MDC: turkey production about average, fall hunting prospects vary regionally

Brood-survey results show turkey hatch below last year, but similar to five-year average. 

Brood-survey results show turkey hatch below last year, but similar to five-year average

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) annual wild-turkey brood-survey shows mixed results for fall turkey hunting prospects. According to MDC Turkey Biologist Jason Isabelle, statewide turkey production in 2015 was lower than last year, but similar to the five-year average.

Each summer, citizen volunteers and MDC staff record the number of wild turkey hens and recently hatched turkeys, called poults, they see. These observations are then tallied for the annual brood survey. The number of poults is divided by the number of hens reported to create a poult-to-hen ratio (PHR). Isabelle explained that this a good measure of turkey nesting success and poult survival.

This year’s survey results showed lower reproduction than in 2014 – most likely due to wet spring and early summer weather.

“Wet weather during late spring and early summer is generally not conducive to good poult survival because turkeys can’t regulate their body heat well when they’re young,” Isabelle said. “If they become wet and temperatures are cool, they are susceptible to hypothermia.”

While below last year’s PHR of 1.7, Isabelle added that this year’s PHR of 1.5 is still about average for the last five years and above the 10-year average of 1.4.

“From 2007 through 2010, the statewide PHR ranged from 1.0 to 1.2, the longest stretch of poor turkey production we’ve had since starting the survey in the 1950s,”said Isabelle. “Things have gotten better over the past several years with PHRs of at least 1.5 in four out of the last five years.”

Given the unfavorably weather conditions that plagued much of the state during the nesting and brood-rearing periods, Isabelle says it’s encouraging to see good production in a some regions.

“With all the rain we had this spring and early summer, I had anticipated considerably poorer production,” Isabelle said. “Although production was down in most regions compared to last year, good production in 2014 should result in quite a few two-year-old gobblers for the 2016 spring season,” Isabelle said.

The eastern Ozarks had the best news this year, with a 1.9 PHR. Northwestern Missouri was close behind with a ratio of 1.8. The lowest PHRs were reported in the western-prairie counties (1.1), northeastern counties (1.2), and the Ozark border (1.2). The rest of the state was near or above the previous five-year average.

“The eastern Ozarks had another strong year of production and has had the best production in the state in three of the last four years,” Isabelle said.  “As a result, we’ve seen increasing turkey numbers in many Ozark counties.”

Isabelle says brood survey results in northwest Missouri are encouraging. “It is nice to see another good year of production in the northwestern part of the state, especially given the population decline that occurred regionally during the late 2000s,” Isabelle said. “Although turkey numbers are still a long way from where they used to be in the region, we’re finally headed in the right direction.”

MDC appreciates all of the dedicated citizen volunteers who take time to participate in the brood survey each year. The survey is a very important tool for MDC’s Wild Turkey Management Program. “We have about 9,000 dedicated citizens that participate in the brood survey each year,” Isabelle said. “We certainly appreciate their contribution.”

Results of the 2015 wild turkey brood survey are available at http://on.mo.gov/1L0ruhm.

Fall archery turkey hunting continues through Nov. 13 and resumes again Nov. 25 to Jan. 15 with shooting hours one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset with a limit of two turkeys of either sex. Fall firearms turkey hunting runs Oct. 1-31 from one-half hour before sunrise to sunset with a limit of two turkeys of either sex. Details about fall turkey hunting regulations are found in the 2015 Fall Deer and Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information booklet available wherever hunting permits are sold, from MDC offices and nature centers, or online at http://on.mo.gov/1KUT1Ro.

The Mother Flock: Hunting the Homeland of the Wild Turkey | Outdoor Life

Across nearly all of the Eastern wild turkey’s range, its story is one of loss and recovery, of the wildly successful reintroduction of an iconic species that was simply gone for generations.

