Published on May 28, 2026 11:11 am
Last Updated on May 28, 2026 11:11 am
Illinois hunters harvested a preliminary record total of 20,821 wild turkeys during the 2026 spring turkey season, surpassing the previous record of 18,189 birds harvested in 2025.
The top counties for turkey harvest during the 2026 season were Jefferson and Jo Daviess counties, tied with 646 birds harvested; followed by Marion, 530; Pike, 525; and Wayne, 464.
This year, hunters purchased 94,704 permits compared to 89,580 last year. This year’s total included a record youth spring turkey season harvest of 2,326 birds compared to 2,099 birds in 2025.
A total of 70,158 individual hunters purchased permits for the 2026 spring turkey season. Preliminary figures indicate approximately 22% of permits sold were filled this year, compared to 20.3% last year.
The totals for area counties in 2026, compared to 2025:
Clay–398, up from 293
Coles–90, up from 60
Cumberland–123, up from 108
Effingham–215, up from 190
Fayette–447, up from 386
Jasper–234, up from 208
Shelby–219, up from 177
Spring turkey hunting was open in 100 of Illinois’ 102 counties. The 2026 regular season dates were April 6 through May 7 in the south zone and April 13 through May 14 in the north zone. The youth spring turkey season was held March 28-29 and April 4-5 statewide.
