Hunters can help track hunting effort and success during the spring turkey season by signing up to be a part of the annual Spring Gobbler Hunting Survey. It’s free to participate, and hunter responses will help shape future wild turkey management in Arkansas.
Since 2007 the survey gathers information on hunter activity, gobbling activity, turkey observations and hunting success throughout turkey season. Volunteers record data from each hunt and send the results to be analyzed at the end of the hunting season. Biologists compile all the data to identify trends in hunter participation and satisfaction and provide a report for all hunters to compare notes.
Instead of a paper survey form, by using mobile technology, the Commission uses a new system with a smartphone app called Survey123. The new app makes it easier than ever to record and submit information at the conclusion of each hunt.
Warm weather has spurred many Arkansas turkey hunters to begin their scouting, knowing it takes legwork to be successful in the turkey woods. Jeremy Wood, turkey program coordinator, says scouting data is just as important to the survey as data recorded during hunting season.
“Monitoring hunter reports from throughout the state before and during the season really helps complete the picture of how turkeys respond to certain changes in temperature, weather and hunting pressure,” Wood said. “We can track trends in gobbling activity, flock breakup and other factors that influence turkey hunting and turkey reproduction.
“We are conducting other surveys, such as brood surveys and telemetry studies, that will look more in-depth into population characteristics, but this survey is designed around hunter participation, expectations and satisfaction,” Wood said.
An additional survey that hunters can participate in begins after the season ends and looks at reproductive success once hens have hatched this year’s brood. “Hunters and outdoors enthusiasts are our largest partners in conservation, and we want to work with them every chance we get to benefit the wildlife they love,” Wood said.
To participate in the Spring Gobbler Hunting Survey or Annual Brood Survey, email Wood at jeremy.wood@agfc.ar.gov, call (800)364-4263, and learn more about the turkey surveys online.