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Another Record Spring Turkey Harvest in Maryland

Garrett County Leads State with 429 Birds

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources announced today that hunters reported harvesting 4,175 wild turkeys during the 2017 regular spring and junior hunt turkey seasons.

This year’s harvest was 8 percent higher than 2016 (3,874) and marked the third consecutive record harvest in the state. It is also well above the 10-year average of 3,303.

“The high harvest can be attributed to a combination of factors, including growing turkey populations and expanded Sunday hunting opportunities,” Wildlife and Heritage Service Director Paul Peditto said.

Garrett County reported the highest harvest this year with 429 turkeys, followed by Washington County with 426. Rounding out the top five counties were Frederick (332), Charles (320) and Dorchester (303). Wild turkey populations are at all-time highs in some areas, with record harvests reported in eight counties this year.

Hunters in 10 counties were able to hunt on Sundays this year, resulting in a harvest of 337 turkeys.

Youth hunters kicked-off the spring turkey season with the Junior Turkey Hunt April 15 statewide and April 16 in select counties, reporting 230 wild turkeys harvested. The turkey season ended May 23.

The table below shows the overall reported spring turkey season harvest by county for 2012-2017:

Reported Spring Turkey Harvest, 2012-2017
County 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Allegany 257 269 258 298 256 293
Anne Arundel 58 82 54 62 45 58
Baltimore 29 37 32 35 52 51
Calvert 50 57 59 69 73 59
Caroline 164 142 141 159 172 149
Carroll 30 33 45 62 76 103
Cecil 43 55 57 67 69 87
Charles 303 270 254 253 265 320
Dorchester 219 245 239 252 274 303
Frederick 140 215 193 256 299 332
Garrett 368 386 383 421 387 429
Harford 98 110 97 102 110 127
Howard 16 16 10 16 34 24
Kent 103 118 150 164 181 174
Montgomery 51 82 68 97 94 135
Prince George’s 92 78 79 87 87 91
Queen Anne’s 152 159 165 183 190 160
Somerset 122 124 120 169 150 163
St. Mary’s 99 127 173 193 188 202
Talbot 102 103 83 68 88 94
Washington 292 309 343 392 355 426
Wicomico 152 124 146 138 206 175
Worcester 192 203 176 224 223 220
Total 3,132 3,344 3,325 3,767 3,874 4,175

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