Jakes! To Shoot or not to shoot? That is the question!

[jb1069]

After reading a topic on here it got me to wandering. What is everyone's opinion and why? Personally I like to shoot older Toms like most people. BUT, Is there really any reason other than just wanting the bigger ,older, wiser bird? It is still a male turkey. If you take a jake instead of a mature tom you have still left a good bird in the field. Is there any research that says passing on jakes is better for the population? I am sure this has been discussed but just thought I would ask. Thanks

[NCL]

For me it is a restriction I put on myself to not shoot Jakes when I first starting hunting turkeys. I rally do not have a good reason other than it was something I decided to do, When I started taking my daughter turkey hunting a few years ago I told she could shoot any legal bird but she decided to follow the no jake rule. Multiple times she had jakes in shooting range, once at about 15 feet and she held off. I guess for me it is more about the hunt and very much less about the kill.

[guesswho]

Me, know!    Anybody hunting with me, their choice.  If they're smiling I'm smiling.

[jhoward11]

This is just me personally... I would relate it to shooting deer. Some people are shooting the first thing that comes by ( if it's brown it's down), others look at Jakes like a spike buck. Their kind of dumb and do stupid things which make them an easier target to take down. Others, want the challenge of calling in and out-smarting that wise old buck (or Tom). AS mentioned in the other post, depends on first time hunter, or seasoned hunter. For me, I like shooting just the Tom's, as it gives the jakes another year or two to wise up and give me a challenge. I love the hunt ( even if it doesn't work) as much as the kill itself.

[HookedonHooks]

If you like eating turkey and are limited by tags, you'll get a lot more meat off a mature Tom than a jake. Maybe close to double.

What I say for me and those I'm hunting with, if a jake gets the heart thumping, and he plays the game like a mature smart bird, he's gonna die like one just the same.

[Sir-diealot]

Well for me when I had my car accident and pretty much lost all hunting for 17 years I was not dreaming about deer, I was not dreaming of duck, I was not dreaming of pheasant and I was not dreaming of jakes, for me the dream was to be able to get back and shoot a tom and with help and advise from members here I was able to tag my first turkey, a nice tom and it meant and still does mean the world to me. That said I think a person should be able to make their own choice one which they take. I had a jake land on my blind this year and go sliding down right in front of me and stand around trying to figure out what was going on, he gave me a good memory to share and to me he served his purpose for the year.

Now I know if it is scientific but Spring of 2021 I never saw a turkey til the last day of the season and then 5 jakes came out in front of me, I could have taken any of them but chose to let them walk, this Spring was the best season we have had there in quite some time, saw plenty of turkey including several toms. Maybe letting them go the previous year had something to do with it, maybe not, but I would like to think it did. I choose not to shoot bearded hens in the Spring and no hens in the Fall, just my choice.

[GobbleNut]

As others have stated, I will not shoot jakes myself, but in most instances, if somebody I am with decides to shoot one, I am generally fine with it,...and especially if that hunter is a newbie.  Now, if one of my experienced hunting buddies decides to shoot a jake, again, I am fine with it,...but that person is going to take a serious, but good-natured, "ribbing" from me (and everybody else in our hunting group) about shooting a jake.  That's just the way we roll.   

Above, I said I was "generally" fine with shooting jakes.  The exception for me would be if I was confined to a property where the turkey population was struggling.  In that specific case, I would be hesitant (if I were in charge) to allow the shooting of jakes and would probably establish some "up-front" rules to everybody about passing on them.  That rule would include an educational process wherein I would explain that a one-year-old gobbler has a good chance of surviving,...and reproducing,...if we give him a chance to live for another year or two. 

In healthy, stable turkey populations, if somebody wants to shoot a jake,...have at it.  It will just mean one less "voice" to be heard in the turkey woods next spring.  For me personally, having that voice to be heard in the future means more to me than shooting it as a one-year-old jake just to say I filled a tag.   However, as to the original post, I think allowing the decision to shoot or not-to-shoot to be made by that new hunter is the proper way to approach it. 

[barry]

To each his own!
I have no issues with someone shooting a Jake if it makes them happy

[Happy]

In 20 or so years I have killed 3 I can think of. The last was a clear case of mistaken identity. He gobbled like a mature tom and the glimpse of his fan s he was approaching said mature. The next time I saw him was the top of his neck and head at 20 yards. I shot him and it turned out he was a super jake with all but 2 of his tail feathers grown out. I took all 17 pounds of him home and ate him happily. If I had known I would have passed but he was still fun.

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[crow]

In 20 or so years I have killed 3I can think of. The last was a clear case of mistaken identity. He gobbled like a mature tom and the glimpse of his fan s he was approaching said mature. The next time I saw him was the top of his neck and head at 20 yards. I shot him and it turned out he was a super jake with all but 2 of his tail feathers grown out. I took all 17 pounds of him home and ate him happily. If I had known I would have passed but he was still fun.

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You might get away with the "mistaken identity" spiel for 1 or 2 of them but 31 jakes in 20 yrs is pushing it just a bit

[zelmo1]

Shoot legal birds, after that it is a personal choice. I don't but I have no issue with it. Especially kids or newbies. Z

[Happy]

Hey in my defense I specified " the last" !!!

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[quavers59]

  Jake's are on the menu for Fall Turkey Season . Too many Hens also in my area. If 10 Hens fly down in front of me again like last Fall Turkey Season,I am Blasting one again.

[Hook hanger]

I have seen quite a few hunters shoot jakes out of state just so they don't eat tag soup and say that they have killed  in x number of states while chasing a  us slam. I personally don't get why a person could get excited  over killing a jake. Guess its like a participation  trophy  in a kindergarten class to me.

[WV Flopper]

 LOL, you can keep your trophy's for Tee ball and I will take a Jake.  It does depend greatly on my daily attitude but I have no problem with you, your kid, your neighbor, or ME killing a Jake.

I have killed them, and WILL kill them again! Do as you want and don't be condescending upon others. Your beliefs do not make a law.

Some of you guys.