But there’s one place that never lost its turkeys: the steep white-oak ridges and plunging limestone hollers of Missouri’s Ozarks. The turkeys remained for the same reason that hunting them here is so challenging: because the country is huge and rugged, and the birds, their senses sharpened by more than two hundred years of uninterrupted hunting pressure, are diabolically smart and evasive.

Read More
The Mother Flock: Hunting the Homeland of the Wild Turkey | Outdoor Life

MDC investigating turkey hunting incident

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is investigating a shooting incident where a person was possibly mistaken for a wild turkey and injured on May 7 at Smithville Lake. The person who fired the shot left the scene. Conservation Agents are seeking information about the case and would like to interview the person who fired the shot.

   Andi Rittel, 18, of Independence received shotgun pellet wounds in the lower extremities. Rittel was treated and released from an area hospital that day. She was hunting on public land managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers east of Trimble on the west side of the lake. The incident occurred about 10 a.m. in Clinton County. Rittel was able to walk to her vehicle and seek medical help.

   Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the MDC Northwest Regional Office at 816-271-3100. Information may also be provided to the Clinton County Sheriff’s Department, 816-539-3777.

MDC offers wild turkey habitat workshop

Landowners play a critical role in turkey habitat management

SWEET SPRINGS, Mo.— Because 93 percent of Missouri land is privately owned, Because 93 percent of Missouri land is privately owned, landowners play a critical role in turkey habitat management. landowners play a critical role in turkey habitat management. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) invites landowners and land managers to a wild turkey habitat management workshop from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 17  at the MDC Blind Pony Fish Hatchery in Sweet Springs, Mo. The workshop is free, but preregistration by May 14 is required. Workshop topics include turkey biology, habitat management, cost-share practices and a demonstration area where habitat management practices have been performed. “Landowners can help the state’s wild turkey population by increasing nesting and brood-rearing habitat on their property,” said MDC Private Land Conservationist Seth Moore.  “This workshop is a great opportunity for landowners and land managers to learn how to improve their properties for wild turkeys and other wildlife species.” For more information or to preregister, please contact Moore at seth.moore@mdc.mo.gov or 660-886-7447, ext. 310; or contact MDC Private Land Conservationist Steven Noll atSteven.Noll@mdc.mo.gov or 660-248-3358, ext. 119. Blind Pony Fish Hatchery is located at 16285 BP Hatchery Drive. From Sweet Springs at I-70, go north one mile on Highway 127, then east 6.5 miles on Route ZZ. To learn about other Discover Nature programs in Missouri, visit mdc.mo.gov.

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Apply now for managed turkey hunts

This year’s hunts have something for everyone,

including youths, archers, and hunters with disabilities.

JEFFERSON CITY–Turkey hunters have until Feb. 28 to apply for managed hunts during the 2014 spring turkey season.

This year’s offerings include managed hunts for archers, youths, and people with disabilities. Managed turkey hunts and application procedures are outlined in the 2014 Spring Turkey Hunting Regulations and Informationbooklet, which is available at www.mdc.mo.gov/7498. A print version will be available from hunting permit vendors statewide in mid-February.

Missouri has some of the nation’s best turkey hunting, thanks to the cooperation of MDC, citizens, and landowners in a 25-year restoration program. To learn more about wild turkeys in Missouri, visitmdc.mo.gov/node/4105.

-Jim Low-

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Hunters check 5,929 turkeys in fall firearms season

This year’s harvest is the third-smallest since the season began in 1978.

JEFFERSON CITY–Hunters checked 5,929 turkeys during Missouri’s fall firearms turkey season Oct. 1 through 31, continuing a long-term decline in participation in the fall hunt.

Top harvest counties were Greene with 208 turkeys checked, Webster with 158, and Laclede with 152. Harvest numbers were down statewide. The decline was smallest in northeastern Missouri (11 percent from 2012) and greatest in the St. Louis (50 percent), central (41 percent), and Kansas City (32 percent) regions. The declines in harvest were approximately 25 percent in the northwest, southeast, southwest, and Ozark regions.

