HARRISBURG, PA – This year, Trick-or-treating isn’t the only thing to look forward to on Saturday, Oct. 31. The Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) announces the fall 2026 turkey season will kick off in 20 of the state’s 22 Wildlife Management Units (WMUs) on Halloween.
Fall turkey hunting is closed in WMUs 5C and 5D. For the remaining WMUs, the season lengths are as follows: WMUs 1A, 2G, 3A, 4A, 4B and 4D: Oct. 31-Nov. 15; WMUs 1B, 3D, 4C and 4E: Oct. 31-Nov. 8; WMUs 2A, 2F, 3B, and 3C: Oct. 31-Nov. 15 and Nov. 25-27; WMUs 2B, 2C, 2D and 2E: Oct. 31-Nov. 20 and Nov. 25-27; and WMU 5A and 5B: Oct. 31-Nov. 3. Hunters are advised that the three-day Thanksgiving season again will run Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, only in applicable WMUs.
As a reminder, no single-projectile firearms may be used in the fall turkey seasons. Hunters may use shotguns with fine shot and archery gear only. While fall turkey hunters no longer are required to wear fluorescent orange, the PGC highly recommends the use of orange, especially while moving.
SEASON OUTLOOK
Everyone who purchases a hunting license receives one fall turkey tag, as well as one spring tag. During the fall season, any turkey can be harvested, and female turkeys typically account for more than 50 percent of the fall harvest. The length of the fall season in each WMU is dictated by the turkey population trend. Units with increasing population trends can support more fall turkey hunting opportunities.
“Last year, fall turkey hunters gained some additional hunting opportunities on Sundays that fell within the pre-approved season dates,” said Game Commission Wild Turkey Biologist Reina Tyl. “For this year, seasons that typically closed on a Saturday had their closing date pushed to the following Sunday. The statewide turkey recruitment was up this year, from 2025, and all but one WMU had a recruitment ratio greater than 2.0 poults per hen, as estimated from turkey summer sighting survey reports. Fall turkey hunters, in most WMUs, may find more or larger brood-flocks compared to last season.”
The annual turkey summer sighting survey was conducted during July and August and the number of turkey sightings was up slightly from last year, with 10,888 reported, compared to 10,674 in 2025. The statewide reproductive index for 2026 came in at 2.83 poults per all hens observed, which was greater than the 2025 index of 2.67. This was still below the previous five-year average of 2.94 poults per hen. At the WMU level, only one WMU had a reproductive index below 2.0 poults per hen (1.78 in WMU 4D), indicating reasonably good reproductive success in most parts of the Commonwealth.
“Participation in the annual turkey summer sighting survey is open to the public,” said Tyl. “These turkey observations provide us with an important tool to monitor the health of our wild turkey population. This index of reproductive success is used in our turkey population model and helps inform fall turkey season recommendations.”
Reproductive success varies annually due to many factors, particularly spring and summer rainfall, temperature, habitat conditions, predation, insect abundance, and hen condition. The condition a hen enters the reproductive season is often influenced by fall and winter food availability and weather severity.
Harvests and reporting
Successful fall turkey hunters must tag their birds according to instructions provided on the printed harvest tags supplied with their licenses, then report harvests. Mentored hunters under age 7 now receive their own fall turkey tag and no longer need to have a tag transferred to them by their mentor. The turkey must be tagged immediately after harvest and before the turkey is moved, and the tag must be securely attached to a leg until the bird is prepared for consumption or mounting.
Within ten days of harvest, turkey hunters must report harvests to the Game Commission, either by going online to www.pgc.pa.gov, or calling 1-800-838-4431 (toll-free), or mailing in a prepaid post card. Hunters will need their license and harvest tag in front of them when they make the call. Hunters should record the supplied confirmation number for the turkey reported.
All hunters reporting harvests are asked to identify the WMU, county, and township where the bird was taken, as well as the sex and age of the turkey.
Additionally, hunters may harvest a turkey that has been leg-banded or has a transmitter for research purposes. If so, they should follow the instructions on the band or the transmitter. Last winter, the PGC leg-banded more than 450 turkeys, (and more than 4,500 since 2020). More than 500 wild turkeys, both male and female, were fitted with backpack-style transmitters from 2022-2025 for research projects. While these turkeys are not being monitored anymore, some of these birds may still be alive and available for harvest.
Handling harvested birds
While wild turkeys are highly susceptible to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), their behavior and habitat places them at a lower risk of contracting the disease, compared to waterfowl, shorebirds, raptors, and avian scavengers.
HPAI viruses can be carried by wild birds and have been found across Pennsylvania. To protect themselves, and to reduce the risk of spreading this extremely contagious disease to other birds, hunters are advised to practice the following precautions:
- Use dedicated footwear, clothing, and tools that are only for handling and/or dressing harvested wild birds.
- Do not handle or harvest wild birds that appear sick or are found dead.
- Wear gloves when handling or dressing harvested wild birds.
- Do not eat, drink, or smoke when handling or dressing harvested wild birds.
- Dress harvested wild birds in the field.
- Double bag any offal and feathers that will be removed from the field.
- Wash your hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer immediately after handling or dressing harvested wild birds.
- Wash all tools and work surfaces with soap and water after using them, then disinfect with a 10 percent household bleach solution. Allow them to air dry or rinse after ten minutes of contact time.
- Change footwear and clothing before coming in contact with any domestic poultry or pet birds.
While influenza viruses can infect humans, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has declared that currently in the United States, “Viruses circulating in birds are believed to pose a low risk to the general public.”
Any sick or dead domestic birds should be reported to the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture at 717-772-2852. Sick or dead wild birds should be reported to the Game Commission at 1-833-PGC-WILD.