As a rule that requires a RFA, RAFA or JIS, this rule will be initially reviewed in the calendar year 2025, which is no later than the 3rd year after the year in which this rule is being adopted.

Modification of the Regulatory Impact Statement, Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, Rural Area Flexibility Analysis and Job Impact Statement that were published as a part of the Notice of Proposed Rule Making is unnecessary. The rule does not contain any substantial revisions, and non-substantial revisions to the rule text do not render the Regulatory Impact Statement, Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, Rural Area Flexibility Analysis and Job Impact Statement inadequate or incomplete.

On April 6th, 2022 the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) proposed amendments to wild turkey hunting regulations and accepted public comment through June 5th, 2022. DEC received over 1,200 comments with the vast majority expressing support for both measures; however, some commenters expressed potential concerns. Below is the DEC response to the summarized substantive comments.

Comment: I am concerned spring turkey hunting on Long Island will create a safety risk for non-hunters.

DEC response: DEC recognizes this is a common concern of non-hunters, however recreational hunting and specifically turkey hunting is a very safe activity. DEC maintains records of all hunting related shooting incidents (HRSIs). All licensed hunters are required to complete a hunter safety course and spring turkey hunting, like hunting in general, has been getting safer each decade as illustrated by a continuing decline in the number of HRSIs. Over the past decade there is an average of 1 spring turkey hunting HRSI per year statewide and none of these instances involved a non-hunter. For more information on hunting safety statistics, visit: https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/hrsisummary2021.pdf

Comment: I am opposed to turkey hunting on Long Island because I enjoy the aesthetic qualities of wild turkey or generally oppose any form of hunting.

DEC response: DEC recognizes that New York’s residents have diverse values associated with wildlife and some people oppose hunting. Hunting is a legitimate, sustainable use of the wild turkey resource and the proposed conservative hunting season will ensure wild turkey populations remain robust on Long Island allowing current and future generations to enjoy their respective outdoor pursuits whether they be hunting or wildlife observation.

Comment: I am opposed to turkey hunting on Long Island because turkeys are effective tick predators who can help reduce tick densities and tick-borne illnesses.

DEC response: DEC recognizes the concern regarding tick and tick-borne illnesses on Long Island. Wild turkeys are omnivorous, eating a diverse diet of both plant and animal matter including insects. They do not feed exclusively on ticks and studies have documented that wild turkeys are unlikely to reduce local densities of ticks (Ostfeld and Lewis 1999, Kollars et al. 2000). Regardless, harvest from this new opportunity is expected to be low and only bearded birds may be taken. The hunting season should have little impact on turkey abundance on Long Island.

Comment: I am opposed to closing state properties to other outdoor recreation during the proposed turkey hunt. Specifically, I am concerned on how the new hunting season would affect mountain bikers.

DEC response: DEC understands concerns regarding potential restrictions to mountain biking and other forms of outdoor recreation on DEC-owned lands as a result of the proposed spring turkey season in Suffolk County. Hunting is a safe activity and risks to others from this activity are very low. DEC manages access to its properties to maximize use for a variety of purposes and to provide for a high quality and safe experience to users of state-owned lands. DEC only closes properties to mountain biking where conflicts may arise from overuse or from multiple uses at the same time. Mountain bike trails are closed on DEC-managed lands from November 1 through January 31 to minimize conflicts with hunting. The trail closure in March and April is not related to hunting, but for protection of the trails due to weather conditions. It is important to note that hunting-related closures do not affect all public lands and only a few (less than 5) DEC-managed lands would be open to spring turkey hunting. Also, please note that the spring turkey hunting season has limited hunting hours. The hours for spring turkey hunting are from ½-hour before sunrise until noon. Therefore, even on the properties closed due to turkey hunting, ample opportunity would exist outside of the legal hunting hours for all recreational activities.

Beyond the handful of DEC properties that will likely be affected by the hunting season there are a variety of other state-owned lands available to mountain bikers and non-hunters during these turkey hunting-related closures that are unlikely to open for this hunting opportunity. Additionally, there are many town- and county-owned properties where hunting does not occur, and mountain biking is permitted year-round or for longer periods. In fact, most publicly accessible lands in Suffolk County would be closed to spring turkey hunting. There are well over 50 publicly accessible properties in Suffolk County and only 3 would be open to spring turkey hunting, giving non-hunters a wealth of options.

Lastly, the proposed regulations apply to all public and private lands in wildlife management unit 1C (Suffolk County). Each property owner or manager can weigh competing interests and determine if hunting will be allowed on their lands and how access for hunters and non-hunters are managed.

Comment: Many state properties on Long Island are heavily utilized by birders during the month of May. The new hunting opportunity is incompatible and will exclude other user groups and impact the Breeding Bird Atlas.