This year’s fall firearms turkey harvest is the third-smallest on record. The smallest was in 1978, when hunters checked 4,389 turkeys during the fall firearms season. The fall harvest increased dramatically for the first nine years after it began, building to 28,139 in 1987. It has declined steadily ever since.

A parallel decline in sales of fall firearms turkey hunting permits indicates that the harvest decrease is largely the result of waning hunter interest. Further evidence is the fact that the fall archery turkey harvest increased steadily during the same period. Archers checked 108 turkeys in 1978 and 3,217 last year.

“Fall turkey hunting had a brief period of increasing popularity early on,” says Jason Isabelle, a resource scientist with the Missouri Department of Conservation. “Over time, I think that fall turkey hunters have gradually been drawn away to archery deer hunting and all the other hunting opportunities available in October. Fewer and fewer people have hunted turkeys in the fall each year, even throughout the late 1980s and 1990s, when the state’s turkey flock was growing rapidly and when our spring harvest continued to increase.”

The Conservation Department sold 14,898 fall firearms turkey permits this year, which is a decrease of 9 percent from 2012 and well-below the 115,020 permits sold for this year’s spring season. Isabelle says he expected the decrease, because turkey nesting success was down compared to the previous two years.

“For the last several years, fall firearms turkey permit sales have tended to track the hatch,” he says. “When hunters see fewer birds in the woods they generally buy fewer permits.”

Isabelle notes that in spite of the downward trend, the fall firearms turkey season remains popular with some hunters. These turkey fanatics enjoy the extra month of hunting opportunity.

Fifty-three percent of the turkeys checked during the fall firearms turkey harvest were hatched earlier this year. That is in line with the juvenile-adult ratios of other years. Population models and more than 30 years of experience show that the current level of fall harvest has no effect on the potential for wild turkey population growth.

For county-by-county combined fall firearms and archery turkey harvest figures, visit mdc.mo.gov/node/264.

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Fall firearms turkey harvest up for second year

The increase reflects another year of improved nesting success.

JEFFERSON CITY–An increase in Missouri’s 2012 fall firearms turkey harvest confirms population gains that turkey managers predicted and hunters hoped for.

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) Telecheck database recorded a harvest of 8,498 turkeys during the fall firearms turkey season Oct. 1 through 31. Top harvest counties were Webster with 225 turkeys checked, Laclede with 223, and Greene with 216.

This year’s fall firearms turkey harvest is 1,421 more than last year, a 20-percent increase. MDC Resource Scientist Jason Isabelle credits weather in part for the jump in fall turkey harvest.

“As far as production goes, our turkey population struggled through several tough years,” said Isabelle. “2008 was the wettest year on record in Missouri, and 2009 and 2010 weren’t much better. All that took a toll on turkeys and other ground-nesting wildlife.”

Isabelle said the hatch of 2011 was considerably better than the previous four, and it bolstered turkey numbers throughout much of the state. This year’s hatch, with a statewide poult-to-hen ratio of 1.7 poults per hen, was identical to 2011, which was the best since 2002.

MDC sold 16,413 fall firearms turkey hunting permits this fall, an increase of 9.3 percent from 2011.

Isabelle said he is encouraged by the increased fall turkey harvest and optimistic about prospects for the 2013 spring turkey season.

“The last two years have provided a much-needed improvement in turkey production,” said Isabelle. “We have always known that turkey numbers would rebound with favorable conditions. In parts of Missouri, our turkey numbers are still well below where they were five or 10 years ago, but the hatches of the last two years have certainly been a step in the right direction. 2011’s hatch should result in the largest group of 2-year-old gobblers we’ve had in quite a few years, which should make the 2013 spring season exciting for a lot of hunters.”

