Turkey Hunting Help

[cbbase34]

Hi there, I have a few questions to ask you. How do you understand the wild turkey vocabulary? Im buying some videos on how to use different type of calls now, but when im out turkey hunting the tom turkey hangs up or it gobbles, but it just dont come in. People are saying something about a wild turkey vocabulary, so can you please tell me anything about this stuff. Thank you so much

[proturkeyhntr]

The first thing I would recommend is to goto nwtf.org. Then on the left click on "for hunters". Then goto "about turkeys" Here you will find some good info along with the sounds of the wild turkey.

Scott

[shaman]

Before attempting to talk turkey, it is probably best to listen to them. Get around a few flocks of hens and listen to them as the wake up and fly down in the morning. That will give you the best feel for what they are saying. The hen vocabulary is fairly limited to just a few concepts and emotions:

Emotions:
I'm happy and contented
I'm excited
I'm horney
I'm mad
Yikes! Run for your life!

Spacial Concepts
Come here!
Where are you?
You are too close, go away.

Gobbler's have a few extras:
Hey honey! I want you bad.
Look at this! It makes you hot, huh?

That's a good starting vocubulary. If it were French we were talking about, you'd at least be able to find a taxi, eat dinner, and find somewhere to sleep.

A good bunch of CDs that I use in the off-season to hone my calls is the "Spitting Feathers" series. The first one is just a large flock waking up in the morning and going about its business. It runs the full gamut.

Starting out, you will need to learn to do a just a few calls. Concentrate on the cluck and the yelp. The cluck is how hens keep themselves spaced apart when they're feeding or moving. It says "I'm here." Yelping is how a hen communicates over distance. It varies in temperature from the low tree yelping, "I'm awake, I'm here. I made it through the night again." to more excited yelps that indicate sexual readiness, the urge to join up with lost members of the flock, etc. Learning out to do a simple set of fairly bland yelps, is a good goal for beginners.

For a beginner, clucking and light yelping can be all you need to bring in a gobbler. Mostly, just sit there and stay quiet after you've made contact. Once he's heard you, he'll come in. Until you are sure you can talk turkey to a turkey, the best thing to do is to say as little as possible and hope you get by.

That's it in a nutshell. I'm in for the first part of the morning-- a bunch of small thunder bumpers are moving through. I got up at 5, looked at the radar and decided to make biscuits and gravy rather than suit up. There's something about walking around with a large metal pole in my arms, dodging lightning bolts that I find unnerving-- call me old fashioned.

[cbbase34]

Ok thanks guys i will wantch a few videos and read a few books and then give it a try, thanks once again

[old yelper]

Took a great bird opening day. 27lbs 2 beards 9" and " 1 1/2" spurs.
I've hunted about 5 hrs so far and have called in about 60 birds. Looks like it's going to be a GRRRReat Year. Good Luck to all you turkeyhunteres.

Old Yelper
QB ProStaff
Wyoming

[cbbase34]

Bagged a nice size hen today comming to the decoy........ thanks for the help people

[proturkeyhntr]

What???? I hope she had a beard......

[cbbase34]

No , no bear was a hen will have you some pics here later, came into the decoy, the tom would not come no farther, so i have to take what i can. thanks for the reply

[BuckNBeard Hunter]

It is illegal to take a hen in the spring unless she has a visible beard. I would not post those pics if I was U!!!!

[cbbase34]

Im proud of my bird, this is the way i see it, if people would help me do the right thing then i would be killing tom turkeys instead right?

[shaman]

If it was a legal kill, congrats. I'm happy for you.

In what state did you take her?

No one on this site is responsible for making you a responsible hunter. That lies strictly on your shoulders. What you did is yours and yours alone.

[cbbase34]

To be honest i didnt get no hen turkey, just wanted to learn on calling in tom turkeys is all, i got mad no one would help so i said what i said sorry for the troubles i may have caused, just wanted to learn something. thank you for trying to help me out

[Mr. Longbeard]

cbbase34-
Are you just messing with us? It's cool you called a hen in, but if it didn't have a beard it's illegal to shoot. I assume you're pulling our leg, if not, that's poaching.

[cbbase34]

LOL im pulling your leg i know better, now if i was mad enough i would kill me one lol, but i have not made it out this year yet, waiting around on my turkey decoy set up first. i was mad to mess with alot of people, sorry about that, i just want to learn like you pro's out there, i know that you do know this type of stuff. If anyone that can help me out i sure will be happy with it, thank you and have a nice turkey season later

[BuckNBeard Hunter]

I'm confused...... so now you didn't kill a hen, thats good. What are you mad about? I thought that proturkeyhunter and the shaman laid it all out on the line for you and told you what to do???

