Do Flashlights Scare Turkeys

[joetex25]

Right up front, I apologize if this has been asked/answered at least one time. But I couldn't find it in my searches, so here it goes...
Of course much has been written and stated about the importance of starting the day off as close as possible to a roosted gobbler, and the concern of not alerting him/them to your presence. What I haven't read or heard is if in addition to the obvious problem with noise, is if turkeys are sensitive to light; specifically flashlights by approaching hunters. Especially in the early part of the season, there is minimal follage to block their view of approching lights, even from quite a distance.
So the questions are:
1. Are turkeys aware of and alerted by flashlights?
2. If so, are they less alarmed by light colors other than white, as in red or green?
Thanks for any input that is generated!!

Joe

"A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns by the mistakes of others". :)

[shaman]

I would say that it's a matter of how much flashlight and where and when.

I've been as close as 80 yards to a gobbler and hens and not had an effect on him. I was hunting amid dense cedars and I was coming in at first light. I was also keeping my flashlight pointed at the ground. If I had done it much later, or if I'd flashed it their way or if I had been in more open woods, I'd probably spooked them.

I can also tell you that probably everyone who comes here has spooked turkeys off the roost, and oft times done it with a flashlight in their hands. They don't flush when you're 300 yards away, nor 100. They wait until you're right under them and then bust off the limb and leave poop on your hat. That could mean:

1) They aren't afraid of a flashlight unless it's right under them.
2) They're scared stiff as soon as they see it, but don't panic until they think there is no hope of survival unless they bust at the last moment.
3) They're being cagey and they want to suck you in so they can poop on your hat.

I don't know which it is, but I do my best not to tip my hand.

[spurcollector]

First off, excellent observations by shaman...

I think they spook if they see anything. I try not to even use a flashlight if I can help it. I know sometimes you have too. I think if they see you at 300 yards and don't bust off the roost, it doesn't mean you haven't spooked them. They know where you are and at daylight when they do fly down, they aint coming your way.

If I have to use a light it's the green one, it's close to the ground, and only if I have to. I try not to. Sometimes I even wait until it gets a little lighter to move. Depending on where the birds are of course.

[proturkeyhntr]

I honestly NEVER use one when I'm even remotely close to where I am going to start my morning. Biologically speaking it is unknown what the memory span of an adult turkey is,(will he remember seeing the light after flydown?) but I'll be danged if I alert them in any way, to my presence. At best try cupping your hand over the end of your flashlight and let just a smidge of light through your fingers just enough to guide your way....It beats the heck out of broadcasting the full beam of light. Also something to keep in mind is if you get there and your using minimal light, aimed only at the ground and it is a substantial amount of time from daybreak, it may be safe. I'd rather slip, well before daylight and risk the noise than risk the light.... Lastly I have walked by many many gobblers on the limb, unknowingly, and they never spooked. Heck I've called them in off the limb and harvested many of them. One of the osceolas I bagged last year I heard in the tree above us.(not gobbling mind you just the limbs scratching against his feathers and some wing noises). I slipped away from him, set up on him and ended up harvesting him...

Scott

Scott Ellis

[joetex25]

THANKS guys! I greatly appreciate your feedback! I am one of newer hunters in this amazingly frustrating, though wonderful sport, so I'm trying to gather as much info as possible for not only myself, but also for others that may benefit from this information. As I've stated, it's always best to strive to be a wise man!! (It just might keep the poop off the hat!!)
THANKS AGAIN, and Safe Hunting to all of you!!
Joe

"A smart man learns by his mistakes. A wise man learns by the mistakes of others".

[shaman]

I'm going to give you a piece of advice, based on your question about flashlights that may receive some HARRUMPHS! from the others, but I think it's valid just the same.

Last year was the first time I did not bother to hunt flydowns. I've been hunting flydowns for 25 years now. I've had rotten luck. Most years, I concentrated on flydowns and I was usually so dejected by 0800 that I felt like my day was over.

This past year, I had two things happen. One was that the weather was unnaturally cold. The second was that I was having chest pains and a numb left arm. I promised myself that I'd go see the doctor after season, and that I'd stay out of the deep creek bottoms until I could get to see him. Notice my priorities here-- I was worried about my health, but turkey hunting came first.

Well, my strategy for last year was to stay up on top of the ridges and pick off gobblers that were following hens out into the sunny pastures, trying to get out into the sun and warm up. It worked. I filled both my tags in a week. The other thing it did was make my turkey hunting a lot easier. Before season, I scouted to make sure I knew where the flocks were roosting, then I set up at the best places to see them come out into the fields. We nearly had two more with my two sons and their youth tags.

