Iowa spring turkey season just a week away

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Thunderous calls from competing Toms trying to out-do one another for the attention from nearby hens, rattles through Iowa’s timber each spring. This annual ritual is witnessed by hunters who attempt to mimic the call of a lonely hen, to attract a frustrated Tom to come search her out.

That’s no easy task.

Iowa’s spring turkey hunting begins April 7 with a youth only season, followed by four shorter individual gun/bow seasons and one long archery-only season beginning April 10.

“Do your scouting before the season and be prepared for all types of weather. It doesn’t guarantee success, but you will be in much better position to bag a gobbler,” said Jim Coffey, forest wildlife research biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. “We are in the turkey’s territory. They live there, this is their home field and they have the advantage.”

Iowa issues around 50,000 tags each year, with roughly 22 percent getting filled, which equates to a harvest of around 11,500 birds.

“Turkey hunting is an intimate sport done at close range,” Coffey said. “Research indicates that shots of less than 30 yards are the most successful.”

Because it is so intimate, it’s important for hunters to give each other space. If a hunter walks into another’s area, they should say in a loud, clear voice ‘Hey – turkey hunter over here,’ Coffey said.

“Don’t wave at them to get their attention, don’t create movement. The person should turn and walk directly away,” he said. Other safety tips include not wearing red, white or blue (colors on a male turkey head and waddle), avoiding tunnel vision, and properly identifying the target and what’s behind it.

Hunters should also write out their hunting plan that identifies the hunt location, who’s on the hunt and outlines their role, describes how the hunt will unfold and when the hunters are expected to return home. Hunters are encouraged to leave a copy of the plan with someone or somewhere easy to find, in the event of an emergency.

Iowa turkeys had good production last year across most of the state, led by the central and east central regions.

“The two-year-old birds are the most likely to gobble and the most likely to move and make up the bulk of the hunter harvest,” he said. This time of year, turkeys focus on food sources like waste grain, fresh greens (grasses, clover, the green tips on wild raspberries) and insects and it’s why most are seen scratching. Male or bearded turkeys are legal for harvest.

Hunters who bag a turkey are required to report their harvest on the DNR’s website at iowadnr.gov.

“Reporting the harvest is important because it provides information on our bird population, and where and when these birds are being harvested,” Coffey said.

Jim Coffey, Iowa Department of Natural Resources

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