CHRISTIAN COUNTY, KY – Hunters in Christian County harvested an impressive number of turkeys during the spring season, while all of Kentucky harvested 36,439 turkeys, smashing the 10-year average of 30,847, according to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.
Wildlife officials attribute the high harvest to a variety of factors, including more turkeys on the landscape this year, more hunters in the woods and weather conducive for hunting.
For the third year in a row, Graves County finished with the highest total harvest at 778 birds, followed by:
- Muhlenberg (746)
- Breckinridge (662)
- Pulaski (659)
- Christian (639)
- Hopkins (636)
- Ohio (593)
- Hardin (566)
- Grayson (548)
- Logan (538)
“Everything we saw over the last two years – from the high percentages of hens laying eggs and strong poult survival rates to the emergence of cicadas in parts of Western Kentucky – suggested that hunters would enjoy a lot of opportunities to harvest birds this season,” said Zak Danks, turkey-grouse program coordinator for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. “When we had four straight weekends of good weather, that just set the stage.”
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High numbers came early in season throughout Kentucky
Youth harvested 2,613 turkeys during the April 4-5 youth-only season alone, 304 higher than the previous record and well above the 10-year average of 1,670, according to a news release. On April 18-19, the opening weekend of the 23-day general season, hunters harvested 13,670 turkeys, well above the 10-year average of 9,860.
In general, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife says most turkeys were taken with a shotgun, most were taken by Kentucky residents, and counties to the south and west had the most turkeys harvested, while hunters in the counties to the north and middle of the state took more turkeys per square mile.
Based on harvest rate data, Kentucky hunters are not taking more birds than past research suggested could be unsustainable, Danks said in the news release. But researchers continue to collect data and study that issue. They also continue to analyze data related to the entire reproductive cycle, from nest locations to poult survival.
Poult surveys from a year ago suggest the 2027 spring season will also be good, but young turkeys face threats like disappearing habitat, early mowing and predators.
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