According to Isabelle, it is unlikely Missouri will ever see the numbers of turkeys it had immediately following restoration. That high-water mark was the culmination of a restoration program in which turkeys were reintroduced into areas where they had been absent for decades. Turkey populations expanded rapidly until they encountered “biological resistance” from factors that limit their numbers. From that peak, turkey numbers decreased to levels that are likely more sustainable in the long-run.

Isabelle says what the state’s turkey population has experienced over the course of the last several decades is not unique to Missouri. There are quite a few other states that have experienced similar trends in their turkey numbers as well.

“As long as we have enough habitat, Missouri will have a great turkey resource,” says Isabelle. “But wildlife populations have peaks during periods of favorable conditions and valleys during less favorable years. In the coming years, fluctuations in our turkey population can be expected. We’ll have our higher years and we’ll have our lower years. That’s just the nature of a species like the wild turkey.”

For the time being, the hatches of 2011 and 2012 represent considerable improvements in production and should serve to bolster turkey numbers throughout much of Missouri. For turkey enthusiasts, this is good news indeed.

-Jim Low-

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First-week turkey harvest rebounds

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Jakes make the difference.

JEFFERSON CITY–Missouri hunters shot more turkeys during the first week of the spring hunting season than they did during the same period last year. This is the first increase since 2004.

This year’s first-week harvest of 21,765 represents a 15.8 percent increase from 2011. It also is 2.1 percent more than the previous five-year average. Top counties were Franklin with 467 turkeys checked, Ste. Genevieve with 439 and Texas with 433.

Resource Scientist Jason Isabelle supervises wild-turkey management for the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC). He says the increase is in large part due to the good hatch that was observed throughout much of Missouri in 2011. He notes that jakes, as one-year-old male turkeys are commonly known, made up 26.4 percent of this year’s first-week harvest. That is a substantial increase from last year.

“Hunters checked 5,748 jakes during the first week of the season,” says Isabelle. “That is a 61-percent increase from 2011. The number of mature gobblers in the harvest was only up by about 800 birds, so birds hatched last year accounted for nearly three-quarters of the harvest increase.”

Isabelle says weather, which can significantly influence turkey harvest, probably was a wash during the first week of Missouri’s 21-day spring turkey season. The week included some rain and wind, which typically reduces hunter success, but these conditions were interspersed with ideal hunting weather.

First-week harvest figures were up in all eight regions of the state, ranging from an increase of 11.3 percent in the Central Region to 21.3 percent in the Ozark Region.

Isabelle says he is hoping that Missouri’s weather will remain favorable for turkey nesting for the next two months. Good nesting and brood-rearing conditions could enable the state’s turkey flock to build on gains made last year.

Missouri hunters also had an above-average first week in terms of safety. MDC recorded two firearms-related hunting incidents, compared to an average of 3.4 over the past 10 years.

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Youth turkey harvest up

Hunters checked 4,319 turkeys during Missouri’s two-day youth turkey hunt.

JEFFERSON CITY–Wonderful weather and an uptick in statewide turkey population helped young hunters to a successful youth spring turkey hunt.

Each year, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) sets aside a weekend before the main, three-week spring turkey season for hunters age 6 through 15. The early date sometimes means youngsters must hunt in chilly weather. That has not been the case for the past two years, and it certainly wasn’t this year, with high temperatures pushing into the 80s across most of the state. Rain wasn’t in the forecast, making conditions perfect for turkey hunting.

Young hunters took advantage of the situation to check 4,319 turkeys, up from 3,898 in 2011. Top harvest counties were Franklin with 119 turkeys checked, Osage with 93 and Callaway with 81.

The youth harvest has increased slowly since youngsters had their first separate hunt in 2001. That year’s total was 2,530. This year’s was the highest so far, up 9.5 percent from the previous high of 3,945 in 2010.

Missouri’s wild turkey flock gained a little ground last year, thanks to favorable nesting and brood-rearing conditions. While this increase and good hunting weather contributed to this year’s harvest, MDC Resource Scientist Jason Isabelle said the increasing popularity of the youth season probably was at least as important a factor.

