Turkey hunting is a challenging sport that requires a lot of patience, calling skills, and a little bit of luck never hurts.
More than 35,000 paid permits were issued in 2001, and interest in turkey countinues to increase as the 2002 season fast approaches.
For those looking for places to hunt in 2002, here's a handy table of the top 20 countines and top 20 states during the 2001 season. While weather, hunting skills and luck will be factors in any hunt, it might be interesting to see what places in Illinois are better than average in case you need an excuse for not harvesting that bird next season (i.e. my county or state site wasn't statistically one of the top ones in the Illinois).
Keep in mind that while the individual state sites had high success rates, they also had relatively few permits issued compared to the number of permits issued to individual counties.
While hunting in a state park or managed area may mean a higher chance of harvesting a turkey, the chance of drawing a permit for a state site is usually lower than drawing a county permit.
New Turkey Hunting Regulations and News for 2002
• Successful hunters must register their harvest by 3 p.m. on the same day the turkey was taken by calling the toll-free number provided with their turkey hunting permit.
• Electronic decoys are not legal for turkey hunting in Illinois.'
There will be a fifth season added to the 2002 spring season to allow more hunting opportunities and to meet the growing demand for additional permits.
|
Counties
|
1st Season % Hunter Success
|
2nd Season % Hunter Success
|
3rd Season % Hunter Success
|
4th Season % Hunter Success
|
Total Permits
|
All Seasons Birds Harvested
|
Average % Hunter Success
|
Lawrence
|
45.6
|
29.2
|
34.8
|
31.5
|
357
|
126
|
35.3
|
Scott
|
46.3
|
31.7
|
27.9
|
33.6
|
497
|
173
|
34.8
|
Madison
|
37.1
|
35.3
|
22.8
|
40.3
|
668
|
217
|
32.5
|
Jefferson
|
40.2
|
31.4
|
31.4
|
25.4
|
915
|
294
|
32.1
|
Macon
|
30.4
|
31.8
|
36.4
|
27.3
|
89
|
28
|
31.5
|
Henderson
|
35.3
|
23.9
|
32.3
|
31.6
|
621
|
191
|
30.8
|
Jasper
|
42.9
|
26.2
|
25.4
|
27.0
|
504
|
153
|
30.4
|
Morgan
|
39.7
|
28.8
|
24.0
|
26.1
|
735
|
217
|
29.7
|
Calhoun
|
39.8
|
25.1
|
25.6
|
25.8
|
1390
|
404
|
29.1
|
Wayne
|
48.0
|
23.7
|
21.6
|
21.6
|
706
|
203
|
28.8
|
Crawford
|
34.0
|
29.3
|
21.2
|
30.3
|
397
|
114
|
28.7
|
Mason
|
37.0
|
27.7
|
26.3
|
23.4
|
549
|
157
|
28.6
|
Pike
|
33.0
|
24.1
|
24.2
|
32.2
|
2061
|
585
|
28.4
|
Cass
|
29.7
|
25.8
|
30.1
|
28.1
|
619
|
176
|
28.4
|
Rock Island
|
29.4
|
37.3
|
23.8
|
22.4
|
503
|
142
|
28.2
|
Marion
|
38.9
|
18.8
|
25.8
|
28.6
|
935
|
262
|
28.0
|
Richland
|
32.3
|
22.9
|
26.0
|
30.5
|
383
|
107
|
27.9
|
Adams
|
34.6
|
25.7
|
22.5
|
28.4
|
1745
|
485
|
27.8
|
Winnebago
|
30.1
|
26.9
|
22.6
|
31.5
|
371
|
103
|
27.8
|
Edwards
|
58.2
|
18.5
|
20.4
|
13.0
|
217
|
60
|
27.6
|
State Sites
|
1st Season % Hunter Success
|
2nd Season % Hunter Success
|
3rd Season % Hunter Success
|
4th Season % Hunter Success
|
Total Permits
|
All Seasons Birds Harvested
|
Average % Hunter Success
|
Sam Pair
|
100.0
|
100.0
|
100.0
|
100.0
|
6
|
6
|
100.0
|
Mermet Lake
|
100.0
|
100.0
|
0.0
|
100.0
|
3
|
3
|
100.0
|
Newton Lake
|
75.0
|
100.0
|
75.0
|
50.0
|
16
|
12
|
75.0
|
Red Hills/Chauncey Marsh
|
100.0
|
100.0
|
0.0
|
100.0
|
4
|
3
|
75.0
|
Crab Orchard
|
66.7
|
66.7
|
40.0
|
86.7
|
60
|
39
|
65.0
|
Beaver Dam
|
100.0
|
0.0
|
100.0
|
0.0
|
4
|
2
|
50.0
|
Horseshoe Lake
|
100.0
|
100.0
|
0.0
|
0.0
|
4
|
2
|
50.0
|
Crawford County SFA
|
100.0
|
50.0
|
50.0
|
0.0
|
8
|
4
|
50.0
|
Sato Field
|
50.0
|
100.0
|
0.0
|
50.0
|
8
|
4
|
50.0
|
Feme Clyffe
|
100.0
|
0.0
|
50.0
|
50.0
|
8
|
4
|
50.0
|
Jim Edgar Panther Creek
|
33.3
|
40.6
|
47.1
|
44.4
|
132
|
55
|
41.7
|
Ten Mile Creek
|
50.0
|
50.0
|
33.3
|
33.3
|
24
|
10
|
41.7
|
Sangchris Lake
|
50.0
|
50.0
|
50.0
|
0.0
|
8
|
3
|
37.5
|
Mermet Lake
|
50.0
|
0.0
|
50.0
|
50.0
|
8
|
3
|
37.5
|
Fox Ridge
|
100.0
|
0.0
|
50.0
|
0.0
|
8
|
3
|
37.5
|
Red Hills
|
50.0
|
50.0
|
0.0
|
0.0
|
8
|
3
|
37.5
|
Big River
|
50.0
|
33.3
|
33.3
|
33.3
|
24
|
9
|
37.5
|
Randolph County SFA
|
100.0
|
50.0
|
0.0
|
16.7
|
18
|
6
|
33.3
|
Sand Ridge
|
62.5
|
18.8
|
31.3
|
18.8
|
64
|
21
|
32.8
|
Apple River Canyon
|
28.6
|
0.0
|
57.1
|
42.9
|
28
|
9
|
32.1
|
|