DEC response: As mentioned in the previous response, hunting is a safe activity and is compatible with other outdoor recreational activities. More than 80,000 turkey hunters partake in the spring turkey season throughout upstate New York with relatively few negative interactions. Birding and hunting have been safely co-occurring on private and public lands throughout upstate New York for decades, including during the successful completion of the first two Breeding Bird Atlas efforts.

Evaluating potential impacts on other user groups was a major consideration in the development of this proposal. Prior to proposing the new hunting opportunity, DEC surveyed seasonal access permit users in WMU 1C to understand opinions and attitudes of all user groups about a potential spring turkey season. DEC asked users (both hunters and non-hunters) which week was most important for access. A plurality of non-hunters indicated June 5-11 was the most important week of the spring season for their recreational access to DEC- managed properties. Greater than 40% of non-hunters indicated the last week of May and 1st week of June were the most important time to access the property. The proposed season (May 1-31) maximizes opportunity for hunters to access the property before non-hunters are most interested in accessing the property.

It is also important to note that turkey hunting will not be allowed on all publicly accessible lands. The vast majority of WMU 1C is privately owned or owned by local/county municipalities. If hunting is deemed non-compatible in some situations, the property owner or manager can restrict the activity. Furthermore, the proposed season would end at noon every day, therefore the season structure provides more than 8 daylight hours each day of use when hunting would not interfere with other forms of outdoor recreation. The proposed season provides balanced access for all stakeholders.

Comment: I am opposed to reducing the allowable shot size from a minimum of #8 to a minimum of #9 shot. I am concerned #9 shot will increase crippling rates of turkeys.

DEC response: Some modern #9 shot marketed for turkey hunting is effective at up to 40 yards (e.g., Tungsten Super Shot). In addition, advances in shot shell technology have allowed smaller shot sizes to have more downrange kinetic energy than lead shot in larger sizes.

As with any implement used to take game (e.g., archery, firearm), a hunter must know its limitations, their own capabilities, and make decisions in the field regarding when game can be quickly and humanely killed. This is emphasized in all hunter education courses and DEC will continue existing efforts to inform hunters of what methods can be used for the safe and effective harvest of wild game. It is incumbent upon hunters to ensure they are taking ethical shots as any shot size can be ineffective and lead to crippling if unethical shots are taken by hunters.

Comment: The minimum shot restriction should be limited to non-lead alternatives to minimize the risk of crippling from ineffective loads being used.

DEC response: Some commentors noted that lead #9 may not be a suitable turkey load and the regulations should be more specific that shot sizes smaller than a certain size should only be allowed if they are some type of metal other than lead.

New shot types are developed annually and nuanced regulations that are difficult to enforce or comply with would be problematic. Technology is rapidly advancing and listing the allowable metals would quickly become outdated. There are also no requirements to list exactly what metals are in the shotshell, thus it would be difficult to list all proprietary metal blends that are used for turkey loads.

We encourage hunters to make ethical shot choices and ensure the gauge and load they choose is effective. As previously noted, all allowable turkey loads would be effective at close range, including #9 lead. Our hunter education program will continue providing the information hunters need to make ethical choices.

Comment: A spring turkey hunting season will increase poaching and lead to a safety risk in April and June.

DEC response: DEC is unaware of any evidence to suggest legal hunting seasons increase poaching or safety risks outside of the hunting season. There has been a spring turkey hunting season in most of upstate New York for decades with little evidence to suggest that poaching has increased in April and June because of the May season. In addition, although rare, safety incidents that have occurred, take place during the legal spring season and not before or after. If anything, the suggestion that this is likely to happen as a result of a legal hunting season is counter intuitive as hunters in Suffolk County would have a legal means and opportunity to pursue the many turkeys inhabiting wildlife management unit 1C, thus reducing the motivation to take them out of season.

Comment: Turkeys are not overabundant and do not negatively affect humans.

DEC response: The proposed turkey hunting season in Wildlife Management Unit 1C is not intended to address an overabundance of turkeys or turkey-related conflicts. The proposed season is a recreational hunting opportunity to allow sustainable harvest of the robust turkey population in the area.

Turkey populations, even at moderate levels, can have an adverse impact on people and property. In New York State, turkeys are estimated to cause $27,000-41,000 worth of damage annually (Tefft et al. 2010). In most cases, damage to agriculture is often minor and any damage mitigation is typically addressed through site-specific actions such as permits to take turkeys outside of the recreational hunting season. In urban and suburban settings, including on Long Island, conflicts between people and turkeys have occurred. Turkeys are well adapted to suburban and even urban landscapes and can be aggressive, especially male turkeys during the breeding season.

Although turkeys may have adverse effects on people, the proposed recreational turkey hunting season is not designed to alleviate all of these concerns; however, in rural areas and some suburban areas, actively hunting turkeys can help mitigate some agricultural damage and may reduce the likelihood of turkeys acting aggressively.