Minnesota’s Turkey Hunt Sees Impressive Numbers Despite Slight Drop

This spring turkey hunt in Minnesota this year saw the 3rd most turkeys harvested.  This year's hunt finished behind each of the last 2 years.  Glen Schmitt from Outdoor News joined me on WJON to break down the turkey hunting results.

Spring Turkey Results

Schmitt says the turkey hunt this year was down about 10% compared to last year.  15,245 turkeys were shot compared to 16,903 in 2025.  He says the last 2 years were each record breaking years and it's hard to go back to back to back.  Schmitt says license sales were down 1% from last year and he believes early season unpleasant weather played a role.  Turkey numbers in the state are very strong including in Central Minnesota.

photo courtesy of Glen Schmitt for TSM

Waterfowl Survey

The DNR spring waterfowl survey revealed a preliminary count of waterfowl in the state.  This survey has been done annually since 1968.  Schmitt says results showed wetlands results are slightly better than last year.  He says much of the state was dealing with drought conditions last May and some locations still are.   Schmitt says nesting blue winged teals were very low last year and those numbers have improved slightly this year.  He is seeing more wood ducks and Mallards this spring.  Schmitt believes there are a lot of young geese and those numbers appear to be improving in the state.

photo - Jay Caldwell

Water Temperatures

Schmitt says fishing continues to be pretty good in the state despite an increase in water temperatures.  He says water temps are up to 70 degrees on some area lakes which could lead to less activity from fish.  Schmitt continues to have success catching walleyes early and late in the day along weed lines with a jig and minnow.  He has switched to using some leeches as well.  Schmitt expects to switch to panfish when fishing late morning and middays.

If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Glen Schmitt, click below.