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What hen sounds do you use that mimic a hen when she knows a gobbler is close or when she she's him?


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Quaver.

Soft cluck and purr ... may add soft yelp or 2 ...

Quote from: silvestris on April 05, 2023, 09:14:07 AM
Quaver.

Not sure how a turkey quavers. 


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Quote from: Greg Massey on April 05, 2023, 09:24:35 AM
Soft cluck and purr ... may add soft yelp or 2 ...

Thanks Greg.  I thought the soft cluck and purr/ soft yelps would be it.  I can do those with my mouth calls.


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A very soft purr on a mouth call.  Silence works real well when they are really close!

Quote from: Meleagris gallopavo on April 05, 2023, 09:31:46 AM

Quote from: silvestris on April 05, 2023, 09:14:07 AM
Quaver.

Not sure how a turkey quavers. 


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Soft as you can get 3 note yelp

There is never any perfect answer, but I try to call to him early on and then begin to shut down as he closes the gap. If he is coming, just let him keep doing so. The one thing about calling to a bird if he is close - if you can see him, he can also see to where you are and expects to see a hen moving around where that hen noise is coming from. Once he gets into sight, silence is your best friend. You can still scratch in the leaves if need be, but if you are making hen sounds in sight of him, he expects to see a hen and will 99.9 percent of the time not be good with not seeing that if he is hearing hen talk no matter how soft it may be. If you are using a hen decoy, you can ignore some of that sentiment.

That is why I try to set up so that when I can see him, I can kill him. That way I can still call to him all the way up to that moment when he appears and is in range of my shotgun. But even then, if he is coming - let him come and let silence be your best friend and maybe just scratch in the leaves if you feel that you need to give him something.

When I became a professional leaf scratcher, my success went way up more so than any last little sound that I could give him with my calls.

Mating scream

Quote from: mountainhunter1 on April 05, 2023, 03:20:32 PM
There is never any perfect answer, but I try to call to him early on and then begin to shut down as he closes the gap. If he is coming, just let him keep doing so. The one thing about calling to a bird if he is close - if you can see him, he can also see to where you are and expects to see a hen moving around where that hen noise is coming from. Once he gets into sight, silence is your best friend. You can still scratch in the leaves if need be, but if you are making hen sounds in sight of him, he expects to see a hen and will 99.9 percent of the time not be good with not seeing that if he is hearing hen talk no matter how soft it may be. If you are using a hen decoy, you can ignore some of that sentiment.

That is why I try to set up so that when I can see him, I can kill him. That way I can still call to him all the way up to that moment when he appears and is in range of my shotgun. But even then, if he is coming - let him come and let silence be your best friend and maybe just scratch in the leaves if you feel that you need to give him something.

When I became a professional leaf scratcher, my success went way up more so than any last little sound that I could give him with my calls.

I have seen leaf scratching turn the tables on gobblers! 


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In my part of the country, the birds used to tear the woods up. In recent years, hens are very limited in their vocalizations most of the time. One exception is when you see a large flock and then at times the hens will get pretty vocal at times. I think they feel safer in large groups.

I have wondered exactly why hens just don't talk as much as they used to. Two things I think contribute to this, even though it is not likely the whole picture. First of all - This change (at least from what I could see), seemed to coincide with the advent of custom calls and hunting videos where guys were cackling and cutting and calling loud and often and such and hunters went into the woods and tried to duplicate what they saw in the advent of the video hunting world. So, we went from the days when man had maybe an old box call or a an old home made slate from a coffee can or roof tile where he was lucky just to make a sound or two, - to the evolution of everyone having a vest full of calls and thinking they are Ben Lee or Preston Pittman.

The second thing that I think heavily contributed to the hens being much more muted is the explosion of predators. The numbers are just so much higher than they were twenty years ago where I live. I honestly believe that hens have learned to be more tight lipped to save their back side. Now, I am sure there are other factors, but I think these two issues have had a significant hand in the lesser vocalizations from hens today in the woods. But that being so - what is true in my part of the country may not be true elsewhere.

