On Wednesday morning Alex King was happy.
The Goodrich High School Freshman bagged his first wild turkey in the Genesee County area.
King is just one of a host of turkey hunters that venture out in late April and May statewide in search of that big gobbler.
Al Stewart, the upland game bird specialist for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is not surprised at the success King and other spring turkey hunters are having this season.
‘The seasons gone well, hunters are reporting seeing plenty of birds,? said Stewart. ‘The season opened on April 17 and for the first two weeks of the season the weather was warm days and cool nights’ideal gobbling conditions for turkeys.?
According to DNR reports, last year 212 turkeys were harvested in Oakland County 212, a 31 percent success rate. That same year in Genesee County, 452 turkey where taken by hunters, a 42 percent success rate.
‘Those number are pretty good,? added Stewart. ‘Considering that prior to 1980 there were no wild turkey in the area.?
Stewart says that 200 years ago the wild turkey were plentiful statewide, but due to over-hunting they were just about all gone by 1900. The last turkey was reported shot in Van Buren County in 1897. The DNR reintroduced turkeys in the 1980s just east of Holly and since then their numbers have grown.
‘Today the birds are well distributed,? said Stewart. They do well as long as asphalt does not dominate the landscape.?