Arkansas Takes Turkey Hunt Off the Table

Photo: flickr / teddy llovet.

Officials at the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission absolutely refuse to talk turkey this week, thanks to a lawsuit filed by a local hunter furious with the department for canceling this year's turkey season.

Citing pending litigation, spokesman Keith Stephens declined to comment on the department's contentious decision last month to halt the hunt. "Nobody's going to talk about this," Stephens says.

According to a release issued by the commission, a close 4-3 vote determined the fate of the much-anticipated archery and firearm turkey seasons, previously slated to start this month. "I'm convinced we have a heck of a problem ... we're going to mess around and not have a spring turkey season if we don't do something," said vice-chairman Craig Campbell.

Backers of the ban say the state's turkey population has suffered from decreased breeding and increased predation; as the cash value of animal pelts has dropped, fewer Arkansas hunters are shooting the furry animals that like to eat turkeys. But those arguments apparently didn't persuade David Clark, who last week filed a lawsuit claiming the commission's decision was "arbitrary and capricious."

Bob Gleason, who annually coordinates the National Wild Turkey Federation's Boss Gobblers dinner held in the Knights of Columbus hall of Fort Smith, Ark., snickered upon learning of the suit.

"As far as I'm concerned, they's the ones who pretty much have a good idea of what's going on with the population," Gleason says of the controversial commission. "I'm not too upset about it."