OUTDOOR CORNER: TURKEY SEASON BEGINS ON MONDAY

It's turkey time in Missouri.

No, not Turkey Day (that comes in November), but it is time to talk turkey because Missouri's fall firearms turkey hunting season opens tomorrow morning.

The two-week season opens Monday and runs through Sunday, Oct. 14. The season limit is two birds of either sex. Only one turkey may be taken the first week, and only one per day during the remainder of the season. In other words, you may only take one turkey from Oct. 11 through Oct. 17 (the first week), but if you do not take one during that first week, then you may take two during the second week, but you may not take them both on the same day. Youngsters hunting on a Youth Deer and Turkey Hunting Permit may take only one turkey during the season.

When we think of turkey hunting in Missouri, the majority of us envision a spring woods coming to life with blooming dogwood trees and the unmistakable gobble of male turkeys actively searching for mates. In mid-October, you won't be seeing dogwood blossoms, in fact, many trees will be dropping their leaves and gobbling is rarely heard.

There are a number of differences between fall and spring seasons. Perhaps most notable of these is the fact that, unlike the spring season, not all Missouri counties are open to fall firearms turkey hunting. Of the nine closed statewide, five are located in Southeast Missouri. They are: Dunklin, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot and Scott.

Hunting hours for the fall season are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset. During the spring season, hunters must stop hunting at noon. As previously stated, fall turkey hunters may take birds of either sex. In the spring, hunters are limited to male turkeys or turkeys with a visible beard.

Many hunters pursue spring turkey because they enjoy the challenge of calling a gobbler within shotgun range. They use the mating call of the hen to attract the strutting, gobbling male. As mentioned previously, it is extremely rare to hear gobbling during the fall. This lack of gobbling results in one of the major differences between fall and spring hunting seasons: the number of hunters who participate in the respective season. While the spring season is one of the most popular hunting seasons in Missouri, the fall season lags far behind.

Harvest figures for the two seasons reflect the difference in hunting pressure. Statewide, hunters took 50,338 birds during the 1999 spring turkey season. In contrast, they took only 15,343 turkey during the 1998 fall firearms turkey season.

Local harvest figures reflect a similar trend. Cape Girardeau County -- 101 last fall, 344 last spring. Perry County checked 125 last fall compared to 447 last spring. Likewise, Bollinger County reported 175 fall birds versus 514 turkeys last spring.

The harvest numbers are similar throughout Southeast Missouri and the rest of the state; hunters take roughly one-third as many birds in the fall as compared to the spring season. Once again, this reduced harvest is a result of reduced hunting pressure and not a lack of birds.

Juvenile turkeys make up a significant part of the fall bag. Last year 60 percent of the fall harvest was young-of-the year birds. This year should be similar. The number of hunters is variable from year to year, but if we have a similar number of hunters, we should have a kill equal to or a little larger than last year.

Some additional regulations to keep in mind for fall firearms turkey hunting:

* A Hunter Education Certificate is required for hunters born on or after Jan. 1, 1967, except for youths hunting with a Youth Deer and Turkey Hunting Permit.

* Youngsters hunting on the youth permit must be in the immediate presence of a properly licensed adult who has a valid Hunter Education Certificate.

* Turkeys may be taken only by a shotgun capable of holding no more than three shells in the magazine and chamber combined and with shot no larger than No. 4.

* The use of dogs, bait, recorded calls, and live decoys is prohibited.

* Turkeys must be checked, by the taker, at an established checking station in the county where taken or an adjoining open county no later than 8:00 p.m. on the day taken.

* A longbow or compound bow may be used, but anyone hunting turkeys on a Fall Firearms Turkey Hunting Permit may not be in possession of both a firearm and a bow.

For additional information consult the 1999 Fall Deer and Turkey Hunting Information brochure available from permit vendors statewide.

Gene Myers is a Missouri Department of Conservation agent in Cape Girardeau County.