Turkey Hunting Licenses on Sale Today

Turkey hunters can buy their licenses for the spring 2023 season starting March 1. Licenses may be purchased online (mndnr.gov/buyalicense), by telephone 888-665-4236 or in person wherever hunting and fishing licenses are sold. Hunters can hunt statewide and buy licenses for any time period (A-F) over the counter.

For research purposes, license agents will be asking hunters which permit area they plan to hunt, so hunters are advised to know which permit area they plan to hunt when they buy their license. The information is useful to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources in managing the state's turkey population. Importantly, hunters who identify their permit area when purchasing their license will not be restricted to hunting in only that area.

Season dates and hunt rules can be found on the DNR's turkey hunting page (mndnr.gov/hunting/turkey). Permits to hunt the popular Carlos Avery and Mille Lacs wildlife management areas in the A-C time periods, and Whitewater WMA in the A-B time periods, were distributed already by lottery only for firearms hunters 18 and older. The lottery application deadline was Feb. 17 and results are available on the turkey hunting page of the DNR website.

The DNR invites people interested in wildlife and outdoor skills to tune in to upcoming webinars that will feature discussions about the turkey reintroduction success story and prairie chickens.

The first webinar is at noon March 1. DNR staff will be talking about the 50th anniversary of the reintroduction of wild turkeys in Minnesota and how people can get involved in mentored turkey hunts that happen across the state.

The second webinar is at noon March 8. Greg Hoch, DNR prairie habitat team supervisor, will discuss the history of prairie chickens in Minnesota, their population numbers and habitat requirements, where to see prairie chicken spring courtship dances, and hunting opportunities.

The webinars are part of the DNR's Minnesota Outdoor Skills and Stewardship Series. The webinars are free, but registration is required. More information is available on the outdoor skills and stewardship page of the DNR website (mndnr.gov/discover).