Indiana's fall turkey-hunting season for bow will run October 1 through October 22, and for firearms 2006, from October 18 through 22

New this fall for bow is the addition of all, or portions, of 13 counties to last year’s fall turkey-hunting range.

New counties, or portions of counties for bow-hunting range, are highlighted within parentheses below. Counties open to fall turkey hunting with firearms remain the same as for last year's fall season.

Spring turkey hunting licenses are not valid for fall turkey hunting.

Hunters must have a resident or non-resident fall turkey license and a game bird habitat stamp privilege unless exempt from needing a license. Indiana comprehensive lifetime hunting or comprehensive youth hunting licenses can also be used to hunt fall wild turkey. Some farmland owners or active military personnel on leave are eligible for resident license exemptions.

Non-resident hunters from states that require an Indiana resident to purchase an additional license to hunt turkeys must also purchase an annual non-resident hunting license to hunt turkeys in Indiana.

This means residents of the adjacent states of Illinois, Kentucky and Ohio need an annual non-resident hunting license, a non-resident fall turkey license and a gamebird habitat stamp privilege. Wisconsin and Michigan residents are OK with a non-resident fall turkey license and a game bird habitat stamp privilege.

The fall turkey bag limit is one wild turkey of either sex per fall. Shooting hours are one half hour before sunrise to sunset. Hunters must immediately tag their turkey with a paper stating the hunter's name, address, date of kill and sex of bird.

Turkeys must be taken to a check station within 48 hours. The tag issued by the check station must be affixed to the leg of the turkey through a section of skin or flesh until processing.

Some DNR properties with high hunter use or high spring hunter demand may limit fall turkey hunting. All other spring turkey hunting regulations, such as restrictions on shot sizes, legal weapons, baiting, dogs and electronic calls and decoys, will be in effect for the fall season. 

New bow counties are denoted by parenthesis. All counties where bow hunting will be allowed are: Bartholomew, (Benton), Brown, (Carroll), Cass, Clark, Clay, Crawford, Daviess, Dearborn, Decatur, Dekalb, Dubois, (Elkhart), Fayette, Floyd, Franklin, Fountain, Fulton, Gibson, (Grant - west of Interstate 69), Greene, Harrison, (Howard), (Huntington - north of State Road 124 or west of Interstate 69), Jackson, Jasper - north of State Highway 114 or east of Interstate 65, Jefferson, Jennings, Johnson, Knox, (Kosciusko), LaGrange, (Lake), LaPorte, Lawrence, Marshall, Martin, (Miami), Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Newton - north of State Highway 114, (Noble), Ohio, Orange, Owen, Parke, Perry, Pike, (Porter), Posey, Pulaski, Putnam, Ripley, St. Joseph, Scott, Spencer, Starke, Steuben, Sullivan, Switzerland, Tippecanoe, Union, Vanderburgh, Vermillion, Vigo, (Wabash), Warren, Warrick, Washington, Wayne, and (White).

Counties where fall wild turkey hunting with a firearm will be allowed from October 18 through October 22, 2006 are: Brown, Clark, Crawford, Dearborn, Dubois, Floyd, Franklin, Greene - east of White River, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Jennings, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, Ohio, Orange, Owen, Perry, Pike, Ripley, Scott, Spencer, Switzerland, Warrick and Washington.
 

FALL MUSHROOMS

Several readers have suggested by phone, and other means, that our recent rains and slightly cooler weather may be setting the stage for fall mushrooms, but from where we sit we would hesitate to bank on it.

True, when you are dealing with nature, anything can happen. The rains could, in fact, bring on some highly prized chantrelles (they are big and yellowish) and they tend to grow in moist, wooded areas at this time of year. Lots of fungal growths may also start the fall flowering, including the giant puffball, which is eaten by many.

Generally, though, the shaggymane, hickory jack, meadow mushroom and others start their fall emergence in October, usually during--or soon thereafter--the first good soaking rain during or following a cold rain to match the elements.

Take last year, for example. The cold and fairly gentle rain started toward the last 10 days of October (intermittently), and we kept track of the proceedings. We picked new shags for 13 straight days, big bags to share with our bravest friends, dry and freeze. It was a dream come true.