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DEC Announces May 1st Opening of Spring Turkey Season
Published: April 25, 2025 at
03:15 p.m.
By: Press Release
from NYS DEC
DEC Announces Opening of Spring Turkey Season May 1
Youth Turkey Hunt Scheduled for April 26-27
New York State
Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Acting Commissioner Amanda
Lefton today announced that the regular spring turkey season for all
licensed turkey hunters opens May 1 throughout upstate New York (north of
the Bronx-Westchester County boundary) and in Suffolk County on Long
Island. DEC is also holding a Youth Turkey Hunting Season in advance of the
regular season this Saturday, April 26, and Sunday, April 27.
“Engaging youth
hunters and their adult mentors is an opportunity to instill safety,
responsibility, ethics, and an appreciation for the outdoors in the next
generation of hunters,” Acting Commissioner Lefton said.
“Guided by experienced mentors, young hunters can gain hands-on skills
while enjoying the challenge and excitement that turkey hunting
offers.”
Eligible hunters
for the Youth Turkey Hunt weekend are 12 to 15 years of age who hold a
hunting license and a turkey permit. All youth hunters must be accompanied
by an adult, as required by law for a junior hunter. Some conservation
organizations host specific
events during the Youth Hunt weekend. Each youth hunter can
harvest one bearded bird during the two-day season. For more information,
visit the DEC
website.
Regular Season
Opens May 1
New York is home
to some of the best turkey hunting opportunities in the Northeast, with
diverse landscapes and abundant turkey populations across the state. From
hardwood forests and rolling hills in the Southern Tier, to agricultural
fields and mixed woodlands in the Hudson Valley, hunters can find prime
turkey habitat throughout New York.
Spring turkey
harvests in New York average 16,000 to 18,000 birds, fluctuating based on
participation and turkey productivity in previous breeding seasons. With
improved summer poult production in recent years, DEC expects an increase
in turkey harvest this spring. Since hunters primarily target toms (2+
year-old birds), turkey harvest often reflects productivity trends from two
years prior.
Although New York
turkey populations experienced declines from their peak in the early 2000s,
populations are generally stable statewide. DEC continues to monitor
population trends and implement conservation efforts to support sustainable
hunting opportunities. Hunters play an essential role in monitoring
populations by reporting their harvest and participating in DEC hunter
opinion surveys. These efforts help DEC assess population dynamics, hunter
participation, hunter values, and help ensure sustainable turkey
populations for the future.
Other Important
Details for the Spring Turkey Season, May 1-31, 2025:
- Hunting is permitted in most areas of the
state, except for New York City and Nassau County;
- Hunters must have a turkey hunting permit in
addition to their hunting license;
- Shooting hours are from one-half hour before
sunrise to noon each day;
- Hunters may take two bearded turkeys during
the spring season, but only one bird per day and no more than one bird
per season in Wildlife Management Unit 1C (Suffolk County);
- Hunters may not use rifles or handguns firing
a bullet. Hunters may hunt with a shotgun or handgun loaded with shot
sizes no larger than No. 2 or smaller than No. 9, or with a bow or
crossbow (except crossbows may not be used in Westchester or Suffolk
counties);
- Successful hunters must fill out the tag that
comes with their turkey permit and immediately attach it to any turkey
harvested;
- Successful hunters must report their harvest
within seven days of taking a bird. Call 1-866-426-3778 (1-866
GAMERPT) or report harvest online at DEC's Game Harvest Reporting webpage; and
- For more information about turkey hunting in
New York, see the 2024-25 Hunting and Trapping Regulations Guide or
visit the "Turkey
Hunting" pages of DEC's website.
Tips for a
Successful and Safe Turkey Hunting Season
Turkey hunting is
safe and it is important that hunters remain
vigilant to keep it that way.
- Don't stalk. More than half of turkey hunting
injuries happen when one hunter stalks another.
- Always assume any call or footsteps you hear
are from another hunter. Don't shoot until you clearly see the whole
turkey and know its sex.
- If you see another hunter, talk to him or her
clearly, and don't move. Never wave or use a turkey call to alert
another hunter.
- When calling, sit still with your back
against a big tree, to hide you from turkeys and stalkers.
- Never wear turkey colors—red, white, or blue.
Wear hunter orange when going in or out of the woods and when walking
around. When sitting still waiting for a turkey, put hunter orange on
a tree near you.
- If you take a turkey or carry a decoy, wrap
it in hunter orange.
- Turkeys are tough. You need to be close (30
yards or less is best). You need to get a clear head and neck shot. Do
not try to shoot them in the body or when they are flying.
- Smaller shot, no. 4,
5, and 6, work better than larger shot, due
to denser shot patterns. New shotshell technologies allow for
shot sizes as small as 8 and 9 to be effective for turkeys. Do
research and pattern your shotgun to learn what works for your setup.
Buy Sporting
Licenses Online
Sporting licenses
may be purchased online at any time and hunters, anglers, and trappers can
immediately print a paper copy of their license at home. Licenses can also
be displayed digitally using the HuntFishNY
mobile app, available for download on the Apple App and Google
Play stores, however a physical valid turkey carcass tag must be carried
when hunting turkeys.
If purchasing a
hunting license, permit, or privilege online or by phone and you do not
have a valid email address and printer, allow up to 14 business days to
receive your back tag, carcass tags, and license by mail.
Sporting licenses
are also available in person at more than 1,100 License Issuing Agents
(LIAs) across New York State, where licenses and tags are printed
immediately upon purchase. To locate a license vendor, use the LIA
location search on DEC’s sporting license sales website.
For more
information about sporting licenses, visit the Hunting
Licenses webpage.
Citizen Science
Opportunity: DEC Seeks Turkey Hunters for Ruffed Grouse Drumming Survey
Turkey hunters
can record the number of ruffed grouse they hear drumming while afield to
help DEC track the distribution and abundance of this game bird. To get
a survey form, go to DEC's website or call (518) 402-8883. To
participate in DEC's Summer Wild Turkey Sighting Survey or other wildlife
surveys, visit DEC’s "Citizen
Science" page.
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