“The youth hunt is a wonderful opportunity for adults to focus on giving young hunters a good experience,” said Isabelle. “Turkey hunters are passionate about their sport, and they get a lot of satisfaction from sharing it with youngsters. It actually enhances the enjoyment of turkey hunting.”

This year’s youth turkey season started earlier than normal to avoid a conflict with the Easter holiday. The main spring turkey season opens April 16 and runs through May 6. Regulations remain the same as last year with a few exceptions, such as changes that apply to certain conservation areas. For details, see the 2012 Spring Turkey Hunting Regulation and Information booklet, which is available wherever hunting permits are sold or at http://go.usa.gov/EIW.

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Warm weather could boost turkey hunters’ long-term prospects

Female Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) taken near Rideau River, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Improved reproduction last year, plentiful acorns and a mild winter all favor a rebound of turkey numbers.

JEFFERSON CITY–Mild winter and early spring weather shifts the balance a little more in favor of a population rebound for Missouri’s wild-turkey flock, but it won’t have much effect on this year’s spring turkey season, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC).

According to the University of Missouri’s Historical Agricultural Weather Database, temperatures between Jan. 1 and March 15 averaged nearly seven degrees warmer than the previous 10 years in central Missouri. The temperature at the University’s Sanborn Field in Boone County remained above freezing on 32 days during the same period, compared to just four above-freezing days in 2011.

“With the good acorn crop we had last fall and the very mild winter, our turkey population is in as good of condition as you could ever hope for at this time of year,” says Resource Scientist Jason Isabelle, who is in charge of wild-turkey management for MDC. “Hens should be in great condition going into the nesting season this year.”

That is good news, but hunters are more likely to be interested in how this year’s unusual weather will affect hunting. The answer, according to Isabelle, is not much.

“The warm weather we've been having really does not affect wild turkeys’ breeding and nesting behavior all that much,” says Isabelle. “The amount of daylight is the primary trigger for the start of turkey breeding activities, so even though spring is certainly ahead of schedule this year, it won't make that much difference.”

What will change, says Isabelle, is the amount of foliage on trees during turkey season. Leaves tend to absorb sound, making it harder for hunters to hear turkeys gobble. That can make hunting a bit more challenging, but Isabelle says more-developed foliage also offers hunters an advantage.

“Foliage can work to the hunter's advantage by allowing the hunter to get set up on a gobbler without being seen. A lot of hunters prefer hunting with more foliage on the trees for that very reason.”

Isabelle said going into the 2012 nesting and brood-rearing season in good condition could help Missouri’s turkey flock build on population gains made last year. Field observations of poults (recently hatched turkeys) last summer showed the best nesting success in nearly a decade.

Even with a good crop of poults, however, Isabelle estimated the size of the statewide turkey flock at approximately 440,000 last fall. That was down approximately 30 percent from 2001. The main cause of the decrease was several years of extremely unfavorable weather during the nesting and brood-rearing period from April through June. Neighboring states’ turkey flocks have suffered similar setbacks.

“We aren’t alone,” said Isabelle. “Above-average rainfall has taken a toll on turkeys across parts of the Midwest over the past few years. Poults are susceptible to hypothermia, so cold, wet weather is very hard on them. We got a break from the weather last year, and the birds responded just as we knew they would.”

The response showed up in a whopping 98-percent increase in the number of turkeys reported in field surveys in northeastern Missouri last year compared to 2010. Turkey observations increased in nearly every region of the state in 2011, but the rebound varied widely among regions.

One of the best measures of nesting success is the poult-to-hen ratio, which provides an idea of the success of the nesting and brood-rearing seasons. Last year’s poult-to-hen ratios were up by 91 and 100 percent in northeastern Missouri and the eastern Ozarks, respectively, compared to 2010. At the other end of the spectrum, the poult-to-hen ratio decreased by 26 percent in the Mississippi lowlands of southeastern Missouri. In Northwestern Missouri, the ratio was 17 percent higher than in 2010. The remaining five regions, encompassing the western Ozarks, the Ozark border, the western prairie region and the tier of counties just north and south of the Missouri River in eastern Missouri, recorded increases ranging from 27 to 92 percent.

