Falconsan begin nesting onan old hotel building in Toledo. Ohio soon joins otherstates in establishingpairs in other Ohiocities as part of aregional effort torestore peregrinepopulations in the eastern U.S.

1995--Ospreys return to Ohio and build anest on an electrical tower locatedover the Ohio River. This was oneyear ahead of the Division ofWildlife's plans to release 36 birdsfrom Maryland into the wild in 1996.Deer herd estimated at 550,000

1996--Trumpeter swans are restored toOhio when 15 birds are releasedat Magee Marsh in Ottawa county.These birds will be joined by moreintroductions in a project that willlast ten years

1999--Snowshoe Hares reintroducedinto Ashtabulaand GeaugaCounties.Approximately400 hares werebrought fromMichigan andreleased onwildlife areas

2002--After a verysuccessfulreintroductionprogram, riverotters areremoved fromOhio'sEndangeredSpecies list

2007--186 eaglets arefledged from amodern record of164 bald eaglenests in 45 ofOhio's 88counties.

2011 Bobcats are on the rebound across the Southeasten Ohio Counties