Thanksgiving is approaching, which means it’s time to kill some turkeys.
And if you want to hunt one of those dang birds yourself, you can, because wild turkey hunting season started Oct. 9, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Wildlife (ODNR).
The state has allowed turkey hunting since 1996 and the ODNR says Ohioans “checked” 1,063 birds last year (aka reported their kills to ohiogamecheck.com), with Clermont County hunters in the the top 10, knocking out 27 birds in 2020.
Hunting is open in all 70 Ohio counties, and “both hens and gobblers are legal game,” says the ODNR. But there is a limit of only one wild turkey per hunter per fall season.
Right now, the ODNR says wild turkeys are beginning to flock together as the weather changes.
“Fall turkey hunting brings new challenges because the birds exhibit different behaviors than in the spring, but can still be quite vocal,” said Division of Wildlife wild turkey biologist Mark Wiley in a release. “Patience and persistence are key to a successful fall hunt. The birds are looking for dependable food sources right now, so scout areas near mature timber and agricultural fields to see if turkeys are nearby.”
To find a flock of turkeys, look for turkey tracks, scratches in leaves, turkey droppings, turkey feathers, “dusting areas” and popular food sources, like acorns. The ODNR also recommends making a turkey call sound.
But you can’t just walk out into the woods with a shotgun (or crossbow, compound bow, recurve bow or muzzle-loading shotgun) and start randomly shooting at fowl. In order to get a hunting license in Ohio, you must first pass a hunter education course and then also get a turkey-hunting permit.
Then you can hunt — from 30 minutes before sunrise until sunset each day.
To make sure you are being fair while you hunt and not just massacring or torturing turkeys, the ODNR offers a list of things it is uncool to do:
- It is unlawful to hunt or take wild turkeys with the aid or use of bait. An area is considered baited for 10 days after the complete removal of any bait.
- It is unlawful to use a live decoy while hunting wild turkeys.
- It is unlawful to possess or use an electronic calling device while hunting wild turkeys.
- It is unlawful to take or attempt to take a wild turkey while it is in a tree.
- It is unlawful to possess more than one hunting implement while turkey hunting. A successful wild turkey hunter may aid or assist another hunter who is hunting wild turkeys if the turkey permit has been filled in, he or she does not carry any hunting implement commonly used to kill wild animals, and has a valid hunting license. Those persons exempted from having a hunting license and wild turkey permits for turkey hunting on their property are required to have a hunting license and turkey permit to aid another hunter off of their property or hunt turkey off of their property.
So why does the ODNR say it’s OK to hunt?
“The Division of Wildlife manages healthy animal populations by implementing regulations, which are directly related to the need to manage species’ numbers. Without hunters, the carrying capacity, or the number of animals that the habitat can support all year, may be unsustainable, which would lead to damage for the wildlife or the habitat,” the organization says.
They also say killing your own food is “one of the most inexpensive and ethical ways to fill your freezer with natural, free-range meat.”
Find maps of public hunting and fishing sites — like the Tranquility Wildlife Area in Adams County, Pater Wildlife Area in Butler County, East Fork Wildlife Area in Clermont County and the Della Gates & Edward Charles Bott Wildlife Area in Brown and Clermont County — at ohiodnr.gov.
And find recipe ideas for WTF to do with your wild turkey at ohiodnr.gov.
See full hunting and trapping regulations at ohiodnr.gov.
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This article appears in Sep 29 – Oct 12, 2021.