COLUMBUS, Ohio – Wild turkey hunters in Ohio have checked 14,279 birds in the 2023 spring season through Sunday, May 14, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife.
During the 2022 spring turkey season, hunters checked 10,734 birds in the Buckeye State in the same period. The three-year average (2020 to 2022) for turkeys taken in the corresponding dates is 13,353 birds. This year’s total includes the 1,823 birds checked in the two-day youth hunting season April 15-16, birds taken in the 23 days since the south zone opened on April 22, and those harvested in the 16 days of hunting in the northeast zone (Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, and Trumbull counties).
The 10 counties with the highest totals for wild turkey harvest so far in the 2023 season are Gallia (398), Muskingum (394), Monroe (389), Tuscarawas (384), Belmont (366), Ashtabula (361), Coshocton (354), Adams (351), Meigs (342), and Guernsey (338).
The Division of Wildlife has issued 49,484 spring turkey permits that are valid throughout the spring hunting season.
Hunting in the northeast zone is open until Sunday, May 28. The season in the rest of Ohio remains open until Sunday, May 21. Statewide, turkey hunting is now permitted from 30 minutes before sunrise until sunset. The season limit is one bearded turkey. Find more information in Ohio’s 2022-23 hunting and trapping regulations booklet.
Wild turkeys were extirpated in Ohio by 1904 and were reintroduced in the 1950s by the Division of Wildlife. Ohio’s first modern-day turkey season opened in 1966 in nine counties, and hunters took 12 birds. The turkey harvest topped 1,000 for the first time in 1984. Spring turkey hunting opened statewide in 2000, and Ohio hunters checked more than 20,000 turkeys for the first time that year. More information about previous turkey seasons can be found in the Spring Turkey Harvest Summary.
Find more information about Ohio’s wild turkey hunting at wildohio.gov.
The mission of the Division of Wildlife is to conserve and improve fish and wildlife resources and their habitats for sustainable use and appreciation by all. Visit wildohio.gov to find out more.
ODNR ensures a balance between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the benefit of all. Visit the ODNR website at ohiodnr.gov.
Editor’s Note:.
A list of all wild turkeys checked by hunters in each county through Sunday, May 14, 2023, is shown below. Results from the state include 23 days of hunting in the south zone, 16 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 through the corresponding dates (2020-2022) is in parentheses. Numbers below are raw data and are subject to change.
Adams: 351 (322); Allen: 67 (61); Ashland: 159 (137); Ashtabula: 361 (312); Athens: 271 (287); Auglaize: 45 (32); Belmont: 366 (391); Brown: 265 (321); Butler: 209 (169); Carroll: 312 (281); Champaign: 86 (71); Clark: 26 (15); Clermont: 277 (249); Clinton: 52 (61); Columbiana: 326 (354); Coshocton: 354 (316); Crawford: 49 (43); Cuyahoga: 5 (5); Darke: 58 (53); Defiance: 181 (168); Delaware: 88 (87); Erie: 42 (36); Fairfield: 99 (85); Fayette: 11 (9); Franklin: 22 (13); Fulton: 109 (93); Gallia: 398 (319); Geauga: 191 (136); Greene: 25 (19); Guernsey: 338 (370); Hamilton: 115 (94); Hancock: 41 (31); Hardin: 103 (78); Harrison: 320 (340); Henry: 52 (43); Highland: 312 (302); Hocking: 233 (203); Holmes: 180 (178); Huron: 79 (82); Jackson: 248 (255); Jefferson: 337 (339); Knox: 223 (237); Lake: 52 (46); Lawrence: 215 (179); Licking: 274 (246); Logan: 127 (97); Lorain: 107 (101); Lucas: 45 (45); Madison: 9 (6); Mahoning: 174 (155); Marion: 29 (33); Medina: 84 (93); Meigs: 342 (377); Mercer: 27 (19); Miami: 28 (23); Monroe: 389 (372); Montgomery: 45 (21); Morgan: 232 (241); Morrow: 134 (111); Muskingum: 394 (356); Noble: 317 (305); Ottawa: 1 (1); Paulding: 68 (62); Perry: 280 (221); Pickaway: 26 (16); Pike: 223 (158); Portage: 186 (181); Preble: 143 (96); Putnam: 31 (39); Richland: 201 (176); Ross: 259 (247); Sandusky: 28 (20); Scioto: 235 (205); Seneca: 112 (100); Shelby: 39 (37); Stark: 226 (219); Summit: 40 (57); Trumbull: 262 (253); Tuscarawas: 384 (390); Union: 45 (41); Van Wert: 13 (15); Vinton: 223 (213); Warren: 82 (75); Washington: 335 (346); Wayne: 90 (100); Williams: 208 (166); Wood: 23 (23); Wyandot: 106 (73).
2023 Total: 14,279
3-Year Average Total: 13,353
