Gobbling

[simpzenith]

Gobbles most definitely use gobbles as a communication to other turkeys, not just to attract hens. I've witnessed it on several occasions where a gobbler was gobbling solely for the purpose of locating his gobbler buddy.

[tha bugman]

Gobbling to a bird can sometimes be just the thing to make him commit.  Seen it happen more times than not.

[Howie g]

Most folks I've heard trying to mimic a gobble font sound even close to the real thing .

[MK M GOBL]

They gobble all year long, so definitely a form of communication. I have also had gobblers yelp, purr and putt. But back to the gobble, from what I have seen is in the social structure of the flock and other birds can distinguish one gobble from a gobbler than another. I.E. Had a group of 3 young toms I had been watching in a field daily and a single solo tom would show up (Alpha) and the other birds would leave, at times his gobble was enough to have them hightail it out of there. I have also seen when I have killed the alpha it changes up the social structure of those birds and makes the remaining toms more susceptible to calling, IMO they no longer are hearing the Alpha and are now responding to hen calls better. I have a lot more I have learned between all this as it was a big part of "learning turkeys" for me.

Attached is a favorite pic of mine pointing out the social structure of a flock.


MK M GOBL

[saltysenior]

50 white toms inside a pen....blow the truck horn and 49 gobble at the same time......a wild turkey will gobble at a horn , thunder or even a shot just as readily as a owl, crow or a gobble call...how can this be presided as communication ?   

[Greg Massey]

50 white toms inside a pen....blow the truck horn and 49 gobble at the same time......a wild turkey will gobble at a horn , thunder or even a shot just as readily as a owl, crow or a gobble call...how can this be presided as communication ?

Lot's of difference between pen gobblers and wild gobblers. Wild gobblers using gobbling as a way of communicating beside trying to always lure hen's. I guess you could say a lot of us have spend enough time in the fields and woods to understand some of this communications.

[tal]

 We ascribe intelligence to birds that beat us when hunting them that they do not deserve. They operate on pure instinct. God gives them that coming out of the shell. No smarter than they are they do communicate like animals much higher on the 'smarts' scale.  Turkeys talk to each other, never doubt that. They do respond to loud noises, don't know why. When pressured birds get lock jaw be listening in front of a thunderstorm and see if you don't find some more.