by JOSH GUNN
Conservation Officer
The 2014 spring turkey season is coming up on April 12 with youth season preceding it on April 5th and 6th. I spoke with our private lands biologist Thomas Young about what we can expect to see this year. According to reports from around the state last year’s hatch was unremarkable, meaning that we can expect a normal harvest. Habitat conditions were favorable with the rain, making for an abundance of insects for turkey’s diet. Thomas did say that this year’s breeding season should be about the time season opens. For those of you that were frustrated with last year’s early reproduction this is wonderful news. Maybe ole Tom Turkey will respond to your calls instead of just meandering around ignoring you.
It may have been more of a challenge to bag a turkey in Webster County last Spring but the numbers were down just a tad from the last 3 years average of 408 birds to 366. This tells me that we have some skilled and dedicated hunters that will work hard not to be outsmarted. It wouldn’t surprise me if we have a banner year in Webster County this year.
I’ll go over a few things you should remember before heading out to your blind this year. The bag limit for turkeys in the spring is 2 birds with visible beards. You are only allowed to harvest 1 bird per day. Remember to fill out your harvest log on the back of your license or even on a note card to show that you have tagged your bird BEFORE YOU MOVE IT! And folks, remember this, please be sure of your target before you pull the trigger. If you accidentally kill two birds with one shot you have committed a violation. It is your responsibility as a sportsman, hopefully an ethical one, to know what you are shooting at. You can still be charged even if it was inadvertent.
I always get a few questions about baiting turkeys and whether you can have feeders out on your property. The easy answer to that is when deer season goes out to not place any wildlife attractant in a place where you intend to hunt turkeys. The laws says that you can’t hunt an area unless the bait has been removed for 30 days. Not just the feeder but the bait itself. Don’t risk your shotgun, a fine, and your hunting privileges. Be on the safe side and stop feeding the wildlife early.
There is also a law that prohibits feeding wildlife from March 1 to May 31. This does not include the area immediately surrounding your home, which is called the curtilage of your home. Some people leave their deer feeders out all year long but remember to empty them out and turn them off during this period of time.
Before I go I’d like to promote our summer camps a little bit. If you have a child that is in the 4th, 5th, or 6th grade and is still under the age 13 consider sending them to Conservation Camp this summer. You have until April 15th to submit an application to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife. Go to our website at www.fw.ky.gov for more info.
I write these articles for Webster County. I want to be available to each of you if you ever have a question or want to report a violation. Feel free to call or email me anytime. My cell phone number is 270-635-5235 and you can email me at jgunn217@gmail.com.
PS. The Law Enforcement Division of Fish and Wildlife will be transferring the dispatching duties to the Kentucky State Police Posts beginning April 1st. This will likely meant that the 1-800-ALERT number will no longer work. As with all thing there will be some hiccups along the way and I don’t know for sure which post I will be using (I assume Post 2 out of Madisonville). If you need anything just call me directly or call any of the Law Enforcement Departments in the County.
Josh Gunn is a Conservation Officer II with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife. He works in the Webster County area.