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Ohio Hunters Harvest More Than 10,400 Wild Turkeys During First Week of Season

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
260
Ohio hunters checked 10,415 wild turkeys during the first week of the wild turkey hunting season, April 23-29. Hunters can view the 2018 spring turkey season zone map and harvest regulations at wildohio.gov.

• Ohio’s spring wild turkey season is divided into two zones: a south zone, which is open from Monday, April 23 to Sunday, May 20, and a northeast zone, which is open from Monday, April 30 to Sunday, May 27.

• In 2017, hunters in the south zone checked 10,293 wild turkeys during the first week of the season.

• Hunters are required to have a hunting license and a spring turkey hunting permit. The spring season bag limit is two bearded turkeys. Hunters can harvest one bearded turkey per day, and a second spring turkey permit can be purchased at any time throughout the spring turkey season. Turkeys must be checked by 11:30 p.m. the day of harvest.

• Hunting hours in the south zone are 30 minutes before sunrise until noon from April 23-May 6 and 30 minutes before sunrise to sunset from May 7-20. Hunting hours in the northeast zone are 30 minutes before sunrise until noon from April 30-May 13 and 30 minutes before sunrise to sunset from May 14-27.

• Hunters may use shotguns or archery equipment to hunt wild turkeys. It is unlawful to hunt turkeys using bait, live decoys or electronic calling devices or to shoot a wild turkey while it is in a tree.

• The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife advises turkey hunters to wear hunter orange clothing when entering, leaving or moving through hunting areas in order to remain visible to others.

• Wild turkeys were extirpated in Ohio by 1904 and were reintroduced in the 1950s by the ODNR Division of Wildlife. Ohio’s first modern day wild turkey season opened in 1966 in nine counties, and hunters checked 12 birds. The wild turkey harvest topped 1,000 for the first time in 1984. Spring turkey hunting opened statewide, except for Lake La Su An Wildlife Area, in 2000, and Ohio hunters checked more than 20,000 wild turkeys for the first time that year.

Editor’s Note: A list of all wild turkeys checked by hunters in the south zone during the first week of the spring turkey hunting season is shown below. The first number following the county’s name shows the harvest numbers for 2018, and the 2017 numbers are in parentheses. An * designates a northeast zone county which did not open until April 30 in 2018.

Adams: 173 (280); Allen: 31 (36); Ashland: 137 (135); Ashtabula*: 0 (0); Athens: 301 (218); Auglaize: 18 (30); Belmont: 363 (275); Brown: 194 (218); Butler: 91 (100); Carroll: 280 (238); Champaign: 54 (45); Clark: 10 (9); Clermont: 165 (219); Clinton: 33 (27); Columbiana: 152 (173); Coshocton: 405 (350); Crawford: 23 (32); Cuyahoga*: 0 (0); Darke: 21 (14); Defiance: 94 (140); Delaware: 52 (45); Erie: 23 (31); Fairfield: 78 (69); Fayette: 6 (9); Franklin: 11 (9); Fulton: 40 (71); Gallia: 216 (271); Geauga*: 0 (0); Greene: 6 (9); Guernsey: 423 (322); Hamilton: 35 (52); Hancock: 14 (24); Hardin: 39 (44); Harrison: 324 (299); Henry: 25 (31); Highland: 175 (220); Hocking: 239 (230); Holmes: 191 (169); Huron: 72 (87); Jackson: 251 (240); Jefferson: 266 (225); Knox: 242 (226); Lake*: 0 (0); Lawrence: 127 (160); Licking: 205 (235); Logan: 58 (69); Lorain: 63 (89); Lucas: 41 (31); Madison: 8 (2); Mahoning: 89 (103); Marion: 10 (22); Medina: 78 (72); Meigs: 379 (311); Mercer: 11 (12); Miami: 7 (6); Monroe: 415 (312); Montgomery: 11 (9); Morgan: 286 (224); Morrow: 69 (96); Muskingum: 389 (321); Noble: 280 (253); Ottawa: 0 (1); Paulding: 39 (52); Perry: 229 (199); Pickaway: 13 (10); Pike: 153 (153); Portage: 128 (143); Preble: 59 (40); Putnam: 26 (32); Richland: 145 (168); Ross: 184 (228); Sandusky: 9 (11); Scioto: 133 (183); Seneca: 70 (90); Shelby: 18 (27); Stark: 144 (171); Summit: 33 (27); Trumbull*: 0 (0); Tuscarawas: 398 (369); Union: 24 (27); Van Wert: 9 (11); Vinton: 237 (216); Warren: 50 (45); Washington: 338 (277); Wayne: 54 (72); Williams: 78 (131); Wood: 12 (11); Wyandot: 33 (50). Total: 10,415 (10,293).
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
Big jumps in the turkey rich counties, which I think you can contribute to our season being timed right for once thanks to a winter that never quit...
 

Bigslam51

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
25,778
127
Stark County
Stark is down from last year. We had cicadas out the ass, and I figured I'd see quite a few two year olds but I just didn't. We also don't have the kind of turkey habitat that they do in some of the southern counties.
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
260
They’re gay

No shit. The bird we had hung up must have gobbled 150 times this morning. I left Alex and walked back a total of 150 yards calling. The two toms that came over half a mile went straight to that gobbling bird and paid no attention to me calling.
 
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"J"

Git Off My Lawn
Supporting Member
56,743
274
North Carolina
No shit. The bird we had hung up must have gobbled 150 times this morning. I left Alex and walked back a total of 150 yards calling. The two toms that came over half a mile went straight to that gobbling bird and paid no me calling.

Been seeing that all season so far. And gay turkeys (like gay men) are always hanging with the women.... 🦃🦃🦃🤔
 
Big jumps in the turkey rich counties, which I think you can contribute to our season being timed right for once thanks to a winter that never quit...

I agree with that completely. You could actually see more than 5' in front of your face. I also know at home in PA 2 years ago we had a very good hatch year which resulted in a bunch of young turkeys. Last year we had a bunch of jakes and this year we had a bunch of 2 year olds running around.
 

Bigslam51

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
25,778
127
Stark County
Big jumps in the turkey rich counties, which I think you can contribute to our season being timed right for once thanks to a winter that never quit...

I agree with that completely. You could actually see more than 5' in front of your face. I also know at home in PA 2 years ago we had a very good hatch year which resulted in a bunch of young turkeys. Last year we had a bunch of jakes and this year we had a bunch of 2 year olds running around.
Also makes it hard to call one into range without decoys when the woods are wide open, can't move all stealth like either.