Spring turkey hunting season set to begin in New York

Gillian Friebis
·2 min read

Correction: A previous version of this story gave the incorrect shooting start time. Shooting can take place between a half hour before sunrise and noon each day.

NEW YORK STATE (WETM) — New York State’s spring turkey hunting season will begin in just over a week.

Junior hunters aged 12 to 15 could hunt with a licensed adult on April 20 and 21 this year, but the season officially starts for all hunters on May 1. According to the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), New York hunters harvest between 16,000 to 18,000 turkeys during the one-month-long spring hunting season. The DEC expects hunters to be more successful this year than last year due to the two-year lag caused by hunters preferring to take toms (birds over the age of two).

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Hunters who want to participate in the spring turkey season must have a hunting license and a turkey hunting permit. Hunters can only shoot between a half hour before sunrise and noon each day and can use a bow, crossbow, or shotgun/handgun loaded with shot sizes between no. 9 and no. 2. Each hunter can take up to two bearded turkeys during the spring season, which ends on May 31, and is limited to one turkey per day. Hunters need to immediately tag their harvests and report them to the DEC within seven days either on the DEC’s Game Harvest Reporting website or by calling 1-866-426-3778.

The DEC is reminding hunters that turkeys are tough and should be shot in the head or neck from a distance of 30 yards or less. Hunters should not try to shoot turkeys in the body or while they’re flying. The DEC is also reminding hunters to follow the following safety tips:

  • Don’t follow/stalk other hunters; most turkey hunting injuries happen when one hunter is stalking another hunter.

  • Wear hunter orange, put hunter orange on a nearby tree when sitting still, and wrap any takes or decoys in hunter orange.

  • Never wear red, white, or blue (turkey colors).

  • Sit still against a tree to break up any silhouette when calling.

  • Always assume any call or footsteps you hear are from another hunter.

  • Do not shoot until you can see the entire turkey and identify its sex.

  • Never wave or use a turkey call to alert another hunter.

  • Speak clearly and don’t move when you encounter another hunter.

More information about turkey hunting, including regulations and tips for success, is available on the DEC’s website.

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