(With a wild turkey population of over 100,000, Florida sells 73000 licenses annually)
Osceola spring gobblers can be legally hunted in Florida. In fact, it’s the only place where this much sought-after wild turkey subspecies can be added to the bag. The ones from Florida fly-in to the north of the State, while those heading southwards belong to the East.
Overall, the Florida turkey season is about swamps flush with Spanish moss and wild turkeys. Pinewoods, cattle pastures and even the terrains habited by alligators and poisonous snakes are alive with noisy roosts during the peak seasons in this State.
Professional hunters and first-timers require updated and timely information about the upcoming Florida turkey season to plan their trips, licenses, permits and equipment. Here’s what to expect from the upcoming turkey hunting seasons in Florida in 2021.
Florida Turkey Season – Bag Limit, Dates, Seasons
Fall seasons – Turkey (bearded turkeys and gobblers only)
(Daily bag limit is 2 turkeys. Possession and season limit is 2 for fall seasons in entirety)
| Zone A | Archery season – Aug 1st to Aug 30th Crossbow season – Aug 1st to Sept 4th Muzzle loading season – Sept. 5th to 18th Fall turkey season – Oct 5th to 18th Nov 21st – Jan 31st |
| Zone B | Archery season – Oct 17th to Nov 15th Crossbow season – Oct 17th to Nov 20th Muzzle loading season – Nov 21st to Dec 4th Fall turkey season – Dec 5th to Jan 31st |
| Zone C | Archery season – Sept 19th to Oct 18th Crossbow season – Sept 19th to Oct. 23rd Muzzle loading season – Oct. 24th to Nov 6th Fall turkey season – Nov 7th to Jan 31st |
| Zone D (with the exception of Holmes County, as fall harvest of turkeys is disallowed) | Archery season – Oct 24th to Nov 25th Crossbow season – Oct. 24th to Nov 25th, Nov 30th to Dec 4th Muzzleloading season – Dec 5th to Dec 11th Fall turkey season – Nov. 26th to 29th, Dec. 12th to Jan. 17th |
Florida turkey Season – Spring
(Daily bag limit is 2 turkeys. Possession and season limit are 2 for spring seasons in entirety.)
State Road 70 (Northern parts)
- Youth turkey hunt – March 13th and March 14th
- Spring turkey season – March 20th to April 25th
State Road 70 (Southern parts)
- Youth turkey hunt – Feb. 27th and Feb. 28th
- Spring turkey season – March 6th to April 11th
The season and daily bag limit in Holmes County are 1.
2021 Florida Turkey Season – Hunting Rules and Regulations
When Turkey Hunting in Florida, it’s illegal to hunt without valid licenses and permits. You are also required to stay at a legally accepted distance from the bait when shooting them.
Several changes in rules and regulations have taken place for the upcoming hunting seasons in Florida. Silver Springs Forest WMA has been established as a new hunting ground in northeast Florida. Located in Marion County, this 4,900-acre tract provides outdoor sports opportunities like spring turkey hunting, archery, general gun, muzzleloading, mall game, hunting, frogging and fishing only.
Here are some important general rules about equipment that have to be followed by Florida turkey season hunters.
- Only bows are permitted for use in the archery season.
- Only bows and crossbows are permitted for use in the crossbow season.
- Only muzzleloaders that are fired by the percussion cap, wheel lock, flintlock, or center fire primer (209 primers included), can be used in the muzzleloading season. In this season, only crossbows and bows are to be used. Any weapon that can be breech-loaded is considered illegal.
- Shotguns, centerfire pistols, centerfire rifles, bows, crossbows, muzzleloaders and pre-charged air guns (pneumatic) are allowed in the general gun season.
Farwide.com provides further insights and knowledge about what equipment to carry for turkey hunts in Florida. Resident hunters, as well as those flying in from other States and elsewhere, can bank on their experience and expertise to make the most of the 2021 turkey hunting season forecasts.
Best Time to Hunt Turkey
Hunting all morning for silent, late-season gobblers can be a taxing task for many. It is not easy to make these smart birds respond to calls as they pitch down, gobble and strut their way into the decoys. The odds reduce as the Florida turkey seasons enter April when the birds start developing lockjaw and are at the end of the breeding period.
Given these and the other turkey hunting restraints at various times of the day, it is critical to know what time is most productive in the wild. In the morning, gobblers strut with hens after fly-in; the hens leave by mid-morning to nest.
The pro hunters consider the duration between 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. to be most productive. They also opt for traditional pre-dawn wake-ups to reach the roosting and feeding areas (prior to sunrise) and work forward from there.
This is when hunters get to bust their find in fire breaks, main trails, palmettos, oak hammocks, burned pines, and other areas where they choose to sit-in. Past scouting efforts and trials are helpful for those who like to stick to their run-and-gun plans, during late morning.
Florida Turkey Season 2021
Come 2021 and the roosts will become strong beehives of activity in Florida. It’s time to get closer to the thriving population of turkeys and find the smartest ways to bust them in their habitats. You may want to connect with the expert turkey hunt planners at Farwide.com to make the upcoming seasons more thrilling.
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