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The Alabama Black Belt Adventures Association gobbler photo contest is now underway.

The spring turkey season began Saturday, the opening day of spring. Barbour, Lowndes, and Oakmulgee Wildlife Management Areas season will start next Saturday.

“Spring in the Black Belt is synonymous with hunting hard-gobbling eastern turkeys,” Alabama Black Belt Adventures Association Executive Director Pam Swanner said.

The winner will receive a copy of the recently released book by famed Alabama turkey hunter Ron Jolly entitled “Memories of Spring” and a limited-edition commemorative “Memories of Spring” box call that Jolly produced with another turkey hunting legend, Preston Pittman valued at $150.

The contest, conducted online at www.AlabamaBlackBeltAdventures.org/biggobblercontest, will begin on opening day and close on May 2.

Participants are limited to only one entry and must fully complete the online form with the necessary information, including person (or persons) in the photo and the county where the gobbler was harvested. Visitors to the contest webpage may vote once per day, per entry, per IP address.

Only photos of turkeys taken in the Black Belt during the 2020-21 season (including those taken in Clarke and Monroe counties during the 2020 fall season) are eligible.

Previous winners of the Big Gobbler Photo Contest from 2018-19 and 2019-20 are not eligible this year.

The Black Belt includes the following counties: Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Choctaw, Clarke, Conecuh, Crenshaw, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Monroe, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Russell, Sumter, Tuscaloosa and Wilcox.