My point and to connect it to this subject being discussed - I have watched the hens and learned to evolve and also talk less where I live and hunt and my has success went way up as a result. A little goes a long ways. When that bird is coming, I just let him come. I can always say more, but I cannot take it back if I start off with too much.

Quote from: mountainhunter1 on April 05, 2023, 09:33:26 PM
In my part of the country, the birds used to tear the woods up. In recent years, hens are very limited in their vocalizations most of the time. One exception is when you see a large flock and then at times the hens will get pretty vocal at times. I think they feel safer in large groups.

I have wondered exactly why hens just don't talk as much as they used to. Two things I think contribute to this, even though it is not likely the whole picture. First of all - This change (at least from what I could see), seemed to coincide with the advent of custom calls and hunting videos where guys were cackling and cutting and calling loud and often and such and hunters went into the woods and tried to duplicate what they saw in the advent of the video hunting world. So, we went from the days when man had maybe an old box call or a an old home made slate from a coffee can or roof tile where he was lucky just to make a sound or two, - to the evolution of everyone having a vest full of calls and thinking they are Ben Lee or Preston Pittman.

The second thing that I think heavily contributed to the hens being much more muted is the explosion of predators. The numbers are just so much higher than they were twenty years ago where I live. I honestly believe that hens have learned to be more tight lipped to save their back side. Now, I am sure there are other factors, but I think these two issues have had a significant hand in the lesser vocalizations from hens today in the woods. But that being so - what is true in my part of the country may not be true elsewhere.

My point and to connect it to this subject being discussed - I have watched the hens and learned to evolve and also talk less where I live and hunt and my has success went way up as a result. A little goes a long ways. When that bird is coming, I just let him come. I can always say more, but I cannot take it back if I start off with too much.

I believe this wholeheartedly.  The turkeys here act very differently than they did many years ago.  The hens make a little noise when they get up in the morning and I hear a fly down cackle maybe once a year if I'm lucky.  Gobblers gobble like crazy on the roost, but you seldom hear one once their feet hit the ground.  If you hear a gobble during the day it's golden.  If I can get one to gobble mid-morning I feel like I can get him.  I've had few instances where then hens and gobblers went very vocal on one hunt 2 years ago.  I heard more turkey sounds that one time than I may hear 3-4 years combined.  I've hunted areas that don't see much hunting pressure and they're still very quiet.  I think it's predators.  We've had an abundance of coyotes and bobcats.  One guy that I work with had a bobcat tackle his decoy.  Most gobblers come in silent, so I basically sit still and call a small amount every 20-30 minutes.  Folks around here have a love/hate relationship with decoys including myself.  Either they kill your chances or they make a hunt quick and easy.  I'm gradually using them less and less. 

Anyway, I hope to use close calling at a minimum, mainly I want to make the right sounds to hopefully seal the deal.  It'll be situation-dependent.  But the leaf scratching can be magical.


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Even if you can't see him he maybe able to see you unless there is some type of physical barrier in the way. If you can hear the rattle in his gobble he is very close and it's best to be silent in my opinion. If he came that far, if your patient he'll likey come the rest of the way if your not exposed. By that I mean some type of cover In front or behind you to break up your outline and possibly hide a hen. Turkeys don't have depth perception so cover behind you can be just as good as cover in front if you don't move.

As far as the thought of hens becoming less vocal because of predation, over the some 30 odd years of hunting them I've never really heard vocal hens very often. I think what stage in the mating season and flock size definitely play a role. Early in the mating season as breeding begins there's a lot of sorting out to do and flock size decreases as the mating season progresses and hens leave the flock to incubate nests.

Also, I think overall turkey densities compared to the available habitat might  also play a role as flock territories may overlap causing some conflict between the groups leading to more vocalizations if they get into close proximity to each other. In some areas flocks can spread out across the countryside and others they maybe be forced to share some of the same areas.

I think available nesting and brood rearing habitat tend to congregate turkeys in certain areas in the spring. If that habitat is limited there will be competition between flocks in the surrounding area. If nesting/ brood rearing habitat is not localized than flocks will spread out according to availability.

