Legislation to change Wis spring turkey season!

[Paulmyr]

Legislation to drastically change Wis. Spring turkey season structure and zoning is pending. Changes would take effect spring of 2023.

https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2021/related/proposals/sb610

[Mossberg90MN]

Interesting... curious if you have to stay in your zone or if you can buy a tag for the other zone. Looks like it's going to be an early season tag, and then the rest, mid-late season. Probably going to be limited to your zone.


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[GobbleNut]

Perhaps some of you guys that hunt Wisconsin can comment on what your perception is of how these changes are going to affect turkey hunters.  Do you think this is a positive change...or a negative one?  Why do you suppose that these changes were proposed and/or necessary? 

[Paulmyr]

From what I've read lawmakers just want to simplify the season structure. I'll hold my thoughts until see more info on what's actually going to take place. Pretty vague right now.

[Treerooster]

Been spring turkey hunting Wis since 2006. As a non-resident.

One thing I don't like about it is the legislature is managing the hunting season. I wish they would let the DNR do it's job and just stay the heck out!! Politicians...arrrgh!


It is rather vague.

I would think that of course the tags need to be used in the zone (North or South) that it is designated for. Why else have zone specific tags.

The 2nd 4-week season is sold as first come first serve. How will that work? Maybe like the leftover tag sales work now?? On those you start at a certain day & time on the computer and everyone is assigned a place in line and you wait your turn...sometimes as long as 20 minutes or more. Sometimes all the tags are gone by the time you are up. Depends on how many are available.

Depending on how many tags are available it could be difficult to get a tag. Do the guys that have a 1st season tag get to buy a 2nd season tag also...right with everyone else??

Are Non-residents right in there with the residents on the 2nd season?? I would think the 1st season draw would give preference to residents as the initial drawing does now.

Is there a limit on how many 2nd season tags a person can buy?? Or can a person keep on buying until they are all gone?? They do limit purchase of tags to 1 a day now and I am sure that would carry over.

Lumping the far northern zones in with the middle northern zones could have a negative affect. Those far north zones usually sold out (at least the first 4 seasons but now the 5th & 6th too) as there were less tag available for the far north zones. Turkeys had a harder time in the far north and populations were not as robust. Lumping together limits opportunity in the middle north and could stress the far north population if more guys hunt up there.



Not sure how I feel about it. Wis has had the current system in place most of the time they had a turkey season and it seems to work pretty well. One reason may be to simplify things for the hunter and give them more time to hunt/opportunity. As it is now, a tag is only good for a week (Wednesday to Tuesday), but someone can purchase additional tags at a reasonable price if they are available in the same season or other seasons for the zone one hunts.

[wisconsinteacher]

I personally believe this is a step in the wrong direction.  Opening it up will add stress to land access and cause issues.  By having 6 week long seasons you spread the pressure out.  This is due to people complaining that they got a tag in January not knowing their plans and can't hunt due to work/family/poor weather.  Again, this is not a positive in my mind and will hurt the hunt in many ways. 

If WI wants to do something, it needs to look at the price of non-res tags and make changes there.  We are giving away our resources for nothing.  (sorry non-residents but extra tags for $15 is a joke)

[Paulmyr]

One of the main questions I have is are they just combining the 1 week seasons into a 2 week season and a 4 week season? Will they be using a similar structure for selling tags as the current one? The wording of the of the law seems to suggest a application process for the 2nd season. Will there be a limits on tags sold during the second season? Will the limit for each season be 1 bird? Lots of questions need to be answered before I can voice an opinion.

[Paulmyr]

If WI wants to do something, it needs to look at the price of non-res tags and make changes there.  We are giving away our resources for nothing.  (sorry non-residents but extra tags for $15 is a joke)

Non resident pay 4x as much as residents for the right to hunt turkeys in Wis under the same regs as residents. Harvest authorizations are $15 dollars. Each harvest authorization allows you to take one Gobbler per state guidelines. Unwanted Surplus authorizations are sold 1st come first serve until they are gone per regulations. After purchasing a turkey license the regulations should apply equally between res and non res alike.

