Ohio’s surviving wild turkeys are continuing on their wild business after the state’s hunters took care of theirs.
Hunters checked 15,887 turkeys by spring season’s end May 31, the Ohio Division of Wildlife reported. That’s counting a two-day youth hunt in April, a South Zone season that concluded May 24 and the later-starting and later-ending Northeastern Zone season confined to five counties.
The total fell only 127 birds short of last year’s take of 16,014, or about 1.4 fewer per county. That’s a minuscule 0.8%.
The spring take, meanwhile, topped the three-year average of 15,743 by 144 birds, or about 1.6 per county. In this case, the boost runs a skimpy 0.9%.
The number of turkey hunters was remarkably consistent as well.
“The difference in the 2025 and 2026 permit total was less than 100 permits (0.2%), suggesting hunter participation was nearly identical between the two seasons,” said Mark Wiley, forest gamebird biologist for the division, in an email exchange.
Also similar to 2025 were the high success rates for permit-holders. About 26.8% of resident, nonresident and youth hunters tagged a turkey, he said.
THE GREAT OUTDOORS: More on Ohio hunting and fishing
Interestingly, the turkey take in the South Zone, which includes central Ohio, was ahead of the 2025 pace by as much as 8% until the season’s final weekend.
“During that weekend in 2026, hunters reported harvesting only about half as many turkeys as the same period in 2025,” Wiley noted. “Presumably, the brief dip in the 2026 harvest rate near the end of the South Zone season was the result of heavy rains suppressing hunter activity.”
Counties that delivered the most birds cover the usual territory in southeastern and northeastern Ohio, led by Ashtabula with 500 and followed by Tuscarawas with 433. Belmont 418, Monroe 413 and Trumbull 410.
BETTER SEARCHES: Prefer The Dispatch on Google
Three southwestern counties – Highland, Adams and Brown – finished in the top 10. The turkey population in those counties likely got a boost from the 2025 cyclical cicada hatch. While it fell short of the top 10, Clermont County – inside last year’s cicada hatch zone – likewise showed a big jump in harvest, to 325 in 2026 from 269 in 2025.
Licking led central Ohio counties with 246 birds checked, followed by Delaware with 92, Union with 64, Fairfield 49, Pickaway 16, Franklin 12 and Madison seven. Only Delaware, Union and Madison topped their three-year average.
The spring limit is a single bearded bird, which exempts female turkeys that are, for the most part, beardless.
About 161 harvested birds, representing about 1.0% of the take, were females with beards. Adult males made up about 85% of the birds checked and juvenile males the remaining 14%, the division reported.
Shotguns accounted for about 98% of the harvest, while 256 birds were taken with archery equipment.
Research on nesting, survival of hen turkeys and spring gobbling by males has been in the works for several years, not only in Ohio but in Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Findings will have an impact on hunting regulations.
Meanwhile, summer surveys will help assess how this year’s hatch fared and what effect the survival of poults, which are spring-born birds, will have on the state’s turkey population. A drop in numbers pushed the wildlife division toward a one-bird spring limit in 2022, down from two. A short autumn season limits hunters to one bird of either sex.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Spring turkey hunt stats for central Ohio and the rest of the state
Reporting by Dave Golowenski, Special to The Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dave Golowenski, Special to The Columbus Dispatch | USA TODAY Network
