Turkey hunting forum for turkey hunting tips

I wish this site had the option to post a poll. But a few post lately makes me want to ask this question.

Do you think we can reverse the declining turkey populations?

To me this is a yes or no response. There are plenty of threads about what we can do or needs to be done and so in.

My answer is no. Primarily because money will always rule the world and there is either. A) the timber and land will always be needed for homes and businesses and economic reasons. Or B) there is not enough money to make the changes for the turkey to be successful. And the money used towards turkey can bring 10x the return if used in reason A.

I say yes.  I'm always an optimist who has to be proven wrong.   I think if we get enough stars to line up at the same time populations can rebound.  But it's like being stuck in the mud, once you start to make progress don't take your foot of the pedal.

It was fixed before with much worse numbers than now. Question is, how much is it worth and are states willing to invest to preserve the resource?


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When it was fixed predator numbers were low from increased fur prices. 

Quote from: 2flyfish4 on June 09, 2022, 11:51:14 AM
Do you think we can reverse the declining turkey populations?
My answer is no. Primarily because money will always rule the world and there is either. A) the timber and land will always be needed for homes and businesses and economic reasons. Or B) there is not enough money to make the changes for the turkey to be successful. And the money used towards turkey can bring 10x the return if used in reason A.

Yeah, declining wild turkey numbers could be reversed,....but it will take a wide-ranging attitude adjustment from a whole lot of people,....hunters and non-hunters alike.  Will that happen?  Put me squarely in the "skeptic" column...

x2 GNUT. People are morre unforgiving now than ever. No middle ground anymore. Both ends are increasing and inflexible.

Yes, it can be fixed ... IMO

 YUP.

Yes

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I think yes also because the situation is not too far gone yet. But it couldn't hurt to start thinking about and valuing turkeys like we do big game. You wouldn't travel around the country shooting 12 bears or moose every year.

Quote from: GobbleNut on June 09, 2022, 12:32:18 PM

Quote from: 2flyfish4 on June 09, 2022, 11:51:14 AM
Do you think we can reverse the declining turkey populations?
My answer is no. Primarily because money will always rule the world and there is either. A) the timber and land will always be needed for homes and businesses and economic reasons. Or B) there is not enough money to make the changes for the turkey to be successful. And the money used towards turkey can bring 10x the return if used in reason A.

Yeah, declining wild turkey numbers could be reversed,....but it will take a wide-ranging attitude adjustment from a whole lot of people,....hunters and non-hunters alike.  Will that happen?  Put me squarely in the "skeptic" column...

Did we give up when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor,
No, we dug in, sacrificed and stuck it out

 yes -but it's gonna take some sacrifice for the hunters in limits and season length not that I think this is the cause of decline but this will come along with other measures as we try to turn the curve upward

Nothing there to fix.  This is typical long term game fluctuations.  They will go down and they will come up.  Nobody knows how long it will take.  Can't control Mother Nature. 

There's a difference between fixing and influencing.

Yes

Quote from: crow on June 09, 2022, 10:23:54 PM

Quote from: GobbleNut on June 09, 2022, 12:32:18 PM

Quote from: 2flyfish4 on June 09, 2022, 11:51:14 AM
Do you think we can reverse the declining turkey populations?
My answer is no. Primarily because money will always rule the world and there is either. A) the timber and land will always be needed for homes and businesses and economic reasons. Or B) there is not enough money to make the changes for the turkey to be successful. And the money used towards turkey can bring 10x the return if used in reason A.

Yeah, declining wild turkey numbers could be reversed,....but it will take a wide-ranging attitude adjustment from a whole lot of people,....hunters and non-hunters alike.  Will that happen?  Put me squarely in the "skeptic" column...

Did we give up when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor,
No, we dug in, sacrificed and stuck it out

I see what you did there.

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Yes......but todays turkey hunter won't like the sacrifice required.

Quote from: Roost 1 on June 10, 2022, 07:12:44 AM
Yes......but todays turkey hunter won't like the sacrifice required.

Agreed with that. I wonder how much trapping would contribute with the other parts


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No. I'm not saying that turkeys are gone. There are places that they will do fine for decades to come.
However the large scale change of the landscape and population expansion will not allow the turkeys to be like they once were. I saw a stat a while back not gonna say it is dead on but the stat was that 6000 acres per day are lost to expansion. I've hunted in 40+ states and it is almost everywhere that they are expanding and converting habitat into apartments, gas stations, etc,etc.
Couple this with the fact that MOST landowners are only worried about the $$$$ and don't give a rats butt about turkey/wildlife habitat. I see it almost everywhere I go but especially in the south large  blocks of hardwoods being converted into short rotation pines. Turkeys can survive in an area where it is mostly pines but not in the numbers they do when they have a good balance of habitat. Also on habitat you see more and more farmers clearing ditch banks, cutting the few acres of woods around a field, etc, etc to expand there tillable ground.  I understand it but again more and more habitat lost.
We are repeating history from the 1800's when we removed the suitable habitat for many soecies.

As soon as the majority sees that humans, can't do as much damage in 30 days, as the predators do 24 hours a day 365 days a year things will start to get better, until that point.   No

No. Too many "kill at all cost, social media heroes, and not enough traditional "Turkey Hunters" left in the ranks. With that said, there will always be huntable populations in certain pockets around the country. For those Turkey Hunters, who are not concerned with hearing 50/11 Turkeys gobble every morning like they did back in 1997, there will always be a Gobbler or two to yelp up in these certain pockets, Spring and Fall ;)