288 Crisswell Road

                                                            Butler, PA 16002

                                                            January 25, 2004

 

Executive Director Ross, Deputy Director Schmit, Commissioners:

 

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on Game Commission programs and regulation change proposals. The 23,000 members of the Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation are pleased to support the work commission biologists, land managers and wildlife conservation officers have done to effectively restore and manage wild turkeys in the Commonwealth. Our working relationship with the Game Commission continues to be excellent and turkey hunters are living in the best of times in the twenty-first century. Our members and local chapter system endeavors to provide assistance to commission personnel in their mission of improving turkey habitat and providing recreational opportunities to wild turkey enthusiasts.

 

We commend the commission once again for its support of youth hunting opportunities, especially for the early youth spring gobbler hunting day set for this year. Many of our local chapters are developing mentor programs and will actively work to involve young hunters in the first youth spring hunt. Our local chapter members would be happy to work with commission personnel to develop programs designed to encourage youth participation in turkey hunting. Please advise your field staff of this offer and be sure to contact our chapter system so we can help make this youth hunt an outstanding success.

 

The early youth spring hunting day affords us a great opportunity to deliver the important turkey hunter safety message to a new generation of turkey hunters. Safety is of paramount importance to our members. However, we must provide the turkey hunting safety message not only to our young hunters, but to our more experienced turkey hunters as well. The Pennsylvania State Chapter and many of our local chapters want to be involved in the continued education of turkey hunters in the area of safety. Part of our mission is to improve the safety of our sport and we firmly believe that education is the key to success.

 

We are pleased to see that the preliminary 2003 fall turkey hunting incident numbers are quite low. It is our belief that the attention devoted to turkey hunter safety by the media between the June and October commission meetings had a positive impact on reminding turkey hunters to be careful. The same level of attention needs to be directed to this important message prior to every turkey hunting season. Therefore we offer the commission the assistance of our volunteers and our publications in bringing the message of turkey hunter safety before all of the turkey hunters of Pennsylvania.

 

It should be noted that the Wild Turkey Management Plan for Wild Turkeys in Pennsylvania is scheduled to be revised and updated this year. The plan has been an important factor in decisions affecting wild turkey management since it was drafted. Our members encourage the commission to follow the strategies of the existing plan or the updated version in making determinations on seasons and bag limits (both spring and fall) for wild turkeys. We also encourage the commission to make wild turkey research, population data collection, collection of demographic information on turkey hunters and turkey hunter safety a major focus in the future.

 

In the area of seasons and bag limits for wild turkeys in Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation would like to see the commissioners consider preparing a regulation prohibiting roost shooting prior to initiating any change to provide longer hunting hours for spring turkey hunting. Our members would look favorably on longer spring hunting hours if there were a regulatory prohibition on roost shooting. In addition, our members would be supportive of extending the spring season by adding a week to the end of the season. Extending the season through Memorial Day weekend and ending on May 31st if the 31st is not a Sunday would not result in an earlier opening day for spring turkey hunting but would create additional recreational opportunity. Any consideration of changes in the spring or fall bag limits for wild turkeys should be guided by the recommendations of the Management Plan for Wild Turkeys in Pennsylvania.

 

Hunters are privileged to be able to comment at these public meetings and provide suggestions to the commissioners. It is the desire of our Board of Directors and our grassroots membership to continue the open dialogue and positive relationship our chapter has always had with the Game Commission. Thank you for the many advances the commission has made in wild turkey management. Please accept our offer to work with commission staff on turkey hunting safety, youth hunting initiatives and wild turkey management plan revision.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Carl Mowry

President- Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation

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Last modified: January 31, 2004