Spring Record For Wild Turkeys

Illinois hunters harvested a preliminary statewide record total of 17,208 wild turkeys during the 2024 Illinois spring turkey season.

This year’s total compares with the 2023 statewide harvest of 16,123 and the previous harvest record total of 16,569, set during the spring season in 2006. The top five counties for the 2024 spring turkey harvest were: Jo Daviess County, 654; Jefferson County, 472; Marion County, 435; Pope County, 397; and Randolph County, 395.

The 2024 harvest total includes the record youth turkey harvest of 2,009 birds, which compares with the 2023 youth harvest of 1,309. The previous youth season record of 1,733 was set in 2020.

This year, hunters purchased 86,083 permits compared to 80,642 last year. Spring turkey hunting was open in 100 of Illinois’ 102 counties The 2024 regular season dates were April 8 through May 9 in the South Zone and April 15 through May 16 in the North Zone. The 2024 youth spring turkey season was March 30 thru March 31 and April 6 thru April 7 statewide.

Presented below, the first number is the 2024 total and the second number was the 2023 total number of turkeys harvested in Macoupin County and Madison County, as well as Montgomery County and St. Clair County for a reference in comparison:

Macoupin County: 285; 312

Madison County: 272; 236

Montgomery County: 200; 145

St. Clair County: 169; 158

Out of 98 counties in Illinois that released their 2024 and 2023 spring turkey harvest numbers, Macoupin County was eighteenth overall in regards to the amount of spring turkey’s harvested.