I think hunting pressure plays a major role in flock vocalization. If turkeys are being noisy they attract attention from the 2 legged predator. The 2 legged predators are much more noticable to turkeys than the 4 legged ones especially these days with hunter numbers at a high and with the chosen tactics of the some of newer breed of turkey hunters.

Used to be 5 guys could go into the woods and the turkeys would be none the wiser unless a shot was taken. Not because they sit one one place and call but because movement was more subdued. There was more observation in an effort to learn how the turkeys are using the landscape. What areas they liked and which they seemed to avoid and why they where doing so. Now there's more hunters running around the woods and I mean that literally.

I think the evolution of the run and gun style of turkey hunting from nothing here let's go look for one to I'm going to run and gun every gobbling bird here til I get one has played major role in spooking more turkeys than in the past. There's limited effort by these hunters to understand what is happening around them. All they know is I hear gobbles over there and need to get to him as fast as possible and kill him. They don't take the time to understand why he's there they just know he is and that's enough for them. They don't think about the repercussions of their actions and how it effects turkey behavior. In the  heavily pressured public areas I've hunted by the end of the second weekend it's a mad dash to the safety of private land.

Coyotes could possibly be lending itself to quieter turkeys but I've hunted areas with high coyote populations and less hunting pressure or evening closures and on some evenings nothing lights up a roost more than a pack of coyotes howling and barking especially when the coyotes are in close proximity to the roosted birds. The gobbling continues after the the pack noise has ceased.

Another example would be great horned owls. From what I understand, other than hunters they are the leading predator for adult gobblers yet they still gobble at owls calls. They maybe shock gobbles  after a hoot but the gobbling usually continues even after the known predator announces his presence.

Paulmyr - with every post, I am reminded that you are a guy who has tagged out many many times. Good luck the next few weeks turkey slayer. Hope one of those new boxes gets it done for you.

Scratching in the leaves.

That drumming bird just over a knoll, or other side of a bush, are often the ones that hang, or just never show...  I feel at that point, they expect that hen to show herself?

Very soft calling for me at this point...  Soft chirps, purrs, or whines...  Leaf scratching (which with the wet green grasses I hunt is not always possible).

And...  all too often, I have a bird drumming in front...  Drumming stops, and there he is poking his head out (quietly) to a completely different side.

I quit doing what anyone does in the video world and paid more attention to real hens at 30 yds or less.  They make so many odd noises that can barely be heard at 20 yds by human ears.  I started making up sounds based on theirs that I can't really describe, but do on a ghost cut.  There are others I cannot replicate.  Very deadly the past several seasons!

Quote from: bwhana on April 06, 2023, 05:09:06 PM
I quit doing what anyone does in the video world and paid more attention to real hens at 30 yds or less.  They make so many odd noises that can barely be heard at 20 yds by human ears.  I started making up sounds based on theirs that I can't really describe, but do on a ghost cut.  There are others I cannot replicate.  Very deadly the past several seasons!

I've often thought hens made barely discernible noises.


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I had a hen come within about a yard of me on Tuesday. I actually thought she was going to come and peck a box call that was sitting beside me. Anyhow, she's feeding around and just doing her thing. It was all purrs, bubble clucks, and will-wills. Even while she was doing it I just kept thinking, "You sound like Dave Owens." I think in the end when they're close and potentially hung up you're just trying to desperately convince them that a hen is still there and that, 1) she's in a place they can't see from where they're standing, and, 2) she's not interested in coming to him. So for me it's a matter of trying to pitch calls behind me or in a direction that indicates she's moved slightly, and I want it all to be feeding calls. I want him to believe she's just doing her own thing and moseying on off.


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The barely audible sounds made by a hen are almost constant. Speaking as a timber hunter. The problem I have with making them when a gobbler is close, unless there's a solid physical obstruction between you and him, is you'll pinpoint your location more so than you already have focusing his attention to your exact location instead of having to look for you. Close would be a dependant on the hunter. For some it might 100yds for others it's half that.

