Why Should Turkey Hunters Support a Turkey Hunting License?
• The turkey population peaked above 400,000 in 2001; now it is around 340,000, which is still around the 344,000 statewide average from 1998–2003.

• When it comes to turkey hunting, we are in the “good old days” — but those times may not always be here.
• With more than 290,000 estimated turkey hunters and relatively little work dedicated specifically to research and management of the wild turkey resource and turkey hunters, these

“good old days” could quickly become a thing of the past.
• We need to act now to assure that turkey numbers remain high for the future.
• A steady source of funding for the management plan will allow the Game Commission to manage wild turkeys and turkey hunting more efficiently and effectively.

• The Game Commission’s current wild turkey management plan, which specifies how the Game Commission is to manage wild turkeys through the year 2005, has not been fully implemented because of a lack of adequate funding. The revised management plan, which will be approved in 2005, will be a 10-year plan, 2005–2015.

How Will a Turkey Hunting License Help?
• Improved and more detailed information on wild turkey harvests will become available.
• Better research data to provide the information biologists need to make management decisions.
• Leg banding and radio telemetry studies will provide better research data and information to the Game Commission for their needs to make management decisions.

• More habitat improvement projects helping to increase turkey populations and improve all wildlife habitats.
• Turkey hunter safety material will be provided directly to turkey hunters. Turkey hunting safety could be improved.
• Better law enforcement aimed specifically at wild turkey violations.
• Determine how many turkey hunters there are in Pennsylvania, allowing biologists to make turkey management decision recommendations based on factual turkey hunter density numbers, not on estimates.
• Turkey hunter opinions and satisfaction levels will be acquired more efficiently because the Game Commission will be able to contact turkey hunters directly.

• The Game Commission’s turkey management plan will be more fully funded and more successful.

How Will the Turkey Hunter Benefit?
• This license will help ensure the future of the hunting you enjoy.
• Funds will provide turkey hunters with specific turkey hunting and turkey biology information, turkey hunting safety and ethics material
• Turkey hunter surveys will give you the ability to express your concerns and opinions about turkey management in Pennsylvania.
• Additional funds could be used for purchasing more game lands, providing additional public lands to hunt.
• Habitat enhancement projects on state and federal lands will attract turkeys to these lands, providing additional hunting opportunities.
• Better research data and hunting information about our turkey populations could result in expanded hunting opportunities in the future.

Our wild turkey resource is a valuable asset to Pennsylvania. We have managed the resource for nearly a century using the most basic information available to biologists. In the 21st century, it is time to manage wild turkeys with the best available research and data. A turkey hunting license would be able to fund additional wild turkey research, improve methods to provide better wild turkey management data, provide turkey hunter information, and ensure a bright future for these great birds in Pennsylvania.

For further information on wild turkey management look on:  www.panwtf.com