[cbbase34]

Im reading up on other forums and they say different stuff, you know how people is on the other sites, they say one thing and do another. thanks

[BuckNBeard Hunter]

well the best of luck to you anyhow.

[cbbase34]

You to thanks

[proturkeyhntr]

I posted this on your other cry for help.....just give it a read and go hunting...

Ok, this could turn into a several page article and I dont want that so I'll try in a nutshell to explain it. Shaman has offered some good advice as well. The first thing you need to understand is the breeding process of turkeys. You see we are reversing nature when we "call in" a turkey. A gobbler gobbles on the limb in the morning to attract hens. The hens will generally fly down and go to him, many times while he's on the limb. He pitches down struts and breeds hens. When he is on the ground throughout the day he will answer a hen when he hears one yelp, cluck or cut and she will then go to him. Now there's the basics. The gobbler calls in the hens and then shows off for them to win threre " love " or lust for that matter. In calling a gobbler worry about rhythm more than tone at this point in your hunting. Learn to cluck and yelp. Be able to reproduce these to calls at will. You'll get more advanced the more you call and practice. There are two other calls that will eventually be a must to learn. That is purring and cutting.

At any rate when you locate a gobbler off the roost. Try and get to within 100 -150 yards of him. Give him a series of soft yelps with a couple of soft clucks. This lets him know where you are. Give him two maybe three series of this. Then wait till fly down time. At that point you have to gauge your bird to see what he wants to hear. Less is usually better. Starting with a couple of clucks and leading into a yelp. See what his reaction is if he starts coming, then back off on your yelping just checking every 5 mins or so to see if he is still coming. If he starts drifting away then call a little more and sound more exciting with a little quicker rhythm and a couple of sharp fast clucks, basically cutting. Call to him just enough to keep him coming. As for mid morning into afternoon hunting you have two options. Running and gunning. Which is cutting and yelping and listening for a response. If no response just move out and cover an area stopping and calling every hundred yards or so. The other is what I call blind calling. Just set up in an area you know there to be turkeys and call every 15 minutes or so.

Hope this helps. Your best bet is to try and hunt with someone you know who is truly knowledgable and successful on hunting and calling turkeys. You can learn more in a weekend trip with him than bumbling around by yourself for years. Also read every piece of literature you can get your hands on about wild turkeys. From a biological standpoint, to calling the birds and hunting stategies. You just need to do some homework on your own.

There is truly an art to calling a turkey into gun range. Not the dumb two year old that comes running in at the first yelp you make on the call. but the bird that talks some agressive calling mixed with toning it down as well. Knowing when to call and how much. It will ultimately take some degree of trial and error on your part.


scott

[cbbase34]

I never have been hunting with anyone before, no one around here does that type of stuff. That is why there is so many questions. Now last year I did get a tom turkey but I had to go and stalk him I tried calling him and he hung up on me and would not leave his area. So I went and got up on him and took the bird. I still have a couple of questions from what i have read from you.

How do you know what rythm to use on the bird? Does that mean is the rhythm fast, slow, or what?

you said to make a series of yelps and clucks.. How many do you do of each in the series? do you break it up? do you so many yelps then a cluck and start over?

How do you gauge your bird? Do you do that by the 2 clucks then the yelp?

If i think of anything else i will post it, I really appereiate your time in posting this message it has helped a bunch. thanks again.

[dgarbus]

I recommend listening of some audio recordings of actual turkeys. Check out Tree Top Turkeys, I was given the CD a while back and I feel its a great resource if you are wondering what you are trying to imitate.

http://www.treetopturkeys.com

[proturkeyhntr]

Listen to recordings of wild birds that myself and sooo many have already suggested and apply that to what I have spoken of....It will all come to you...All hens have different voices remember that. There rhythms are nearly all the same. Your reading a little too much into how many clucks before each yelp and how many yelps and etc. YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO REAL HENS. Then come back with some questions....


scott

[cbbase34]

I did LISTEN TO REAL HENS, I listen to one's voice at my turkey decoys today. I set up on 3 tomes about 50 yards but could not see them from the brush, I set up in a open field with a pretty boy and a pretty girl decoy setup, So i called them for over an hour and they went out of range on me and no more gobbles from them. So I dont need to know about Listening to real hens, I need to know how to call that gobbler into gun range, I need to know what i did wrong today on my hunt? Thanks

[dgarbus]

You probably need to lay off the calls a bit. In my own experience, when a bird is coming in, it's best to just shut up and wait.

[cbbase34]

I done that a few times today, i remember i paused a few times today on them, once 10 min and the other 15 mins. Im going back in the morning and use the decoys again but go down the hill farther and if nothing i will just stalk them, work for me before just might work again. thanks for the reply