I like a soft purr and scratch the leaves on the ground if he is close but out of view. Usually pulls him right in.

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Quote from: RemingtonRules on April 06, 2023, 11:27:32 AM
Scratching in the leaves.

This. And maybe a soft cluck

Quote from: Paulmyr on April 06, 2023, 07:28:19 PM
The barely audible sounds made by a hen are almost constant. Speaking as a timber hunter. The problem I have with making them when a gobbler is close, unless there's a solid physical obstruction between you and him, is you'll pinpoint your location more so than you already have focusing his attention to your exact location instead of having to look for you. Close would be a dependant on the hunter. For some it might 100yds for others it's half that.

Yes, experience and common sense has taught me to avoid calling at a bird I can see (or more importantly a bird that can see me).  While turkeys are not incredibly intellectual creatures, they have been conditioned to be cautious and avoid "something wrong."  Whether they pick me out, or whether they can hear a hen they cannot see, they generally know something is wrong, and "book off."

I have, and probably will again call at birds I can see.  Generally out of desperation of a last ditch effort to call a bird that is moving off.  If I am, or can get and call behind and obstruction (such as a large rock, knoll, or tree) I might try to do so.

Quote from: ChesterCopperpot on April 06, 2023, 05:53:52 PM
I think in the end when they're close and potentially hung up you're just trying to desperately convince them that a hen is still there and that, 1) she's in a place they can't see from where they're standing, and, 2) she's not interested in coming to him. So for me it's a matter of trying to pitch calls behind me or in a direction that indicates she's moved slightly, and I want it all to be feeding calls. I want him to believe she's just doing her own thing and moseying on off.

Well said!  I want him to know there is a hen there, but that she is not coming.  To me, excited yelping/cutting on a close bird tells him "hold on a minute, I am coming."   The perception of that hen moving (especially away) can be effective.  Subtle contented calls that emulate movement have been effective at times...  Sometimes that bird drumming just the other side of a knoll just wanders off, no matter what I seem to do though? :help:

And...  Sometimes those last few yards take a painfully long time...  He might travel half a mile to get to you in 2 minutes, then take an hour to come those last 20 yards.

If he is close, and I can't see him, I'll be patient and sit tight. If I know he's engaged and looking for me, no more calling. Leaf scratching is about it. My experience here has proven that the patience move on a close Tom finally breaks him and he commits just enough to get my shot.

Quote from: mountainhunter1 on April 05, 2023, 03:20:32 PM
There is never any perfect answer, but I try to call to him early on and then begin to shut down as he closes the gap. If he is coming, just let him keep doing so. The one thing about calling to a bird if he is close - if you can see him, he can also see to where you are and expects to see a hen moving around where that hen noise is coming from. Once he gets into sight, silence is your best friend. You can still scratch in the leaves if need be, but if you are making hen sounds in sight of him, he expects to see a hen and will 99.9 percent of the time not be good with not seeing that if he is hearing hen talk no matter how soft it may be. If you are using a hen decoy, you can ignore some of that sentiment.

That is why I try to set up so that when I can see him, I can kill him. That way I can still call to him all the way up to that moment when he appears and is in range of my shotgun. But even then, if he is coming - let him come and let silence be your best friend and maybe just scratch in the leaves if you feel that you need to give him something.

When I became a professional leaf scratcher, my success went way up more so than any last little sound that I could give him with my calls.

This...


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Nothing is easier or makes em come look like scratching in the leaves

Quote from: mountainhunter1 on April 05, 2023, 09:33:26 PM
In my part of the country, the birds used to tear the woods up. In recent years, hens are very limited in their vocalizations most of the time.

Have found this to be the case in the fall as well. After a good break on the flock, birds seem to fly up and stay on the limbs, clamming up for couple hours and get together with soft flock talk or they have a visual on another bird on the ground. Seems rare anymore that fall flocks call often and loudly when they reassemble.

Very soft clucks and purrs.  As mentioned, scratching the leaves can be deadly at times.