My point is this: For 25 years, I've been banging my head against flydown and having some success, but not what I'd be proud of. I'm about 30-30-30. A third of the time the turkeys would fly down and walk off somewhere besides where I was set up. A third of the time they'd come my way and be interested. A third of the time something else happened that kept me from having a chance. For once I laid flydown aside and concentrated on ambushing mid-morning gobblers and I had really good luck. In fact, I felt like I could not fail. I finally realized that I'd been going about my turkey hunting backwards. I'd do all my serious work setting up to meet the demands of flydown and being disappointed when the turkeys decided to go the other way. Now, I was not worrying about flydown and remaining fluid at sunrise. I was engaging the turkeys later in the day and having much better success, because I did not have to scramble after they'd flown off the roost and walked off to do their morning routine.

Here is my new prescription for beginner success: Concentrate on where the turkeys are going after flydown. Set up ambushes there and wait for the turkeys to come to you. Save flydown for later, it'll come. I know it's probably the most exciting part of turkey hunting-- having a big ol' gob pitch down and come running in. I leave puddles when I think of the good times I've had. However, it is a time of the morning that is fraught with pitfalls, and it took me 25 years to figure that there is an easier way.

I finally went to the doctor and my EKG was perfect. The chest pains were coming from a dislocated rib from slipping on the ice while trying to get turkey camp ready. The sore left arm was because I'd been sleeping wrong on it. I bought a new pillow and the problem went away.

[proturkeyhntr]

Well, I can honestly say I have bagged 90% of the turkeys I have taken well after flydown and into the afternoon. But I would never count it out as an angle of attack. Plus merely the fact that hearing a gobbler rattle the woods at first daylight is uncomparable!!! So I'll take my chances and start my day early .....

scott

[TrophyTracker]

For sure,Scott and Shamen.Lots of insight here. I would say,being new to the game, you should spend as much time in the woods as possible.Fly-down,mid morn,and if legal,afternoon/evening.Experience is the best teacher,and the only way to get it is to get out there and grind.Each lesson that you learn out there,either for you or against you,will only make you better.The only difference between a trip to the taxidermist,and a trip to Beatdown City,is who's head is messed up at the end of the hunt,yours or the gobblers!Stay positive,and learn something EVERYTIME you step into the woods,and soon you will be the one giving advice to others on here.

You gotta grind,if you want to shine!

[shaman]

I had some more thoughts on this:


Bum weather-- the cold wave made the turkeys come to the protected narrow east-facing pastures to catch sun. I knew where they were going to be.

Chest Pains-- I had to be careful how I moved.

That led to the following strategy:

1) Scout extensively. Roost your birds, etc. Get their movements down cold.
2) First light would find you well back from the roost, listening, but still in contact with the birds
3) Maintain contact with the turkeys. Listen to them fly down, etc.
4) Make a few calls early-- just let them know there are other hens out there. See if you can get a gobbler to honor your call.
5) After the turkeys have set their course for the day, move to ambush them at the spots you know they will be.

This is what I was doing this past year. I decided to stay off the steep hillsides where the turkeys roosted. In the past, I had gone all the way down to the creek bottoms, hunted the turkeys as they came off the roost and then ran back up the hill to do an end-around and ambush them in the fields. Now I was just going out, standing on top of the ravines, and mostly listening.
I was out at first light, but probably didn't sit down and load up until an hour after sunrise. I deliberately held back, because of my ticker. The second gobbler I took on a day it rained cats and dogs, so I didn't go out until 0900 and had the bird by 1000.

Another thing that dawned on me last night after I posted the beginner plan was that all the turkey kills I see on TV are taken in good light. Nobody wants to shoot a gobbler for a TV show that's in the dark. The TV pros are all holding off and shooting in good daylight to suit their cameras. Maybe that's the hidden secret of hunting like the pros on TV, and it took the bum weather and chest pains for me to figure it out.

Or to put it another way: Beginners, myself for years, and most others I talk to, throw all their energy into getting a gobbler to pitch down to them from the roost. However, this is a tactic that has low overall success rates, even with accomplished hunters. It also brings out the worst in the beginning hunter, whose calling skills and woodsmanship may still be developing. If you're looking to bag your first bird, back off a bit and concentrate on what happens after flydown.