Longbeards attacking a shot longbeard

[Bork]

When you have several toms coming in and you get one close enough to take but the others don't fly off but attack and viciously attack the shot bird.  Is this normal and will it usually happen with a group of birds.  Sometimes it's done by the toms but I've had hens do it too.  They are brutal to a shot bird. 

[GobbleNut]

It doesn't happen all the time, but it is common enough that hunters working together can sometimes double up by remaining still when one gobbler is shot out of a group.  That dominance gene has been the demise of many a gobbler who decided to take advantage of perceived weakness in a rival.

[TRG3]

I've seen gobblers not only flog a downed companion, but leave for several yards only to return and give him some more! While this might be interpreted as subordinate toms getting back at one higher up on the peck order, I also downed a tom with only three tail feathers (I could only see his head/neck when I pulled the trigger but noticed the tail as he flopped around.) that got flogged by others that followed a few minutes behind which could be interpreted as a bird way down on the peck order being punished by higher ups for his attempt at breeding. But then again, who knows what a turkey thinks?

[Hooksandspurs]

Normal i think. Not in production any more but you can find it on amazon, Primos made "dirty B" it flops like a dying bird.

[Divenut2]

Happened to me last season. Had two nice gobblers come in. Dropped the nicer of the two expecting the 2nd one to bolt. To my dismay, the 2nd one jumps on the dead gobbler and starts pummeling it! So i put the RedDot on his head and dropped him too. Good news is I tagged out at first light on day one...bad news is I tagged out at first light on day one! LOL. Spent the rest of the week cutting and splitting a few cords of firewood during the day and sipping oak aged bourbon in front of the fire at night. Here's a pic of exactly how they fell.

[MK M GOBL]

Have seen this many times and it is one of the ways we kill doubles. By identifying the dominant bird in a "gobbler flock" whether it be 2 birds or more and taking him first then the pecking order is re-established. Alpha is killed first, Beta will now establish his dominance (New Alpha) and so on down the chain. Even in an area where you kill a "Alpha" it makes it easier to kill the subsequent birds. This order happens everyday and knowing how to identify a "Alpha" of a gobbler flock is key in to doing this. There are several keys to identifying the alpha when you have multiple toms coming in more than just the basics of gobbling and strutting, keys of head color, snood position, body position, head tilt will lead you to this.

I have used a fighting purr to aggravate the "new alpha" in to coming back in as well, many time he does this on his own.

Here's an example of this with these 5 longbeards.


MK M GOBL

[g8rvet]

The funniest ones I have seen of this is when I let a young un shoot a jake out of a flock.  It is funny for lots of reasons.  The first is keeping the kid from shooting 2 birds and making sure they know which one to shoot.  The next is telling them to keep still to not spook the other birds after, that is just for fun, but I always try to that when field hunting-I don't like spooking any birds on that small farm.  Then watching the jakes pound the crap out of the downed bird.  Telling the kid why they can't shoot another and having them restrain from a slam dunk shot is an excellent lesson in self control too.

[Old Gobbler]

My father shot one and the other gobbler tore up that bird for over an hour , took off much of the feathers on one side

During spring they can get as mean as a fighting rooster

[fallhnt]

Pecking order. I've arrowed,doubles,triples and even quads.

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[waysouth]

I've seen this, it worked out well for my buddy that I was hunting with that day, not so much for the 2nd bird.

[unclee]

This has happened to me twice,  once a friend an I doubled  -  the second time I doubled.

[stinkpickle]

Sometimes, you can walk right up to the birds while they're "re-establishing the pecking order".  They get so preoccupied.

[kjnengr]

Not that I have a large number of gobblers under my belt, but.......

I've seen it on T.V. a bunch but, I have never witnessed it in person.  Most of the birds I have killed came in with another gobbler as well.  I've even tried fighting purrs and other things to get them to come back. 

[mudbug_4]

Nothing like a load of #6 to make a subordinate long beard quickly become the dominant bird! I have seen them pounce on the shot bird within seconds!