To view a map showing regional results of the 2011 Wild Turkey Brood Survey Report, visit http://go.usa.gov/E8S.

Last year’s strong reproduction will boost the number of year-old male turkeys, commonly called “jakes,” available to hunters this spring. The big boost will come next year, when gobblers born in 2011 are two years old. Two-year-old males generally gobble more than jakes or older toms, and gobbling is what sets turkey hunters’ pulses racing.

Missouri’s youth spring turkey season comes early this year – March 31 and April 1 – to avoid a conflict with the Easter weekend. The regular spring turkey season is April 16 through May 6. Regulations remain the same as last year with a few exceptions, such as changes that apply to certain conservation areas. For details, see the 2012 Spring Turkey Hunting Regulation and Information booklet, which it is available wherever hunting permits are sold or at http://go.usa.gov/EIW.

-Jim Low-

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Peck Ranch Refuge closed to spring turkey hunting

Image via Wikipedia

The 11,000-acre area will be closed to spring turkey hunting due to elk-restoration work.

SUMMERSVILLE—Hunters who customarily use the refuge area at Peck Ranch Conservation Area (CA) will need to make alternate plans again this year, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC).

MDC closed the refuge portion of Peck Ranch CA to public access, including spring turkey hunting, in 2011. The closure was designed to prevent possible disturbance of elk freshly arrived from Kentucky as part of MDC’s elk-restoration program. MDC reopened the area to public access in July 2011 after elk were released from holding pens.

This year’s closure is expected to follow the same pattern as a second group of elk arrives from Kentucky. Hunting will still be allowed on approximately 12,000 acres outside the marked refuge fence, according to Preston Mabry, area manager of Peck Ranch CA.

Mabry said newly restored elk at Peck Ranch are a continuation of the area’s rich tradition in species restoration. The refuge played a vital role in restoring the thundering gobble of the wild turkey to the Ozark hills. That gobble is now joined by the bugling of elk.

“Turkey season is a time we spend all year looking forward to,” said Mabry. “We certainly thank hunters for understanding and for doing their part to help create an area free of disturbance, so this second portion of the elk herd can become acclimated to their new home.”

Mabry said MDC wants to minimize human presence near the facility where elk are held for an acclimation period prior to release. He said hunters are welcome to hunt outside the refuge. Peck Ranch CA information and a map of the area are available at mdc.mo.gov/a5203, or at the Peck Ranch CA Headquarters. The fenced refuge area is clearly marked.

MDC established Peck Ranch CA in 1945 for wild-turkey management. For more than 30 years, MDC has used diverse management techniques, including prescribed fire and timber harvests, to maintain and restore natural communities there. This has created habitat for a wide range of native wildlife.

For more information, call the Peck Ranch CA headquarters, 573-323-4249, or visit mdc.mo.gov.

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Discover Hunting—Spring Turkey

Image via Wikipedia

Can you gobble, yelp or putt? Harvesting a turkey takes good calling skills. Here’s your chance to learn how or just refine your skills at the Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center on Saturday, February 25 from noon to 2 pm.

We’ll start out learning about the upcoming turkey season and various calling methods. Then we’ll make a slate call and take some time to practice outdoors. Who knows, you may even call one in!

Ages 16 and up. Registration is required. Call 573-290-5218 to register or for more information.

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Conservation Commission sets 2012 deer, turkey regulations

Image via Wikipedia

Next year’s youth spring turkey hunt will be earlier than usual.

JEFFERSON CITY–Hunters can start planning for next year’s turkey and deer seasons, thanks to recent actions by the Missouri Conservation Commission.

