DELAWARE”S BIRDS
To some casual viewers, Delaware may seem a trifle short on land and therefore, perhaps a bit short on wild turkeys. But those are people who”ve never hunted gobblers during the spring season in Delaware.

In fact, despite its rather demure size, Delaware is faring quite well.

Turkey hunters plying their trade within the confines of the First State this spring stand just as good a shot at a bearded gobbler as in any other state.

For openers, officials of Delaware”s Division of Fish and Wildlife have some rather unique and professional approaches to turkey management, as well as regulations that offer hunters the most bang for their bucks.

But if you want to up the ante a bit in favor of taking that longbeard, Ken Reynolds, Delaware”s Wildlife Programs manager, says your best bet is in Sussex County.

“Hunters stand a good chance at bagging a bird in nearly any of our three counties,” Reynolds said. “But the highest harvest rates almost always come from Sussex County. This county has more forested land available than either New Castle or Kent.

“Those two counties are comprised primarily of agricultural land.”

Last year, Delaware gobbler gunners harvested a record 178 birds.

Of particular note is that 150 of these birds were taken on private land, whereas only 28 were taken on public lands.

Delaware wildlife officials manage their turkey hunting regions zone by zone, as opposed to county by county.

Since Delaware”s season begins April 12 and runs through May 2, hunters utilizing public lands are restricted to a six-day hunt, with a limit of one bearded bird per season.

Hunters on private lands may hunt throughout the April 12 through May 2 time frame.

Also, the public-lands portion of the hunting periods are broken down by seasons A, B and C.

Should a hunter draw segment A of the public-lands season, that hunter would begin hunting on April 12 and continue for a period of six days.

Those who draw segment B will hunt for the next six days -- followed, of course, by hunters who draw segment C.

Keep in mind that hunters using public lands may hunt only on the property for which the permit was issued. There is no cost for permits, but first-year hunters must attend a turkey-hunting safety seminar.

Reynolds also said that Delaware has no early season day set aside for youth hunters, as do many states.

“We will probably have a Youth Day turkey hunt in place for the 2009 season, but we do not have one for the coming season.”

So where are some turkey hotspots in Delaware?

Zones 4 through 8, located in Kent County, accounted for 68 birds taken by hunters utilizing private lands. The breakdown of that harvest is Zone 4 (12 birds), Zone 5 (five), Zone 6 (28), Zone 7 (eight) and finally, Zone 8 (ten).