Get Ready for Spring Turkey Hunting in Suffolk County

On the South Fork, spring for sportsmen has long meant creeping around freshwater ponds trying to find the first largemouths to go on their prespawn feed, testing creeks for early arriving stripers and weakfish, and maybe some shed hunting for those who are not inclined to pick up a rod and reel.

And for some it means preparing for trips to upstate woods to hunt turkey during the traditional May hunting season. Lying in wait as big Tom turkeys — their resplendent tails fanned, chests puffed and blue heads craned — warily creep toward you and the facsimile hen you might have sitting off your port quarter, intermittently exploding with a gobble that reverberates off the tree canopy, is one of the most thrilling hunting experiences there is.

But on Long Island, we have not, in the lifetimes of anyone reading this, been afforded the opportunity to take part in the spring turkey season. For decades, probably centuries, there simply weren’t any turkeys to hunt on Long Island.

Since their reintroduction and the gradual growth of their population, the State Department of Environmental Conservation has allowed hunting to resume but has limited it to one week in the fall, when the woods are already filled with deer hunters.

Fall turkey hunting is not the thrilling stalk that it is in the spring, because the big males do not respond to calling and decoys like they do during the spring mating season. Long Island sportsmen have long called for a spring season to be established here.

This year, the DEC is answering their call: Turkey hunting will be allowed in Suffolk County this year from May 1 to 31. As with upstate, hunting is only allowed from a half hour before sunrise until noon, and a hunter gets just one turkey tag, which may be used to take a mature male turkey only.

There are still some ongoing debates over turkey hunting access on public lands (thus far, the state and county have not authorized turkey hunting on their respective lands, and neither Southampton Town nor East Hampton Town plan to do so, as of now). The opportunity to hunt the notoriously difficult birds is certain to be not as broad this first year as many hunters would like, but it’s a step in the right direction if you are a turkey hunting fan.

For years, the DEC has allowed an early youth hunting weekend in the spring, and it will offer it again this year on Long Island. An energetic young Encon officer named Taylor Della Rocco is organizing the events this year. The Youth Week events will be held around the April 22 and 23 hunting days and the mandatory “patterning day” on the Wednesday prior, April 19. At the patterning day event, DEC officers will offer instruction on hunting strategy, tactics and safety, as well as outfit youths with turkey hunting gear that they might not have, like camouflage masks, calls and hunting vests.

Della Rocco said the DEC also is eagerly looking for local organizations to sponsor special youth turkey hunt events in their area, funding a group gathering of young hunters and their parents to coincide with instruction and a hunt organized by the DEC.

Anyone looking to organize an event or get their young hunter into a Long Island youth hunting group can email Officer Della Rocco directly at taylor.dellarocco@dec.ny.gov to inquire about the Long Island turkey hunting activities.

There are significant forces pushing back against the idea of allowing hunting in local woods in May, when the crowds of nonhunters in our tight geographical confines are increasing by the day, so I would encourage anyone who is eager to see a Long Island turkey season continue to participate in the DEC events and to speak with our local elected officials (town, county and state) about supporting it.

And, most of all, be sure to conduct yourself in a safe and responsible manner when you are hunting in the woods or on the waters, so that the argument can be made that hunting does not pose a threat to anyone or anything other than the intended quarry.

The family of Megan Pfautz has set up a memorial fund to work as a scholarship of sorts to help young anglers — and young female anglers, in particular — afford fishing trips on local party boats.

Megan was a beloved regular on the decks of the Hampton Lady, Hammer Time and other for-hire boats around the South Fork. She died suddenly in January, reportedly from a severe bout with a combination of COVID and the flu.

Some of her best friends were young anglers for whom the rails of party boats and their denizens were the introduction and mentorship to a love for the ocean that not everyone has at home, and the idea of the scholarship could not be a better way of honoring her, in my thinking.

You can find the scholarship, which is being collected by Megan’s mother, Jayne, under the “Megan Pfautz Memorial Fund” on GoFundMe. Bravo to Jayne for coming up with the idea.

Catch ’em up. See you out there.