At its Dec. 15 meeting in Jefferson City, the Commission approved 2012 turkey-hunting regulations similar to 2011. The regular spring turkey season will run from April 16 through May 6. The fall firearms turkey season will run from Oct. 1 through 31.

The 2012 youth spring turkey season will take place the weekend of March 31 and April 1. In most years, the youth season opens nine days before the opening day of the regular spring turkey season. However, the season framework shifts the youth season one week earlier in years when the usual timing would cause the youth season to overlap Easter.

Limits, shooting hours and other turkey-hunting regulations remain unchanged from 2011 and will be published in guide books before hunting seasons.

The Commission also set Nov. 10 as opening day for the November portion of firearms deer season. The Commission will set opening dates for the urban, youth, antlerless and muzzleloader portions and other regulations for the 2012 deer season at its May meeting. These will be available in the 2012 Fall Deer and Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information booklet in July.

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Wild turkeys make the most of break from weather

Image via Wikipedia

Missouri’s wild turkey flock made significant gains in many areas this year.

JEFFERSON CITY–Given one nesting season free of late freezes or frog-strangling rains, Missouri’s wild turkey flock has pulled off one of the best hatches in several years.

Resource Scientist Jason Isabelle, the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) turkey specialist, today released results of the annual Wild Turkey Brood Survey.  Each year, citizen volunteers and MDC staff record the number of wild turkey hens and recently hatched turkeys, called “poults,” that they observe during June, July and August. Isabelle divides the number of poults by the number of hens to provide a poult-to-hen ratio, which is a measure of turkey nest success and poult survival.

The state-wide poult-to-hen ratio has varied little in recent years, ranging from 1.0 to 1.2. This year’s ratio was 1.7, the highest it has been since 2002.

”This year’s poult-to-hen ratio is certainly a step in the right direction after the poor hatches we’ve had the past several years,” said Isabelle. A statewide ratio of 1.7 for a few years in a row would have a fairly dramatic impact on turkey numbers.”

Isabelle said some hunters already are noticing a substantial difference in turkey numbers and are reporting more birds this summer in areas where young turkeys have been hard to find the last few years.

“A good turkey hatch throughout much of Missouri is certainly great news for fall turkey hunting enthusiasts,” said Isabelle. “Fall hunting provides a tremendous opportunity to pursue wild turkeys in the beautiful fall woods.”

Isabelle noted that only 13,500 hunters bought fall firearms turkey hunting permits last year, compared with spring-turkey permit sales of more than 100,000. The few hunters who do pursue turkeys in the fall often have the woods to themselves.

Hunters harvested 5,928 turkeys during Missouri’s 2010 fall firearms turkey season, compared with 46,000 in the spring. Isabelle said the fall harvest–which comes out to an average of 50 turkeys per county–has no significant impact on the number of turkeys that survive until the following spring.

Wild turkeys and other ground-nesting wildlife have suffered through a series of cold springs and unprecedented summer rainfall over the past five years. In 2007, a freak cold front dragged the mercury into the teens for several days in a row around Easter. In 2008, Missouri experienced record rainfall – more than 80 inches in some areas compared to the annual average of about 40 inches. 2009 was nearly as wet as 2008, and unusually heavy summer rains continued to plague turkeys last year. This year is the first in five with near-average spring temperatures and without repeated, heavy summer rains.

“Missouri’s wild turkeys have suffered through some poor hatches for the last four years in a row,” said Isabelle. “We have always been confident that they would bounce back when the weather returned to normal, and this year they did.”

Turkeys raised the largest broods in northeastern Missouri and the eastern Ozarks, where observers reported seeing 2.1 to 2.3 poults per hen. Counties along the south side of the Missouri River and the west side of the Mississippi River from Cooper County to Pemiscot County showed poult-to-hen ratios of 1.6 to 1.7. The western Ozarks and western Ozarks border counties reported poult-to-hen ratios of 1.5 to 1.6. Missouri’s western prairie counties and the northwest corner of the state had the lowest ratio of 1.4 poults per hen.

