“Less for us to chase, less for predators to eat”, are they getting smarter?

[zelmo1]

In the last 5 years I have seen significantly less turkeys and significantly more predators and egg eaters, that is just a fact. The reasons are a matter of opinions though. Is it this or that, I think it is a little of all the negatives. Predators, including us, more new hunters, less habitat. I think there has to be more turkeys than I am seeing, so where are they. The cagey nature of these birds has been heightened by all the reasons listed above. It is up to us to adapt, as they are adapting every day. More patience, better tactics etc. If it were easy, would you still get the rush you get now. Give them all masters degrees and move on, lol. Summed up, turkeys are getting harder to kill so we need to adapt. Good luck fishing and golfing my friends. Z

[Tom007]

In the last 5 years I have seen significantly less turkeys and significantly more predators and egg eaters, that is just a fact. The reasons are a matter of opinions though. Is it this or that, I think it is a little of all the negatives. Predators, including us, more new hunters, less habitat. I think there has to be more turkeys than I am seeing, so where are they. The cagey nature of these birds has been heightened by all the reasons listed above. It is up to us to adapt, as they are adapting every day. More patience, better tactics etc. If it were easy, would you still get the rush you get now. Give them all masters degrees and move on, lol. Summed up, turkeys are getting harder to kill so we need to adapt. Good luck fishing and golfing my friends. Z

You're dead on here Z, harvesting a gobbler now gives us all an unmatched feeling of accomplishment for sure!

[JeffC]

After a year of not seeing Mature Toms in the areas I was hunting, spent last year finding new areas, found some at end of last season. Hunted them this year, they had lot of pressure from youth day on. Heard very little gobbling after fly down. Finaly mid-season when pressure started to drop, Toms started responding and got lucky to take 2 well educated Toms. First Tom even had fresh shot in breast. While hunting this area, public, I got to listen to all the trucks running in every morning, Toms gobbled on roost, quiet after fly down. Mid season, less trucks, Toms were more and more talkative. Never once heard a Tom gobble when I could hear a vehicle. Most of these birds were on private but would sneak into public when they thought it was safe.     

[GobbleNut]

"Smartness" in turkeys is generally a function of their experience in life in avoiding predation...both in the form of those natural predators AND the human kind.  Personally, I have seen very little evidence over the years that non-human predators are much of a concern for ADULT turkeys.  I would be willing to bet certain appendages that human-caused mortality of adult male turkeys far exceeds any other cause. 

Now, to the question of "are gobblers getting smarter?"  Personally, I don't think so.  There are just a lot fewer of the "less smart" ones in the woods due to the fact that there are just a lot more people hunting them...and using tactics developed over the last few decades that gobblers are much more susceptible to. The less-smart turkeys in any significantly-hunted population are just getting killed faster than they used to be...and the ones that don't end up being killed are reaching that "smartened-up" phase of life a lot quicker, as well.

Combine that fact with the lack of survival of young-of-the-year turkeys in seemingly increasing numbers of places and we have a sure-fire recipe for the only gobblers left in the woods being those "smart" ones that have learned those predator-avoidance behaviors we are seeing more and more of...especially the human kind of predators.

[Dougas]

A few years ago, I was finding adult turkey feather piles all over my hunt area. I started seeing mt. lion tracks and the fish and game came out to the property and euthanized a female cougar and her two nearly one year old cubs. The fish and game signed them over to the land owners and I mounted cougar skin rugs out of them for the property owner. I suspect bobcats, dogs and coyotes could prey on adult turkeys also.