Iowa’s spring turkey season right around the corner; here’s what to know

Coming off record harvests in 2020 and again in 2023, Iowa’s spring turkey hunters could be living in the “good ol’ days.” And with three straight years of good hatches across much of the state, roughly 35,000 hunters are ready to hit the woods.

“Two-year-old birds drive the population, do lots of the gobbling and tend to move more than the older toms, which is what hunters like,” said Jim Coffey, forest wildlife biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. “Hunters like to hear a lot of birds and not see other hunters.”

Iowa’s spring turkey hunt is spread among four seasons. Season one is April 8-11; season two is April 12-16; season three is April 17-23; and season four is April 24 – May 12. Hunters may purchase up to two tags with at least one being in season four.

“It looks we will have an early leaf-out this spring, which will get the birds disbursed to their breeding areas soon, so it will be a good opportunity to do some scouting,” he said.

MORE IOWA COVERAGE FROM OUTDOOR NEWS:

The journey back for the bald eagle, and where to find them in Iowa

Iowa’s Prairie Chicken Festival is April 6

Big money up for grabs during the 42nd Annual Walleye Weekend on Iowa Great Lakes

Last spring, hunters reported a record harvest of nearly 14,850 turkeys, with birds harvested in all 99 counties.

“We have seen good production in the north central part of the state, which isn’t an area that most people think of when it comes to turkey hunting,” Coffey said. “The Loess Hills, northeast and southeast Iowa are more traditional turkey spots and also have good populations. We have documented good production in southeast Iowa, which is nice to see as the population in that area had been down in recent years.”

Iowa has become a bucket list turkey hunting state for many nonresidents who apply for an opportunity at a large Midwestern bird. Applications are taken in January for a limited number of tags based on four seasons and five zones. 

“We want to provide non-resident hunters an opportunity to explore our state and see what Iowa has to offer, knowing there are many Iowans that enjoying traveling to new states to hunt as well,” he said.

Nonresident hunting is limited to 2,148 tags annually.

Youth-only season is April 5-7

Youth turkey season is designed to provide a strong mentoring experience for the youth hunter. It is restricted to Iowa residents only.

“Turkey hunting is an intimate sport and mentoring is a way to learn from other’s mistakes,” Coffey said. “With only about one-in-five hunters tagging a turkey, failure is part of the process. A successful hunt should be gauged on the adventure and experience of being in the woods not placing a tag on a bird.”

Youth tags are sold through the end of youth season on April 7. Youth tags are valid for youth season and each of the four regular seasons until filled or when the season four closes on May 12.

Licenses are not sold after the youth season closes. Youth tags have been steadily increasing, with nearly 6,200 sold last year.

Report your harvest

Successful hunters are required to report their harvest by midnight of the day after it is recovered through the Go Outdoors Iowa app, by going online at www.iowadnr.gov, calling the toll free phone number printed on the tag, at any license vendor during regular business hours, by texting your registration number to 1-800-771-4692.

Review safe hunting practices ahead of spring turkey season

Just as important as contacting a landowner, checking the shell supply and finding the decoys, part of every turkey hunt prep is to review safe hunting practices.

“When I think about spring turkey hunting safety, I come back to the basic safety tips – avoid wearing patriotic colors – red, white, blue – those are the same colors found in a gobblers head – and don’t shoot at movement – wait to take the shot until you’ve identified the beard on the turkey,” said Jamie Cook, hunter education coordinator for the Iowa DNR. “We also tell hunters to be sure of what’s in front of and behind the bird before taking the shot in case you miss because once you pull that trigger, you can’t call the shot back.”

Cook said the mild winter will likely lead to an early leaf out and green up and as the forest changes to spring, hunters will need to dial in their zone and range of fire.

“Pattern your gun so you know its effective distance,” he said. “Know the lay of the land and as the timber greens up, you need to reduce your zone of fire.”

If mentoring a new hunter, he said, be sure to model ethical hunter behavior.

“How you hunt will leave an impression and influence how they hunt in the future,” he said. “Teach them the right way to hunt and you will be giving them the tools to be successful.”