New SC regs for 2016

[xarcher]

Not sure if someone has posted this yet but SC turkey season next year is March 20 to May 5 statewide. No more split season. Also season limit has been cut from 5 to 3. It is the 2015-2016 book.

[davisd9]

March 20 start is just private land. Public opens april 1st and goes until may 5th.


Sent from the Strut Zone

[Britton40]

Come on down, get a taste of these over hunted, high pressured, call shy, decoy shy, devil longbeards.

[owlhoot]

Come on down, get a taste of these over hunted, high pressured, call shy, decoy shy, devil longbeards.

Now you gotta love them buggered ole gobblers, keeps ya getting up early and coming back!

[RutnNStrutn]

Yep, Lowcountry hunters are losing a day of hunting, while others are gaining several days. Not sure about the lower bag limit yet. I posted this up a few months ago. Some SC hunters felt it was political BS, some supported it. I just finished my worst season in 7 springs in SC. I'll let you know how I feel after this spring season.

[THattaway]

Private land is where the season dates are mostly changing getting longer in the upstate. Public land will be April 1-May 5, only picking up 4 days. Limits will be 3 everywhere unless otherwise restricted. I don't think longer seasons and reduced limits will have any impact on recruitment and that's most likely where the problem lies. Following good hatch years we've consistently had good numbers of gobblers and higher harvest rates for the thirty years I've hunted here with a limit of 5 birds. Not particularly torn over the limit reduction myself but I can't see where a longer season will do anything but offset the change. SC toms are no pushover on pressured land, public or private. I sort of like it that way. We had much darker days back around 2006 numbers wise in the upstate where I hunt.

[THattaway]

Yep, Lowcountry hunters are losing a day of hunting, while others are gaining several days. Not sure about the lower bag limit yet. I posted this up a few months ago. Some SC hunters felt it was political BS, some supported it. I just finished my worst season in 7 springs in SC. I'll let you know how I feel after this spring season.

Unless you saw a bunch of jakes this past season here or are intending to shoot jakes hatched this past summer I don't think you are gonna be too happy next year based on longer season and reduced limit changes. I'll go ahead and say the same for the next few years as well, based on my opinion of course. If we happen to have a good hatch then the years following I am sure folks will say the season dates and limit changes have proved to be the greatest thing since sliced bread. Personally, I think there could be something else behind it, maybe something being introduced into the environment with urban encroachment and not so much coyotes, weather and apparently perceived overharvest, that is contributing to low recruitment....but I ain't no biologist.