COLUMBUS, OH -- Cold weather and high winds dampened opening day harvest numbers for the 2002 spring wild turkey season. Preliminary numbers reflect 3,654 bearded wild turkeys were checked into wildlife stations across Ohio on Monday, a 33 percent decrease from the 5,492 gobblers checked on opening day last year.
Weather will always have an impact on the number of turkeys harvested and the cold temperatures really dampened hunting pressure," said Dave Swanson, wild turkey project leader. As the weather improves, we know we'll see more hunters in the field and an increase in harvest numbers."
This is the third year that spring turkey hunting has been open statewide. In 1999, the spring hunt was open in only 57 counties.
Guernsey County led the state on Monday, with 156 wild turkeys taken. Other top counties included Ashtabula, Harrison, and Muskingum at 136 each, and Coshocton with 134.
The ODNR Division of Wildlife estimates that more than 90,000 people will hunt turkeys during the extended four-week season which opened Monday and runs through May19. 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 age 17 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 four-week season, but not more than one wild turkey per day. About 260,000 wild turkeys are present in Ohio this year.
Adams - 105(63); Allen - 1 (1); Ashland - 67 (109); Ashtabula - 136 (250); Athens - 92 (191); Auglaize - 4 (2); Belmont - 107 (185); Brown - 94 (98); Butler - 4 (9); Carroll - 68 (121); Champaign - 13 (17); Clark - 9 (1); Clermont - 88 (93); Clinton - 10 (6); Columbiana - 13 (74); Coshocton - 134 (226); Crawford - 9 (7); Cuyahoga - 1 (0); Darke - 3 (3); Defiance - 13 (15); Delaware - 13 (7); Erie - 0 (1); Fairfield - 34 (61); Fayette - 8 (7); Franklin - 0 (3); Fulton - 2 (11); Gallia - 93 (149); Geauga - 82 (97); Greene - 2 (7); Guernsey - 156 (242); Hamilton - 8 (5); Hancock - 2 (4); Hardin - 8 (7); Harrison - 136 (196); Henry - 3 (4); Highland - 60 (57); Hocking - 82 (158); Holmes - 58 (158); Huron - 13 (34); Jackson - 112 (156); Jefferson - 84 (113); Knox - 65 (103); Lake - 23 (23); Lawrence - 52 (65); Licking - 120 (105); Logan - 16 (16); Lorain - 14 (10); Lucas - 3 (2); Madison - 0 (0); Mahoning - 29 (25); Marion - 4 (2); Medina - 10 (14); Meigs - 87 (135); Mercer - 0 (0); Miami - 1 (0); Monroe - 95 (185); Montgomery - 1 (1); Morgan - 96 (146); Morrow - 42 (30); Muskingum - 136 (185); Noble - 66 (123); Ottawa - 1 (0); Paulding - 8 (6); Perry - 96 (136); Pickaway - 5 (13); Pike - 48 (68); Portage - 26 (18); Preble - 5 (17); Putnam - 5 (5); Richland - 78 (126); Ross - 64 (123); Sandusky - 2 (3); Scioto - 60 (78); Seneca - 16 (18); Shelby - 2 (7); Stark - 46 (62); Summit - 4 (1); Trumbull - 78 (123); Tuscarawas - 105 (181); Union - 0 (0); Van Wert - 0 (0); Vinton - 41 (155); Warren - 14 (12); Washington - 110 (150); Wayne - 15 (25); Williams - 24 (29); Wood - 0 (2); Wyandot -14 (16) Totals - 3,654 (5,492)
For Further Information Contact:
Vicki Mountz, ODNR Division of Wildlife
(614) 265-6393
-or-
Dave Swanson, ODNR Division of Wildlife
(740) 664-2745