I think your argument should be non res turkey license should cost more not the harvest authorization. Probably a mute point after this year anyways.

[Meadow Valley Man]

I killed my first gobbler in Wisconsin in 1984 and I've been chasing them ever since. Wisconsin held it's first season in 1983, and for many years there were three five day seasons. It was very hard to draw a tag.  As the flock spread out and grew, the format changed to allow more opportunity. We currently have six, seven day seasons.  For obvious and some not so obvious reasons the first season is a hard tag, or authorization, as it is now called to draw. 

One reason is because landowners receive preference over non-landowners. Over 80% of Wisconsin Turkey hunting is done on private land.  Landowners have a history of being very generous in allowing people to hunt on their land.  That is very different from deer hunting.  As a result, a large percentage of hunting landowners choose the first season, as the ones who farm are very busy later on. Landowners have been able to control hunter numbers on their land quite easily, and that makes for better quality hunting with low hunter interference.

If a hunter is flexible in which zone to hunt, there's a possibility of being able to hunt many different time periods. I hunted four last year.  My friends from Texas and Arkansas certainly like the system and are welcomed every year to our turkey camp.

Luke Hilgeman of Hunter Nation apparently doesn't like the current system, and he got the ear of several legislators. He said the current format is too complicated and needed simplification. He brought in Ted Nugent for a grip and grin with state legislators to push this ill-conceived two season free for all.  Not ONE hunting advocacy group in Wisconsin, including the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, the Wisconsin Chapter of NWTF, the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, or the DNR was asked for input. This is all Luke Hilgeman and Hunter Nation .

Over the last 36 years I have hunted turkeys in nine states, and I can say that Wisconsin has the best format and most hunter opportunity of them all. To say that the Wisconsin system is too difficult to understand is an insult to Wisconsin hunters.

There is a political element to all this.

This legislation passed the State Senate on party lines, with all Republicans voting for, and all Democrats against. The bill currently waits in the Assembly, but will probably pass, again on straight party lines. You see, Wisconsin has a Democrat Governor, Tony Evers.  Governor Evers will most likely veto this bill, along with many others proposed by Hunter Nation.  Then, the Republicans can tell voters that the Governor is against sportsmen. The whole situation sucks.

I am a conservative, and it ticks me off that these conservatives got taken in by Hilgeman and Uncle Teddy.  All the groups mentioned previously, except the DNR, have come out against this fiasco of a bill.

It's never a good idea when legislatures get involved in decisions that should be left up to the Natural Resources professionals.

[Wigsplitter]

I'm an out of state hunter who was fortunate to draw a tag ang kill a gobbler in Wisconsin last year- not sure I understand the need to simplify things when the state is leading or in the top 2-3 states in the United States for turkey harvest. Looks like the DNR and others have been managing it fairly well to me! Great state to hunt in and I hope it continues to be!!

[bigriverbum]

i guess i don't understand the reasoning for the "necessity" of this bill and the changes it proposes.

if that's not clear it usually means some scumbag somewhere is going to profit in some way

[bigriverbum]

would be interested in MK M GOBL to share his thoughts

[simpzenith]

Not enough information for me to make an informed decision but I'm not surprised to see a change being attempted considering the number of unsold leftover tags remaining each spring. I hunt WI every year and I personally like the current season structure but I'd have to have more details about this proposal to decide whether I am for or against it.

[bigriverbum]

Not enough information for me to make an informed decision but I'm not surprised to see a change being attempted considering the number of unsold leftover tags remaining each spring. I hunt WI every year and I personally like the current season structure but I'd have to have more details about this proposal to decide whether I am for or against it.

i agree.

concerning leftover tags.....the only ones that ever go unsold are season 5 and 6 when it's hot and muggy and buggy.  i'm still hunting then, but that's bs if this is just about selling a few thousand more 'tags'

[wisconsinteacher]

Meadow Valley nailed it!!!  It is a political mess where the hunters and birds will be on the losing end.