Among the top spring gobbler-producing counties last season was Athens County, with 545 birds. Another 486 birds were taken in Belmont County. Coshocton County, in the western portion of the district, produced a harvest of 599 bearded birds. Guernsey County hunters put tags on 533 toms, while 493 hunters scored in Jackson County. Meigs County had the fifth-highest spring harvest in the state, with 534 gobblers bagged.

As Swanson noted, turkey hunters will not have much trouble finding public land in District Four.

Additional information may be obtained by phoning the ODOW's District Four office in Athens at (740) 594-2211.

DISTRICT FIVE
District Five contains a blend of habitats, from the Ohio River valley counties to the south to the flatlands to the north. In between you'll find urban areas, such as Dayton.

"District Five has a very good, strong wild turkey population," said Swanson. "They have a good mix of heavily forested counties like Adams and Highland."

But when you move into the western part of the district, such as in Ross County, things begin to get more broken up by agricultural and urban areas. Most of the counties in District Five, especially the northern and western counties, will have limited wild turkey distribution. Most of the birds will be on private land, so access and permission to hunt is a factor there. It may take a little more planning and a little more time to set up a hunt in that part of the state.

Last year, Clermont County, in the southern portion of the district, had one of the state's top spring turkey harvests. A total of 493 birds were bagged there, up from 377 the previous year. The district contains plenty of public land, mostly in the southern portion, such as 60,000-acre Shawnee State Forest.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Wild turkey hunting is permitted statewide, with the exception of the Lake La Su An Wildlife Area. The season will run from April 24 to May 21. A special youth hunt will be conducted April 22-23. The Lake La Su An Wildlife Area will be open all season for youth hunts only.

According to the ODOW, a spring turkey permit is required in addition to a hunting license. The limit is two bearded turkeys per hunter per spring season. Only one bearded turkey may be taken per day. Hunting hours are a half-hour before sunrise to noon. Only crossbows, longbows and shotguns using shot are permitted.

Hunting licenses and turkey permits for the spring season are available at license outlets and online. Hunters wishing to take a second wild turkey during the spring season may purchase a second permit.

Nearly every spring, unfortunate accidents occur in the woods that could easily be avoided. Most such accidents relate to hunters not properly identifying their target. Only bearded turkeys are legal game. Be sure of your target before squeezing the trigger.

Maps of Ohio's wildlife areas may be downloaded from the agency's Web site at www.dnr.state.oh.us.

Additional information on wild turkey hunting in Ohio may be obtained by logging onto the ODOW's Web site or by calling (800) WILDLIFE.