To view a detailed Wild Turkey Brood Survey map, visit at http://www.mdc.mo.gov/node/16163.

-Jim Low-

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Spring turkey harvest down 9.3 percent

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Wet, windy weather plagued hunters throughout much of the season.

JEFFERSON CITY–A 9.3-percent dip in the 2011 spring turkey harvest confirms what Missourians already knew – it has been a stormy three weeks in the Show-Me State.

Resource Scientist Jason Isabelle, the Conservation Department’s turkey specialist, announced today that hunters checked 38,328 turkeys during the regular spring turkey season April 18 through May 8. That is down 3,926 from last year.

Adding the harvest from the youth turkey season April 9 and 10 brings Missouri’s 2011 spring turkey harvest to 42,226. That is down 8.6 percent from last year. Spring turkey permit sales were down 4,885, or 3.3 percent, from last year.

Top harvest counties were Franklin, with 840 turkeys checked, Texas with 699 and Bollinger with 675. Juvenile gobblers, known as “jakes,” made up 19.6 percent of the harvest. That is virtually identical to last year, when jakes comprised 20 percent of the harvest.

Isabelle predicted a smaller harvest this year because of a decline in turkey numbers statewide.

“We still have very strong wild turkey numbers in most areas compared to other states,” said Isabelle, “but there is no question that the population is down, and more in some areas than others. That was bound to affect our harvest this year. Cool, rainy and often windy conditions during much of turkey season magnified the effect.”

Isabelle said the season got off to a good start. The youth harvest was virtually identical to last year’s, and the opening-day harvest was slightly higher than in 2010. Then it turned cool and turned stormy.

Isabelle said rain, cool temperatures and wind have a double negative effect on hunting success. Stormy weather causes male turkeys to gobble less, making them harder to hunt. Nasty weather also discourages hunters from going afield.

“The turkeys are out there every day,” said Isabelle. ”You can hunt them effectively, even on rainy days, but it’s harder, and it can be uncomfortable. Quite a few hunters choose not to hunt at all on rainy days. I suspect that when we look at our hunter survey data, we’ll see a reduction in the number of days that hunters took to the field this spring.”

Isabelle said he doesn’t expect this spring’s relatively light harvest to have a significant effect on the state’s turkey population. This is partly because 99 percent of the harvested turkeys are males, and turkey reproduction is determined by the number of hens. MDC sets the hunting season late enough in the spring to allow ample opportunity for gobblers and hens to breed prior to the start of the season.

“Harvesting 4,000 fewer gobblers in the spring is a minor factor compared to annual reproduction,” said Isabelle. “In a good year, our hens can produce more than 300,000 poults (young turkeys). That dwarfs the total number of gobblers we harvest, even when hunting conditions are good.”

Isabelle said Missouri has enough wild-turkey hens to stage a population recovery. To do that, however, the birds need favorable weather. Wet conditions take a toll on nesting success of ground-nesting birds like turkeys. It also reduces survival of poults, which are susceptible to hypothermia when cool, wet weather prevails.

Isabelle said wet conditions so far this spring have not helped turkey nesting, but most areas haven’t been as hard-hit as southeastern Missouri.

“Even in areas where flooding has occurred, hens still have time to re-nest and bring off a good crop of poults,” he said. “We have had several years of bad nesting conditions, but I’m hoping this will be the year when we get warmer, drier weather, and turkey numbers bounce back a bit. May and June are critical months for wild turkey production, and it’s still not too late for conditions to improve.”

The Conservation Department recorded three firearms-related hunting incidents during the regular turkey season. None was fatal. Two incidents, including a fatal self-inflicted gunshot, occurred during the youth season. Last year, the agency recorded four incidents during the regular season and two during the youth season. None of last year’s incidents was fatal.

County-by-county spring turkey harvest totals are available at the MDC website, www.missouriconservation.org. Search for “2011 turkey harvest.”