Harmonize turkey general open season dates

The public is invited to comment on the proposed hunting regulation described below.

Status: Proposed

Region: Region 8, Okanagan

Management unit (MU): 8-1, 8-9, 8-13, 8-23, 8-24, 8-25

Regulation type: Hunting

Species: Turkey

Closing date: February 13, 2026 at 4:30 pm PT

Current regulation:

Hunting and Trapping Regulations Synopsis (PDF, 13MB) page 68:

Proposed regulation:

Harmonize turkey GOS across Okanagan and neighbouring MUs by opening a GOS in MUs 8-13, 8-23, 8-24 and 8-25 during April 15-May 15 and October 1-Oct 15 and shortening the GOS in MUs 8-1 and 8-9 from October 1-Nov 30 to October 1-Oct 15.

Rationale:

Open turkey General Open Seasons in MUs 8-13, 8-23, 8-24 and 8-25 during April 15 to May 15 and October 1 to October 15:

Turkeys have expanded their range in the North Okanagan and harvest opportunity is desired with dates aligning with existing seasons in neighbouring MUs. Turkeys are a non-native species in B.C. but are valued for hunting opportunity. Turkeys continue to naturally expand across the southeastern part of the province and management objectives are to provide hunting opportunities where they occur. It is proposed to expand the existing spring and fall seasons for turkeys into areas where they have recently established.

Shorten fall turkey General Open Season in Management Units 8-1 and 8-9 from October 1 to November 30 to October 1 to Oct 15:

This change would harmonize season dates across the Okanagan and reduce unnecessary regulation complexity. Fall season dates vary slightly for two MUs to provide additional time for hunters to help address agricultural conflicts in the area, but feedback suggests that this has not been effective. There is no rationale to maintain different fall dates across Region 8.

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