Outdoors: Free turkey hunter education clinics on deck

MADISON -- Free turkey hunter education clinics will again be offered this year in Wisconsin, the Department of Natural Resources said this week.

The free clinics are presented by volunteer instructors and are sponsored by the Wisconsin DNR and the Wisconsin Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation.

Officials said clinics typically last two to three hours and are designed to cover wild turkey biology and behavior, hunting methods, regulations, safety precautions and landowner/hunter ethics, as well as tips for scoring trophy birds and a few ideas for preparing turkeys at home.

The turkey hunter education clinics are for all ages and experience levels, from beginning turkey hunters interested in learning wild turkey hunting techniques to experienced hunters looking to brush up on their skills and learn new techniques.

The clinics will be held from late this month through late March.

Information and a listing of the dates and locations for each clinic will be available soon on the wild turkey page of the DNR website at http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/hunt/turkey.html or may be obtained by calling the DNR Customer Call Center from 7 a.m. through 10 p.m., seven days a week, at 1-888-WDNRINFo (1-888-936-7463). For the latest additions or changes to the schedule, please refer to the DNR website.

The number of turkey hunter education clinics offered has decreased in recent years. Department staff and clinic instructors are planning how to combine the success of the turkey hunter education clinic program with that of the Learn to Hunt program.

As Wisconsin hunters have become adept at the art of turkey hunting, officials said, interest and participation in the turkey clinics have declined. However, novice turkey hunters will be well-served by the Learn to Hunt Turkey programs, which offer a valuable combination of classroom and field instruction as well as a hands-on mentored hunting experience, officials said.

To learn more, visit the Learn to Hunt page of the DNR website at http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/wildlife/lth/.

(c)2012 The Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wis.)

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Tags: outdoors, wisconsin, technology, animals