Outdoor News Daily

More than 149,000 permits will be issued for the spring 2010 Wisconsin wild turkey season through the spring turkey preference drawing. Postcard notifications to successful applicants will be going out in the mail later in the week.

Hunters who do not receive a postcard by mid-February can check on the status of their permit application online through the Department of Natural Resources Online Licensing Center or by calling the DNR Customer Call Center from 7 a.m. through 10 p.m. seven days a week at 1-888-WDNRINFo (1-888-936-7463).

In total, 225,729 permits are available for the spring 2010 turkey season compared to 225,709 in 2009.

Hunters harvested 52,581 turkeys during the 2009 spring season. Final harvest numbers for the 2009 fall season will be published in the 2009 Wisconsin Big Game Hunting Summary in spring of 2010.

The spring 2010 turkey hunting season will run from April 14-May 23. The season is divided into six 5-day (Wednesday through Sunday) time periods. A total of 7 zones, 15 state parks and Fort McCoy will be open for hunting.

The number of turkey hunting zones [PDF 453KB] has been reduced to seven large zones instead of the 46-zone structure of past years. The amount of total turkey hunting area is the same. Hunters should refer to the online map or the 2010 Spring Turkey regulations, which are included in the 2009 Small Game and Fall Turkey 2009 and Spring Turkey 2010 regulation pamphlet.

Hunters are reminded that Fort McCoy runs a separate spring turkey hunting season, different from the State of Wisconsin spring turkey hunt. Hunters that do not receive an approval to hunt turkeys through the state drawing in a Wisconsin turkey hunting zone for the 2010 spring season are eligible to apply for a spring permit at Fort McCoy. Applications can be obtained from Fort McCoy by calling 608-388-3337 or visiting their Web site: www.mccoy.army.mil [exit DNR].
Youth Turkey Hunt Set for April 10-11
Mentored Hunting Program expands opportunities for youth ages 10 & 11 to participate

Thanks to the new Mentored Hunting Program that took effect last fall, youth hunters aged 10 and 11, as well as youth ages 12 through 15 may now participate in the 2010 youth turkey hunt. Under the Mentored Hunting Program, youth ages 10 through 15 may hunt without first having completed hunter education so long as they do so with a qualified adult mentor and follow the rules laid out under the Mentored Hunting Program. Youth ages 12-15 who have already completed hunter education may hunt during the Youth Hunt while accompanied by an adult 18 years of age or older. Each youth must have a valid spring 2010 turkey harvest permit, license and stamp.

Youth ages 10 through 15 are allowed to hunt on April 10 and 11 in the Turkey Management Zone their permit is valid for, regardless of the time period their permit is issued for, and may harvest only one male or bearded turkey during the two-day hunt. A youth who does not successfully harvest a turkey during the two day Youth Hunt may use their unfilled permit during the time period and in the zone for which the permit was issued. All other spring turkey hunting regulations apply. More information on the Spring Turkey Youth Hunt and the hunting mentorship program is available on the DNR Web site.

The youth hunt was created in 2007 to provide youth with an opportunity to hunt turkeys and gain valuable hunting experience by working closely with an experienced mentor before the regular season opens.
Free Turkey Hunter Education Clinics offered statewide

Free Turkey Hunter Education Clinics will be offered again this year around the state. These free clinics are presented by volunteer instructors and are sponsored by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Wisconsin Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation.

Clinics typically last 2 to 3 hours and are designed to cover wild turkey biology and behavior, hunting methods, regulations, safety precautions, and landowner/hunter ethics, as well as tips for scoring trophy birds and a few ideas on preparing turkeys at home.

The Turkey Hunter Education Clinics are intended to address and inform all ages and experience levels from a beginning turkey hunter interested in learning wild turkey hunting techniques to experienced wild turkey hunters looking to brush-up on skills and learn new techniques.

These clinics will be held February through late March. Information and a listing on where and when clinics are being held is available on the DNR Web site or may call the DNR Customer Call Center from 7 a.m. through 10 p.m. seven days a week at 1-888-WDNRINFo (1-888-936-7463). For the latest additions or changes in the schedule please refer to the DNR Web site.

An estimated 76,636 remaining spring turkey permits will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis starting March 22. Procedures for leftover permit sales will be the same as last spring. Leftover permits will be first issued for sale by zone, one zone per day, with each zone having a designated sales date.

Sales will start at 10 a.m. and continue through Midnight each day or until permits are all sold. These sales will be held for 5 consecutive days with customers able to purchase one permit per day. Any permits remaining after the zone per day sales will be issued for sale on the sixth day at a limit of one permit per day per customer. Permit purchases are limited to one permit per day until each zone and time period is sold out.

The following zones have leftover permits. The scheduled sales dates are as follows:

* Zone 1 – Monday, March 22
* Zone 2 – Tuesday, March 23
* Zone 3 – Wednesday, March 24
* Zone 4 – Thursday, March 25
* Zone 5 & Zone 6 – Friday, March 26 – Due to the low number of permits left in these units, the sale has been combined into one day.

Any remaining leftover permits for all Zones – Saturday, March 27 and continuing until sold out or the season ends.

The number of permits available by zone and times periods is as follows:

* There are no leftover permits available for Zone 7 after the initial drawing.
* There are no leftover permits for time periods A or B in the other zones.
* Hunters are limited to purchasing one permit per day until all permits are sold

Leftover permits can be purchased over the Internet through the Online Licensing Center; by calling toll-free 1-877-WI LICENSE (1-877-945-4236); at license sales locations; or DNR service centers during the time they are open for counter service. Hours are service centers were recently reduced. Please check dnr.wi.gov for a list of service centers and days and hours of operation (DNR Service Centers are not open on Saturday). Hunters with any questions about when or how to buy permits may call the DNR Customer Call Center from 7 a.m. through 10 p.m. seven days a week at 1-888-WDNRINFo (1-888-936-7463).

The fee for turkey permits is $10 for residents, and $15 for nonresidents. All hunters will also be required to pay the spring turkey license and stamp fee, unless they have previously purchased the license and stamp, or are a 2010 Conservation Patron License holder. Residents and nonresidents will have equal opportunity to purchase over-the-counter permits. Purchasing these permits will not affect preference status for future spring or fall turkey permit drawings. A select number of disabled turkey permits for several state parks are also available for leftover sales. Disabled hunters should note that these permits will only be available through DNR service centers.

A limited number of disabled-only turkey permits for state park areas are available as leftover permits. Disabled hunters who have been issued either a Class A or Class C Disabled Hunter Permit should visit a DNR Service Center or by calling the DNR Customer Call Center at 1-888-WDNRINFo (1-888-936-7463) beginning on Monday, March 22, 2010 after 10 a.m. to purchase one of these permits.

For updated information on leftover spring permit availability and other information regarding the 2009 spring turkey hunting season, please visit the Wild Turkey page of the DNR Web site.

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