How were the numbers in you state? They were down quite a bit here in West Virginia. My two came from Marion county.
West Virginia Hunters Harvest 8,332 Spring Turkeys
SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Preliminary harvest figures for the 2012 spring gobbler season are in and West Virginia hunters checked in 8,332 bearded turkeys, according to Frank Jezioro, director of the Division of Natural Resources. This year’s harvest is a 10 percent decline from the 2011 harvest and a 15 percent decline from the previous five-year average.
Biologists have long recognized that the brood counts two years prior are fairly accurate predictors of harvest since most of the kill is composed of two-year old birds. Brood production in 2010 was 28 percent lower than 2009; therefore, the 2012 spring harvest was lower because fewer birds were available. Brood production was higher in 2011 but still below the long-term average.
“Because future harvests are dependent on brood production and survival, let’s hope for a dry June and a more normal spring in 2013, if there is such a thing,” said Jezioro.
The 2012 spring kill is the lowest since 1989, when 7,245 birds were harvested by hunters. While all the other districts saw a decline in harvest, hunters in District 1 (northern counties) registered a 7 percent increase over last year. The southern districts saw the greatest reduction in harvest, with Districts 5 and 4 declining by 25 and 21 percent, respectively.
The top counties were Mason with a kill of 343, Preston (330), Harrison (282), Wood (237) and Greenbrier (235). Rounding out the top 10 counties were Jackson (229), Marshall (227), Upshur (224), Monongalia (222) and Kanawha (213).
**DNR**
Spring Gobbler Harvest, 2008-2012
County 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Barbour 224 209 157 159 179
Brooke 79 86 91 93 74
Hancock 71 98 109 107 92
Harrison 291 310 265 242 282
Marion 178 175 179 135 163
Marshall 222 214 316 254 227
Monongalia 247 215 257 218 222
Ohio 53 64 94 92 87
Preston 371 378 321 325 330
Taylor 115 101 86 76 93
Tucker 85 68 68 58 62
Wetzel 253 213 199 133 210
Dist. 1 Subtotal 2,189 2,131 2,142 1,892 2,021
Berkeley 70 83 89 85 88
Grant 115 121 102 102 117
Hampshire 165 194 149 118 119
Hardy 141 172 158 123 100
Jefferson 34 44 27 42 42
Mineral 107 135 121 77 85
Morgan 88 63 68 70 56
Pendleton 101 114 98 100 94
Dist. 2 Subtotal 821 926 812 717 701
Braxton 199 226 186 172 118
Clay 77 89 65 85 75
Lewis 243 241 237 201 181
Nicholas 210 157 163 166 160
Pocahontas 102 117 106 107 125
Randolph 163 198 197 140 150
Upshur 288 298 241 212 224
Webster 98 113 102 99 95
Dist. 3 Subtotal 1,380 1,439 1,297 1,182 1,128
Fayette 279 255 215 237 179
Greenbrier 292 266 226 253 235
McDowell 250 181 270 225 156
Mercer 253 215 175 187 141
Monroe 142 178 145 155 161
Raleigh 221 227 182 215 185
Summers 258 219 231 223 175
Wyoming 209 227 287 242 132
Dist. 4 Subtotal 1,904 1,768 1,731 1,737 1,364
Boone 118 111 185 185 144
Cabell 138 157 236 134 133
Kanawha 247 219 261 310 213
Lincoln 188 183 278 188 157
Logan 157 160 194 169 133
Mason 394 419 551 447 343
Mingo 82 95 115 138 92
Putnam 232 256 323 237 196
Wayne 145 146 234 189 92
Dist. 5 Subtotal 1,701 1,746 2,377 1,997 1,503
Calhoun 141 129 120 96 138
Doddridge 144 135 150 121 107
Gilmer 139 147 135 138 132
Jackson 310 257 286 291 229
Pleasants 89 63 72 68 82
Ritchie 208 206 239 212 205
Roane 229 219 207 195 193
Tyler 174 167 196 137 132
Wirt 185 175 166 157 160
Wood 315 279 279 276 237
Dist. 6 Subtotal 1,934 1,777 1,850 1,691 1,615
State Total 9,929 9,787 10,209 9,216 8,332
