Time for trick or treating and talking turkey

Halloween trick or treating may be foremost on the minds of most folks this week, but with Thanksgiving the next big event on our fall calendar, it’s also time to start talking turkey. That’s because, in a convenient confluence of serendipity, Pennsylvania’s season on wild turkeys is now on tap. So if you’re a hunter who prefers wily old gobblers and free ranging hens to storebought Butterballs to serve as the pièce de résistance of your Thanksgiving dinner table, the time is yours.

In fact, turkey hunters began heading afield on Saturday, Oct. 28, in pursuit of the coveted big bronze birds. Hunting season lengths vary according to Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) from closed season in some (un-

fortunately, here in WMUs 5C and 5D) to more than three weeks in others.

The folks at the Pennsylvania Game Commission note that while season lengths in most WMUs remain unchanged from last year, the first season segment has been shortened from three weeks to two in WMU 4E, and from two weeks to one in WMUs 4A and 4Bin order to help those populations rebound from declining trends.

A big change this year is the opening of WMU 5B to a three-day Tuesday through Thursday season (Oct. 31 – Nov. 2) because population trends have rebounded sufficiently enough to allow for some fall hunting pressure, according to Game Commission wild turkey biologist Mary Jo Casalena.

The three-day Thursday through Saturday season remains intact in WMU 5A to provide greater opportunity for hunters whose schedules do not allow for a weekday hunt. “Now is the time to check the dates of when seasons open and close,” Game Commission Executive Director Bryan Burhans said. “As is typically the case for the fall turkey season, different season lengths apply in different units, and the seasons in a handful of WMUs have changed this year,” he added.

Hunters who didn’t participate in the fall turkey season during the last few years might be unaware of season length changes in some other WMUs, due to declining population trends and the results of an agency study that showed the longer the fall season the higher the female turkey harvest.

“During the fall season, any turkey can be harvested because jakes (young males) are difficult to distinguish from females,” Casalena said. “Our research shows females (both juvenile and adult) comprise a larger portion of the fall harvest than males. Our management and research also have shown that we shouldn’t overharvest females, so we shorten the fall season length when turkey populations decline to allow them to rebound.”

In most (but not all) of the state, the fall turkey season opened on Saturday, Oct. 28.

The seasons are as follows: WMU 1B – Oct. 28Nov. 4; WMU 2B (Shotgun and bow and arrow) – Oct. 28-Nov. 17 and Nov. 23-25; WMUs 1A, 2A, 4A and 4B, – Oct. 28-Nov. 4 and Nov. 23-25; WMUs 2D, 2E, 2F, 2G, 2H, 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 4C, 4D and 4E – Oct. 28-Nov. 11 and Nov. 23-25; WMU 2C – Oct. 28-Nov. 17 and Nov. 23-25; WMU 5A – Nov. 2-4; WMU 5B – Oct. 31-Nov. 2; WMUs 5C and 5D – Closed to fall turkey hunting.

Casalena noted that last year’s fall harvest of 10,844 was 35 percent below the previous 3-year average of 16,688, likely due to a combination of a decrease in fall hunting participation, shorter fall season lengths in many WMUs, below average turkey reproduction (translating to smaller sized turkey flocks) and abundant acorn crops in much of the state, which tended to scatter flocks making them more difficult to locate.

“Turkey reproduction this summer varied across the state with above average recruitment in some Wildlife Management Units, but below average in neighboring WMUs, so it’s best to get out and see for yourself what the reproduction was like in your area,” Casalena said.

Casalena said acorn, beech and cherry production also varied across the state, with beech nut, white-oak acorn and soft mast production, such as apples and grapes, seeing average to above-average production in many areas, but below average food production elsewhere. Areas with abundant food sources tend to make the flocks more nomadic and, therefore harder for hunters to find. Whereas lack of food tends to keep flocks congregated where the food exists and, therefore easier for hunters to find, she said.

“It’s not only a great time to be in the woods, but novice turkey callers can be just as successful as a pro when mimicking a lost turkey poult,” Casalena added. “And once a flock is located, I remind hunters that turkeys are tipped off more by movement and a hunter’s outline than fluorescent orange.”

The relatively new Thanksgiving three-day season provides additional opportunities for participation, and is also a very successful season with about 18 percent of the harvest occurring during those three days.

Last year’s fall hunter success rate of 9 percent was similar to the previous three-year average. Fall hunter success varies considerably depending on summer reproduction, food availability, weather during the season, and hunter participation. Hunter success was as high as 21 percent in 2001, a year with excellent recruitment, and as low as 4 percent in 1979.

Casalena said the 2017 spring-season harvests (including youth, mentored youth and harvests from the special turkey license that allows hunters to harvest a second bird) totaled 38,101, which was 6 percent above 2016 (35,966) and similar to the previous long-term average.

Hunter success for the first bird, 19 percent, also increased from 2016 (15 percent) and was 18 percent above the longterm average of 16 percent.

Pennsylvania hunters have consistently maintained spring harvests above 30,000 bearded turkeys since 1995, exceeding most other states in the nation.

*** Brandywine Red Clay Alliance Honors Teacher of the Year. Congratulations to Mike Replogle who was honored last week as the Brandywine Red Clay Alliance Teacher of the Year. Replogle, who teaches Advanced Placement Environmental Science at Kennett High School, was feted at the BRCA’s Annual Dinner and Silent Auction held at the Mendenhall Inn last Thursday. According to BRCA’s Executive Director Jim Johnson, “the Teacher of the Year Award recognizes a teacher who goes above and beyond the typical job description of a teacher in teaching about our natural world. We look for teachers that utilize outside resources, takes students on field trips and that bring the outdoors into the classroom Mike’s efforts clearly show that he is doing that. He is teaching children how important and fragile our ecosystem is and how humans impact it. Most importantly, he is opening the door to the natural world to his students.” The mission of the Brandywine Red Clay Alliance is “to promote the restoration, conservation, and enjoyment of the natural resources of the Brandywine and Red Clay Watersheds through education, scientific activities, environmental stewardship and advocacy.” For more about this awesome organization check out their website at www. brandywineredclay.org.