Preliminary data from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) shows that turkey hunters checked 36,231 birds during Missouri’s 2019 regular spring turkey season, April 15 through May 5.

Top harvest counties were Franklin with 785 birds checked, Texas with 729, and Callaway with 672.

Young turkey hunters harvested 2,546 birds during the 2019 spring youth season, April 6-7, bringing the overall 2019 spring turkey harvest to 38,777.

Last year, young turkey hunters harvested 1,729 birds during the spring youth season and hunters harvested 34,072 during the regular spring season for a 2018 spring season total harvest of 35,801 birds.

Get more information on this year’s spring turkey harvest numbers by county at extra.mdc.mo.gov/widgets/harvest_table/. Get more information on turkey harvest numbers for past seasons at huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/species/turkey/turkey-reports/turkey-harvest-summaries-past-seasons.

MDC had no reports of hunting incidents during the 2019 spring turkey season.

For more information about turkey hunting in Missouri, visit MDC online at huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/species/turkey.