Turkey hunters check 15,673 birds

COLUMBUS — Wild turkey hunters in Ohio checked 15,673 birds during the spring season which concluded May 28, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife.

The total statewide harvest represents all turkeys checked from April 22 to May 28, and includes the 1,823 turkeys taken during the two-day youth season April 15-16.

During the 2022 season, the total number of turkeys checked was 11,872. The three-year average (2020, 2021, and 2022) for the spring turkey season is 14,772.

Turkey hunters were required to record their harvest using Ohio’s game check system. The top 10 counties for wild turkey harvest in the 2023 season were Ashtabula (454), Gallia (428), Muskingum (420), Monroe (410), Tuscarawas (408), Belmont (398), Coshocton (382), Adams (378), Jefferson (374) and Washington (369).

Adult male turkeys made up 84% of the final count with 13,153 birds taken. Following an above-average brood production summer in 2021, biologists expected a high proportion of 2-year-old birds in the total harvest this spring. Hunters checked 2,354 juvenile male turkeys in 2023, representing 15% of birds taken.

Turkey hunters also checked 166 bearded female turkeys (hens) during the 2023 season. The Division of Wildlife issued 50,174 spring turkey permits for use during the spring hunting season.

Ohio’s spring turkey season is split into two zones to align with the timing of turkey nesting in those regions. The northeast zone includes Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, and Trumbull counties. In 2023, 1,105 turkeys were checked in the northeast zone, while 14,568 birds were taken in the rest of the state.

Wild turkey harvests were higher in 2023 than last year, likely a result of two years of above-average summer brood production. Statewide, turkey populations are lower than they were in the early 2000s.

The division of wildlife began an in-depth study of wild turkey nesting and movement in 2023 to better understand and manage the state’s changing turkey population. Several factors play a role in fluctuating turkey populations, including weather events, predation, disease and reproductive success.

Ohio wild turkeys checked through May 28

A list of all wild turkeys checked by hunters in each county through May 28 is shown.

Results from the state include 30 days of hunting in the south zone, 30 days in the northeast zone, and the two-day statewide youth season. The first number following the county’s name shows the harvest numbers for 2023, and the three-year average (2020 to 2022) is in parentheses.

Numbers below are raw data and are subject to change.

Adams: 378 (352); Allen: 72 (67); Ashland: 180 (151); Ashtabula: 454 (399); Athens: 291 (312); Auglaize: 47 (36); Belmont: 398 (430); Brown: 292 (352); Butler: 238 (185); Carroll: 346 (307); Champaign: 94 (78); Clark: 26 (17); Clermont: 288 (274); Clinton: 59 (67); Columbiana: 361 (386); Coshocton: 382 (351); Crawford: 54 (50); Cuyahoga: 6 (8);

Darke: 62 (58); Defiance: 197 (185); Delaware: 99 (96); Erie: 44 (37); Fairfield: 102 (93); Fayette: 11 (9); Franklin: 23 (16); Fulton: 127 (104); Gallia: 428 (346); Geauga: 240 (175); Greene: 27 (20); Guernsey: 363 (399); Hamilton: 127 (103); Hancock: 47 (36); Hardin: 110 (89); Harrison: 348 (369); Henry: 58 (46); Highland: 342 (327); Hocking: 248 (220); Holmes: 197 (195); Huron: 86 (89);

Jackson: 268 (273); Jefferson: 374 (371); Knox: 245 (262); Lake: 65 (57); Lawrence: 233 (190); Licking: 293 (268); Logan: 141 (109); Lorain: 121 (112); Lucas: 50 (52); Madison: 9 (7); Mahoning: 194 (173); Marion: 35 (35); Medina: 91 (104); Meigs: 358 (402); Mercer: 28 (20); Miami: 32 (25); Monroe: 410 (406); Montgomery: 51 (23); Morgan: 257 (261); Morrow: 154 (123); Muskingum: 420 (390);

Noble: 337 (332); Ottawa: 1 (1); Paulding: 75 (68); Perry: 291 (245); Pickaway: 30 (18); Pike: 241 (177); Portage: 212 (199); Preble: 154 (107); Putnam: 32 (43); Richland: 228 (201); Ross: 274 (273);

Sandusky: 31 (22); Scioto: 251 (215); Seneca: 119 (110); Shelby: 42 (39); Stark: 249 (245); Summit: 50 (68); Trumbull: 340 (327); Tuscarawas: 408 (428); Union: 50 (45); Van Wert: 13 (17); Vinton: 240 (232); Warren: 82 (81); Washington: 369 (386); Wayne: 102 (108); Williams: 231 (183); Wood: 26 (25); Wyandot: 114 (80).

The total for 2023 was 15,673, and the three-year average total was 14,772.