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Post by lonniephillips on Apr 25, 2010 12:43:54 GMT -5
What is the deal? It was very hard to find any birds gobbling. around 18 years or so and have yet to see anything like this? We found several strutter's in open fields and when we called they went to opposite direction  The hens were out feeding and no sitting on the nest so... they must still be laying? I didn't see and pollutes running around so they haven't hatched... We heard like 3 birds that gobbled normal on opening day and after that things went south fast. many of these properties have no one else hunting these birds. we tried at least 7 locations  I have heard birds hammering up until the middle or end of may over the years. Have they evolved?  I'm holding out hope it will get better by the last weekend I can't hunt next weekend because my son has a 5th grade camp and I will be attending that |
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Post by freedomhunter on Apr 25, 2010 12:56:17 GMT -5
it is pitifull, worst I have ever seen, I gave up here and went back down to Kentucky because those birds will gobble some and work to the call late afternoon
you're not alone, some of the best hunters with awesome ground are not hearing gobbling, and when they do get in the fields in the afternoon they won't work, I'm taking a few days off, just way too many hens in most good areas
I've called in one gobbler to 55yd at 5pm, and had to pull him away from a big hen, otherwise called in hens and jakes (with hens!), never seen a jake strut or tend a hen until this year, too many hens, I would hunt the last 4 or 5 hours of light in the afternoon and hope for a lonely two year old
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Post by lonniephillips on Apr 25, 2010 14:15:43 GMT -5
I called in a tom opening day to around 60 yards , he caught movement of my buddy or I and didn't get any closer>
He only gobbled like 4 times before he hit the ground , after hunting this location a few days later we found the hens roosted and I think we just got lucky and had been between him and the hens on opening day.
We have seen lots of hens as well
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Post by crappiepro on Apr 25, 2010 16:45:08 GMT -5
Here in vigo and clay counties, I guess their checkin them in left and right. The guy mounting my bird said He's been busy, his place is a check station also. I heard them gobblin behind my house and then at another property Ive got to hunt at 1030 in the morning as we were walking and looking at the property lines. I tagged out that opening day evening ,this all might have chanced. Good luck, I know its never easy!!
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Post by davepowers on Apr 25, 2010 17:37:39 GMT -5
I watched 2 toms and a hen in a field this morning. The boss tom kept running the hen off, then another tom approached the group and the boss puffed up the the three left the new tom to go somewhere else. The only gobbled while on the roost. I did get them to gobble a few time with a box call but they did not movew my way.
Dave
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Post by gobblerstopper on Apr 25, 2010 20:04:48 GMT -5
It's those danged hens. And the fact that we are killing the gobble out of them.  We worked two birds this morning. One was right off the roost. Had him at 40 yards, but couldn't get a shot. Two hens flew down and couldn't even get him to come out of strut when he did hit an opening and he didn't gobble again the rest of the morning. About 9 a bird fired up and he was hot. Then we got too close and he took off.  |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 25, 2010 20:24:27 GMT -5
i had a lone gobbler in a food plot and then later had 2 more lone gobblers all run strait into the woods when i soft purred and clucked at them to get them closer. here in ky they are gobbling good on the roost then once they hit the ground they shut up. they have been roosting with hens and not coming to calls. i had to put the stalk on the bird i killed opening day cause they wouldnt come to calls.
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Post by freedomhunter on Apr 27, 2010 8:05:08 GMT -5
harvest numbers will be interesting, tight-lipped and acting like they are almost done, might just be deer-hunting them soon
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Post by lonniephillips on Apr 27, 2010 16:17:47 GMT -5
I resorted to that style the last few days i was down
we had hens come in but not Tom's
I hate "deer hunting" turkeys lmao!
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Post by tickman1961 on Apr 28, 2010 7:54:56 GMT -5
Opening morning I had a jake and feeding hen decoy placed 10 yards from a ground blind in plain site. Of the 10 birds my buddy and I saw, ZERO paid attention to the decoys or any calling. That opening moring we saw 3 jakes and 2 longbeards and never got one of them within 100 yards of us. We did see dominate hen chase another hen into the woods behind us and heard a few gobbles as they came down from the roost. This past Sunday I did not place any decoys out. The bird I killed was silent and strutting in an open field before I hit a box call about 3-4 times and put the call down. He continued to strut another 5-10 minutes before heading my direction looking for the hen.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2010 8:02:51 GMT -5
they are getting better in kentucky. i was out yesterday afternoon and birds were hammering their heads off. the more hens that leave to go tend to the nest the better it will get. this weekend should be good with next even better.
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Post by jkratz on Apr 28, 2010 11:48:14 GMT -5
I think the weather over late last week and over the weekend probably had them tight lipped. They should be pretty vocal now. The nice morning I hunted last week I heard a least a half a dozen different birds, called one in for my buddy Friday that gobbled 100times on this way in. Looked for mushrooms afterwards and had 2 birds fire off until 10:00 or so, almost non-stop.
Not sure why the birds are acting so much different your way.
Kratz
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Post by throbak on Apr 28, 2010 16:48:14 GMT -5
i heard birds as far as i could hear this a m but when they hit the ground that was it , was out all day roost gobbling only here
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Post by lonniephillips on Apr 28, 2010 17:42:26 GMT -5
well maybe it will get better , if it does I might call in sick to work next week lol!
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