2023 spring turkey hunting season a success

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has announced preliminary totals for the 2023 spring turkey season. Wisconsin turkey hunters registered 42,439 birds this season, a 7% increase from the five-year average.

The 2023 spring season started on April 15 with the two-day youth hunt for hunters under 16 years old. A total of 2,972 birds were registered, a 28% increase from the five-year average.

The regular season was divided into six separate

KWD

one-week periods from April 19 through May 30. These separate periods help maximize hunter opportunities while minimizing interference for a more sustainable harvest.

A total of 246,428 authorizations were available this spring, and hunters applied for 223,503 of them. Given the robust participation and harvest numbers across the state, it’s clear that there were abundant opportunities this season.

The preliminary total includes 6,629 birds harvested in Zone 4, which includes all of Taylor County. The zone also covers all of Chippewa, Eau Claire, Dunn, Pierce, St. Croix and Polk counties as well as parts of Burnett, Washburn, Pepin, Rusk, Price, Lincoln, Marathon and Clark counties. The zone’s total harvest in 2022 was 6,121 birds.

Zone 1, which covers southwestern Wisconsin, led the state with 11,737 birds registered, up from 10,504 in 2022. Zone 3, which covers central Wisconsin, ranked second in registrations with 10,311, up from 9,918 last spring. Zone 2, which covers the easternmost part of the state, had 10,082 turkeys registered, up from 9,186 in 2022. The deadline to apply for next spring’s (2024) turkey season is Dec. 10.

Learn more about turkey hunting in Wisconsin on the DNR webpage, https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/ hunt/turkey.