Year To year Habits?

[guesswho]

I've asked this question before but it's been a while. 

I still hunt a piece of property that I did 20 years ago.  Same property over a twenty year span, no major changes.  It seems like the turkeys have been doing about the same routine for 20 years.  Roost areas, strut zones, nesting areas, travel routes ect.  Now to you and me the property looks the same North, South, East and West.  If you could remove all the turkeys from that property and replace them with birds from another county would they adopt the same basic patterns as the previous 20 years, or would the create their own patterns?  What I'm asking is do you think those patterns are a result of being conditioned to do so as a poult by the older birds at that time and then they in turn condition newer broods ect. ect.  Or is the patterns more the result of the terrain.   

[cahaba]

 Turkeys are interested in food,breeding and survival. If you put a new set of birds there they would do the same. Instincts. So the terrain (feeding areas,nesting ect.) patterns the older birds and the poults will follow them till they are old enough to follow the same terrain on their own.

[Publicland]

 In my opinion it's the terrain that causes how turkey use the area

[Swamp Hunter]

I have hunted the same property since 1979. We have a lot more turkeys now than we did then. We have had a lot of birds for the past 20 years and they do about the same thing every year. Our season opens in less than two weeks and unless something really strange happens, I can tell you where the birds will be from daylight until about 1:00pm. They are more unpredictable in the afternoon. I think they respond to the terrain and food supply.

I hunt on property with pine flats, oak-sand hill and river bottom hardwoods. I have killed a bird on opening day the past seven years in a row. I missed opening day eight years ago because of work. Hunting on the same property for all those years makes it a lot easier.

[strut2]

Never thought about that before. Good questions. I'm going to say its the terrain and they naturally all have the same habits and feel comfortable in the same areas. Just my opinion.

[AUDoubleBeard]

Never thought about that before. Good questions. I'm going to say its the terrain and they naturally all have the same habits and feel comfortable in the same areas. Just my opinion.

X2

[redleg06]

I think if you replaced them with "new turkey" they'd generally follow the same pattern on a particular property...

I think to a large extent, turkey are just turkey and they have basic things they are going to do during a given time of year.  Terrain, food sources, water sources are all things that are pretty consistent from year to year so the birds adapt to them accordingly IMO.    Obviously each bird is a little different and will have their own unique habits to an extent but I think they would use the land about the same, for the most part.

[TrackeySauresRex]

If I were to guess...... It would be close to the same. Based on the food,terrain,breeding,nesting areas. I have seen roost areas change on one piece I hunted for a long time. They were there for years and moved off. The big one would be survival. I think they'll change everything up if pressured.

[mnturkey]

I have hunted the same piece of property for about 20 years, it is public property and I am also hunting the same basic time.
The Turkeys have the same general pattern, if some factor changes, the DNR burns a field, the farmer changes the planting or they log a area, the Turkey pattern changes a bit but generaly speaking the Turkeys have the same routine. If you brought Turkeys in from somewhere else the Turkeys would have the same routine, except the ones from down south would have a accent.
All animals have the same basic routine, otherwise there would not be deer trails and game trails.

[Neill_Prater]

Very good question, and I'm guessing it is perhaps a bit of both. From my observations, limited as they may be on some properties, especially public land that I have hunted, how extreme the characteristics of the terrain has a lot to do with it. In other words, if you are hunting an area of primarily open fields and scrub, and there is a creek running through the property, it is a safe bet turkeys will likely roost somewhere along that creek. They may even have favorite "spots", and are probably influenced by the size of the trees, thickness of undergrowth, etc.

However, if you are hunting in areas of less extremes such as extensive areas of timber, etc, then I think they vary more in their habits. In other words, you might guess correctly that there will be turkeys roosted in that 80 acre patch of timber virtually every morning, but the precise location is often a tossup. Neill

[fmf]

From reading Joe Huto's experiences outlined in "illumination in the flatwoods" raising those wild turkeys, and how much they just know from instinct without being taught, I would have to say that the new set of turkeys would pretty much end up doing the same things and using that place the same way.

[Ded Goblr]

The drought has changed some of my country. The birds have moved from their traditional areas, to areas nearer water sources.

[Tail Feathers]

I think new turkeys dropped in that area would probably choose similar areas.  They use them for a reason, even if their is some habit involved from being raised and imprinted there.
Where I hunt, timber practices change the landscape every year or two.  Clearcutting, thinning, gas wells being drilled...it's different all the time.  But they tend to hang in the same areas...IF they can find a roost tree.

To a pretty big degree, I agree with the statement that "turkeys is turkeys".  But you have a clever way of asking these questions and making me realize how little I truly know about my favorite bird.