COLUMBUS, OH -- Hunters set a new record for the opening day of the statewide spring turkey hunting season, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife.
Last year, opening day preliminary numbers showed that 3,743 bearded wild turkeys had been checked in. This year hunters checked in 5,492 gobblers, an increase of about 32 percent.
This is the second year that spring turkey hunting has been open statewide. In 1999, the spring hunt was open in only 57 counties.
Counties where the most wild turkeys were checked on Monday included Ashtabula (250), Guernsey (242), Coshocton (226), Harrison (196), and Athens (191).
The ODNR Division of Wildlife estimated that nearly 65,000 people will hunt turkeys during the three-week season which opened Monday and runs through May 13. Legal hunting hours are one-half hour before sunrise until noon daily. A special youth-only turkey hunt was open last Saturday and Sunday on public hunting areas only for hunters 17 years-old and younger.
Only bearded (male) gobblers may be taken during the spring hunting season. Hunters are required to take their turkey to an official check station for permanent tagging by 2 p.m. on the day the turkey was harvested. Hunters with the proper permits may take a limit of two bearded gobblers during the three-week season, but not more than one wild turkey per day. About 220,000 wild turkeys are present in Ohio this year.
Adams - 63 (71); Allen - 1 (0); Ashland - 109 (71); Ashtabula - 250 (229); Athens - 191 (110); Auglaize - 2 (1); Belmont - 185 (99); Brown - 98 (63); Butler - 9 (4); Carroll - 121 (82); Champaign - 17 (7); Clark - 1 (1); Clermont - 93 (60); Clinton - 6 (7); Columbiana - 74 (59); Coshocton - 226 (170); Crawford - 7 (8); Cuyahoga - 0 (0); Darke - 3 (0); Defiance - 15 (20); Delaware - 7 (5); Erie - 1 (2); Fairfield - 61 (61); Fayette - 7 (1); Franklin - 3 (0); Fulton - 11 (9); Gallia - 149 (75); Geauga - 97 (69); Greene - 7 (3); Guernsey - 242 (158); Hamilton - 5 (7); Hancock - 4 (0); Hardin - 7 (6); Harrison - 196 (177); Henry - 4 (10); Highland - 57 (29); Hocking - 158 (85); Holmes - 158 (84); Huron - 34 (16); Jackson - 156 (103); Jefferson - 113 (87); Knox - 103 (116); Lake - 23 (25); Lawrence - 65 (43); Licking - 105 (46); Logan - 16 (12); Lorain - 10 (11); Lucas - 2 (2); Madison - 0 (0); Mahoning - 25 (37); Marion - 2 (2); Medina - 14 (17); Meigs - 135 (82); Mercer - 0 (0); Miami - 0 (0); Monroe - 185 (96); Montgomery - 1 (0); Morgan - 146 (93); Morrow - 30 (25); Muskingum - 185 (81); Noble - 123 (89); Ottawa - 0 (0); Paulding - 6 (9); Perry - 136 (73); Pickaway - 13 (6); Pike - 68 (36); Portage - 18 (20); Preble - 17 (11); Putnam - 5 (3); Richland - 126 (101); Ross - 123 (75); Sandusky - 3 (4); Scioto - 78 (31); Seneca - 18 (22); Shelby - 7 (7); Stark - 62 (39); Summit - 1 (2); Trumbull - 123 (117); Tuscarawas - 181 (126); Union - 0 (2); Van Wert - 0 (0); Vinton - 155 (77); Warren - 12 (9); Washington - 150 (69); Wayne - 25 (26); Williams - 29 (43); Wood - 2 (0); Wyandot -16 (9) Totals - 5,337 (3,743)
For Further Information Contact:
Vicki Mountz, ODNR Division of Wildlife
(614) 265-6393
-or-
Andy Ware, ODNR Media Relations
(614) 265-6882