Hunting News

Spring turkey hunters face production challenges

Spring turkey hunters face production challenges

By Missouri Department of Conservation

Missouri turkey hunters can expect a more challenging spring season; poor turkey production in recent years has affected turkey numbers.

The spring turkey hunting season starts with a youth-only weekend April 7-8. The regular spring season runs April 16 through May 6.

Although the good hatches of 2011, 2012, and 2014 helped to bolster turkey numbers in much of Missouri from a low point during the late 2000s, poor production in recent years will make for a more challenging 2018 spring turkey season.

“A great deal of what makes for a good spring turkey season depends on the hatch two years prior because it affects the number of two-year-old gobblers on the landscape,” said turkey biologist Jason Isabelle. “Young gobblers are not associated with hens as often as older dominate birds and are more likely to respond to hunters’ calls.”

Poor production in 2016 will result in fewer two-year-old gobblers during this year’s spring hunting season. Last year’s poor hatch will result in fewer jakes, Isabelle said, especially in southern Missouri.

Considering the prospects for the 2018 spring season, hunters should be prepared to put in a bit more effort to be successful this year.

“When turkey numbers are down, it becomes even more important to do your homework,” said Isabelle. “Hunters should get out to their hunting areas as much as possible before the season to listen for birds gobbling at daybreak.”

“Turkey production is rarely consistent through time,” he said. “We’re going through a tough stretch of poor production right now, just like we did during the late 2000s.”

Isabelle notes that fluctuations in turkey production and population numbers are a normal part of the dynamics of the population.

Find detailed information for 2018 Spring Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information here.

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