I'm trying to figure out a strategy for spring gobblers in KS and NE this spring. I would expect turkeys to be bunched up in fairly large groups in the winter through possibly March. I'm curious if toms are generally wandering around and quite susceptable to calling when these groups first start breaking up? Once toms have a group of hens I imagine they are tough to call away from hens....similar to a herd bull elk wth a herom of cows...and this is where the term "henned up" comes from? I imagine things change from year to year with weather and other conditions. I noticed that most turkey seasons don't tend to open until April. With elk hunting it is an advantage to hunt bulls when they first start rutting. I'm curious if this same thing can be true with turkeys? Any comments would be appreciated!
I just read through Ray Eye's Turkey Hunter's Bible and he addresses those very issues really well. It gave me some things to think about during early season hunts. I picked my copy up from the local library, so you might not even need to buy it to read it. Good luck.
Call them after they have broken up. Call them when the hens have slipped away to nest
If you can get the hens in the group real fired up they might come to you with the gobbler in tow.