Biology; bird behavior question?

[Marc]

Previous to the hunting season we had a week or so of uncharacteristically warm weather, followed by uncharacteristically cooler weather (with lots of rain).

Past couple times hunting, I have noticed bachelor groups of toms/jakes, and separate flocks of hens in the same area.

5-7 toms jakes roosting near about 8 hens.  The hens go one direction, and the toms go in another off the roost.  All birds are vocal.  The birds are in visual line with each other, and there appears to be little interest?

On nearby ranches (that I cannot hunt), I am seeing 1-2 toms with smaller groups of hens, and those hens seem to be separating later in the morning.

I would assume that if the hens are in full nesting mode (i.e. done with breeding) that they would not be on the roost, and certainly not grouped up?  I am assuming that these birds are running a bit late as far as the breeding cycle?

Just trying to figure out where these birds are in the breeding cycle?

[Spitten and drummen]

Man down here in Ms , the birds I am hunting act like they are done. Seeing hens feeding and seeing toms feeding and not strutting. In January we saw gobblers strutting around hens. This has been a awful season for me and a buddy on our place. We only hear a couple of gobbles on the limb and then silence the rest of the day. Pulling my hair out.

[Marc]

Man down here in Ms , the birds I am hunting act like they are done. Seeing hens feeding and seeing toms feeding and not strutting. In January we saw gobblers strutting around hens. This has been a awful season for me and a buddy on our place. We only hear a couple of gobbles on the limb and then silence the rest of the day. Pulling my hair out.

Are you seeing the hens feeding in groups or singles?  It has been my impression (or understanding) that generally when nesting that the hens become loaners, and at some point stop roosting to sit on the nest?

[Southerngobbler]

Man down here in Ms , the birds I am hunting act like they are done. Seeing hens feeding and seeing toms feeding and not strutting. In January we saw gobblers strutting around hens. This has been a awful season for me and a buddy on our place. We only hear a couple of gobbles on the limb and then silence the rest of the day. Pulling my hair out.

I'm having a similar season in N/W florida. I can't remember this low amount of gobbling in the last ten years. I guess I'm glad it's not just me. It might be the extra hunters in the woods. Everyone around here is off work and hunting full time.

[StruttinGobbler3]

Similar gobbling situation in Georgia. Very little gobbling. I can only recall one morning when the birds were really fired up. Switching roost locations like crazy and being really unpredictable the past week or so. There's also still plenty of hens around them making life difficult. Weird season so far.


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[rdjustham]

Similar gobbling situation in Georgia. Very little gobbling. I can only recall one morning when the birds were really fired up. Switching roost locations like crazy and being really unpredictable the past week or so. There's also still plenty of hens around them making life difficult. Weird season so far.


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Same issue on my place in SW georgia.  Was there 5 days, heard three gobbles on the roost and two on the ground on the last morning.  The birds i did see came in silent.  Headed back wednesday, hoping for some gobbling but the weather isnt looking too spiffy.

[Spitten and drummen]

Man down here in Ms , the birds I am hunting act like they are done. Seeing hens feeding and seeing toms feeding and not strutting. In January we saw gobblers strutting around hens. This has been a awful season for me and a buddy on our place. We only hear a couple of gobbles on the limb and then silence the rest of the day. Pulling my hair out.

Are you seeing the hens feeding in groups or singles?  It has been my impression (or understanding) that generally when nesting that the hens become loaners, and at some point stop roosting to sit on the nest?

I agree. I am seeing them in groups of 2 or 3. They should either have a gobbler behind them , feeding alone or sitting on a nest. In all the years I have chased these birds , and it has been many , I have never witnessed what I am seeing. Usually the first of April , the woods are lit up with gobbles and birds are working to a call. This year is absolutely crazy.

[StruttinGobbler3]

Similar gobbling situation in Georgia. Very little gobbling. I can only recall one morning when the birds were really fired up. Switching roost locations like crazy and being really unpredictable the past week or so. There's also still plenty of hens around them making life difficult. Weird season so far.


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Same issue on my place in SW georgia.  Was there 5 days, heard three gobbles on the roost and two on the ground on the last morning.  The birds i did see came in silent.  Headed back wednesday, hoping for some gobbling but the weather isnt looking too spiffy.

It's been tough like that all season. Only heard a precious few gobbles over this past weekend with most of them being way off. After about 8 to 8:30 all gobbling stops and you listen to silence the rest of the day. Non gobbling turkeys are tough, especially when your scouting intel is rendered useless by gobblers rapidly changing patterns and roosting sites. It's making for hard hunting.


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[eggshell]

I told you all before, they are instruments of the Devil.....

Just turkeys being turkeys.

[Greg Massey]

It's been tough in my part of Tennessee , everything greened up 2 weeks ahead of schedule , hasn't been this way in years .. from what I'm seeing first of April , the birds are way ahead in matting etc..

[NCL]

Marc,

It is similar up here in he north.  For the last twenty years or so I can go on my back deck and get responses from four to five gobblers as early as January and usually by March they are really sounding off. This year I only got one to gobble once from my deck. I am just starting to see a few gobblers strutting and the hens are still in groups. I hunted a private property last week that has several digger pines they roost in, in the twelve years I have hunted there we have always had several bird gobbling and daylight, last week not one gobble at day light. Did see a couple of hens. Hoping the warming weather this week changes things. Not sure what is going on

[g8rvet]

Where I am in NW FL, they were absolutely fired up for the first 10 days.  They seem to have quieted here in the last few days-but 4 of them are dead  .  The second Sunday of the season, we had our choice of five birds to chase on public land!   This past Saturday we heard three, one closest left with his hens, someone shot the far one (or at him) and we killed one.  Oddly enough, there were not many  hunters near us. Opening week there was one gobbling and 3 different trucks surrounded him like dogs on a bone.  We left that bird to them, don't know if they killed it but we heard one right near there from across the river on Friday, fired up at 10:30, so he may still be alive. 

[MK M GOBL]

We are still in stage of Winter Break-Up... I am see some birds who have split and moving around with harem hens, also seeing large flocks still together, on Sunday 9 toms with 27 hens.  What I am not seeing is jakes yet, leads to a bad hatch from last spring. I note this every year but have not been out to hunt yet, season doesn't start till mid April.


MK M GOBL

[roberthyman14]

Man down here in Ms , the birds I am hunting act like they are done. Seeing hens feeding and seeing toms feeding and not strutting. In January we saw gobblers strutting around hens. This has been a awful season for me and a buddy on our place. We only hear a couple of gobbles on the limb and then silence the rest of the day. Pulling my hair out.

I'm having a similar season in N/W florida. I can't remember this low amount of gobbling in the last ten years. I guess I'm glad it's not just me. It might be the extra hunters in the woods. Everyone around here is off work and hunting full time.

The woods have been packed for sure. Been able to hunt a bit of private this season as well as public.  Private the hens are loaners except 1 morning.  Still haven't had a chance to work a bird since I've only heard 2 gobbles

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[MShillhunter]

https://twitter.com/drshortspur/status/1241867856180060160?s=21

Something interesting I've been following.  This biologist radio collared 68 hens in central Louisiana and has been giving updates on where they are in their breeding cycles. 

On 4/3 just 1/68 had started laying and on 4/4-5 up to 15 hens had started laying.

Click on the linked tweet and you can read his thread updates. 


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