I am thinking of doing this next Spring as there is plenty of State Land in my area where Hunting is not allowed. Plenty of Hiking Trails though. Might do some filming with my smartphone . Anybody else do this?
All the time, even birds I'm going to hunt.
Check your state regs, it's illegal in some states.
If you can, go for it. It's a great chance to practice calling and observe and learn more bird behavior.
I call to the turkeys behind my house regularly. I don't hunt them but they give me a good barometer on whats going on so to speek. The neighbor boy hunts them but he hasn't been too successful.
Quote from: Happy on July 21, 2018, 09:03:19 PM
I call to the turkeys behind my house regularly. I don't hunt them but they give me a good barometer on whats going on so to speek. The neighbor boy hunts them but he hasn't been too successful.
I sit on my back deck and do the same thing. It is great practice on real birds.
With birds that can't be hunted by anybody, call to them all you want to. For birds that you are going to hunt, there is nothing good that can come out of calling to them before the season.
Quote from: GobbleNut on July 22, 2018, 03:29:15 PM
With birds that can't be hunted by anybody, call to them all you want to. For birds that you are going to hunt, there is nothing good that can come out of calling to them before the season.
Agreed.
Here's an idea for anybody that is in a situation where they can call to turkeys that are not hunted. Do this experiment: Go out and call to those turkeys on several occasions and take note of how their behavior changes. Or even better, call them in and then scare the heck out of them when they get there,...and then try to call them in again,...and again. Do that on a number of occasions and you will very soon learn why it is best not to call in turkeys you are going to hunt before the season. ;D
:newmascot: :newmascot: :newmascot:
Do it. Film it. Post it. Can't wait to see it. ;)
Quote from: GobbleNut on July 22, 2018, 03:29:15 PM
With birds that can't be hunted by anybody, call to them all you want to. For birds that you are going to hunt, there is nothing good that can come out of calling to them before the season.
^^^ :icon_thumright: :icon_thumright: :icon_thumright:
But if you're not going to be hunting these birds, go for it!! Great practice, and good filming opportunity also.
It's illegal here but I'd do it if it were legal. Always fun to call birds even if you're not going to whack one!
Quote from: GobbleNut on July 22, 2018, 03:29:15 PM
With birds that can't be hunted by anybody, call to them all you want to. For birds that you are going to hunt, there is nothing good that can come out of calling to them before the season.
This ^^^
Thanks GobbleNut
It's been my experience that calling in and of itself has minimal impact on turkeys. It's the extra curricular stuff that changes things. I won't call to birds I intend to hunt other than in a few select scenerios. Course I won't even go on the woods the two weeks before season. Enough idiots running around calling AND GETTING BUSTED by birds at that time. As for the neighbor, I couldn't care less about his hunting experience. He has been caught hunting my property once, left a dead doe that he supposedly couldn't find. ( less than 150 yards from his baited tree stand) and leg shot a buck at 70 yards with a crossbow that my neighbor on the other side had to put out of its misery a month laterwhen it was limping through their small field. They are ex -Amish and they fit the mold perfectly. Kill everything you can and then whine when it's gone. There is absolutely no thought of conservation in their head.
Quote from: Dr Juice on July 23, 2018, 05:12:22 AM
Quote from: GobbleNut on July 22, 2018, 03:29:15 PM
With birds that can't be hunted by anybody, call to them all you want to. For birds that you are going to hunt, there is nothing good that can come out of calling to them before the season.
Agreed.
X3 Completely agree, one of the first things I ever learned.
To each his own. I will NEVER call to birds that i am going to hunt until its go time. Birds that no one can hunt , well knock yourself out. Turkeys are not smart , they just have a knack for survival. Most know we are reversing nature by calling one in. They catch on quick. As posted above , go fool with them and watch how they become more and more difficult to call in. It would be enjoyable to have turkeys to fool with that no one is hunting for sure.
It used to be legal and I had a 299 acre park with no hunting that had a flock of about 45 birds that roosted in the park and spent their days at back yard feeders.
I'd go in a observe them more then try and call them close, mostly wanted to view their interactions off fly down with each other but I would "test" calls occasionally even those birds that you had to pretty much chase off the road to drive through didn't come running in at the first Yelp. They had piles of hens with them and although they didn't fear gobbling their heads off changing their minds about where they wanted to be wasn't much easier then a full wild bird.
My take aways were not often what made them gobble but how I interacted and effected the hens and what that did for the gobblers, talking with the hens was more beneficial.
I still go and observe them from time to time but no longer carry calls as the laws about it have changed. It's really great in a large flock to see how the dynamics change between boss birds, sub dominant Tom's, and jakes throughout the lead up to spring.
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Quote from: TauntoHawk on July 25, 2018, 09:03:48 AM
I still go and observe them from time to time but no longer carry calls as the laws about it have changed.
This makes me wonder why, in a place that hunting is not allowed, there would (or could) be a law against calling to a turkey there? Laws like that are essentially unenforceable, as well as ridiculous. I suppose free speech laws do not apply when speaking in "turkey"... ;D :toothy12: :toothy9:
I've got a ridge behind my house that consistently hold 4-6 gobblers every spring. It's property I don't have permission to hunt and doesn't get turkey hunted as far as I know. I practice on those birds every spring. A lot of the times I can pull them right into my back yard. I don't see any issue with practicing on birds that can't be hunted. It's a great way to learn without fear of messing things up.