Turkey Tally Tumbles

Wisconsin wild turkey hunters registered a total of 4,633 birds during the fall 2013 wild turkey season, a decrease of 34 percent from the 7,054 turkeys registered during the 2012 season. Success rates also decreased, from 12.9 percent in 2012 to 7.1 percent during the 2013 season.

“The late spring and wet June last year translated into poor overall reproductive success for turkeys, so with fewer young birds out there we expected to see a bit of a drop in harvest during the fall season,” said Scott Walter, upland wildlife ecologist for the Department of Natural Resources.

Permit availability remained unchanged in 2013; not including Fort McCoy, the total number of permits available statewide for the fall 2013 season was 96,700, identical to 2012. A total of 64,983 permits were sold for the 2013 fall turkey season; 55,711 were allotted via the drawing, and another 9,272 permits were sold over-the-counter after the drawing had been completed.

The spring 2014 turkey season begins with the Youth Turkey Hunt, April 12 and 13. The regular season begins April 16.

“Although the poor production in 2013 certainly doesn’t help boost our state’s turkey population, we had a huge cohort of birds hatch in 2012,” said Walter. “Males from this group are now adult gobblers, so hunters should still expect to hear plenty of gobbling activity in the woods this spring. As well, we had lots of reports of late-hatched broods in 2013 that were probably overlooked by fall hunters as the birds were noticeably smaller than normal; these birds will help lessen the population impact of the poor spring conditions last year.”

Once harvest data for the spring 2014 season is available, permit levels for the 2014 fall season will be set. The drawing for the 2014 spring season has been completed. Hunters can check on the status of their permit application online through the DNR’s Online Licensing Center or by calling 888.936.7463.

A total of just more than 100,000 permits were not allotted in the 2014 spring drawing and will be made available for over-the-counter purchase in mid-March. For more details, visit dnr.wi.gov and search for “spring turkey permit.”