Foggy mornings

[Bammer]

What is everyones experience in foggy mornings and birds activity? Flying down, gobbling....

[PALongspur]

I've seen both extremes. Sometimes they gobble their fool heads off, fly down at regular time and go about the day normally. Other times you can't yank a gobble out of them no matter what you try and you flush birds out of trees until well into the morning.

Turkeys are weird and no matter how you try, you'll never figure them out.

[2eagles]

If it's foggy, it's probably not windy. I don't like hunting turkeys in the wind.

[g8rvet]

Generally speaking, where I hunt in N Florida, foggy mornings just slow everything down. I killed one that did not leave the limb until 9:00 am-heard him fly down.  He gobbled 4 or 5 times on the limb on his own.  Once I was sure he was on the ground, I yelped once and then clucked a few minutes later and then just outwaited him.  It was so cool hearing him gobble and coming closer and then just suddenly appearing out of the fog at about 75 yards. 

[Gobbler2577]

One morning several years ago I was working a bird about an hour after sunup.  A real dense fog fell in the bottom I was in and that fool bird flew back up.  I was in college at the time and eventually had to leave him.  He kept gobbling regularly but he wouldn't leave the tree with all the fog around.

[shaman]

If you listen to my most recent podcast,  you'll hear my latest experience with fog.

I've got a theory.  Well, it isn't original, but it is one that had my interest.  The theory is that dewpoint deeply effects turkey's behavior.   Gently rising dewpoints in the morning enhance breeding behavior. Falling dewpoints cause it to lessen.   Fog is a very visual indicator of dramatically falling dewpoint.

I was out yesterday overlooking a saddle on a ridge.  I was on one high point. There were turkeys roosted on the other high point of the saddle, and also in the hollows below.  Fog was coming up the creeks and rising to where it would blow over the saddle and sometimes reach me and the gobblers over on the next hill.  The effects were stunning.  When the sun was hitting the turkeys, they were gobbling and yelping as I seldom hear this early in the season.  When the fog would blow over them, the hens would clam up, causing the gobblers still in the sunlight to go nuts.   Then the fog would hit the gobblers, and they would go silent. 

Me? I would sometimes get a fog bank that would hit me, and I had dressed just right for a bright sunny morning. When the fog would hit me, I'd get immediately chilled, and I would have to stand up and move around to keep from shivering.  A few minutes later the sun would reappear and I would start to warm up. I finally realized this was what was happening to the turkeys as well.

If this dewpoint theory is right, it might explain a lot.  It might explain why turkeys change their roost trees, and why they roost at different elevations.  It might explain why they like to pitch down and travel uphill most mornings.  In fog, where dewpoint suddenly becomes the ambient temperature,  turkeys may get chilled enough to stop being vocal as they have to work a bit harder to maintain their body temperature in the more humid air.

Yesterday, also reminded me of one of my old hobbies, caving.  In the caves, even though it was a constant 50-55 F, the humid air was a constant danger.  If you did not pay careful attention, it would kill you rather quickly. Hypothermia was always just a few minutes away.  Fog is the same sort of situation. The dampness sucks heat off a body more quickly.  You chill quicker.  You have to pay attention to keeping up your body warm.  My guess is that a turkey feels the same sort of thing.

[Dtrkyman]

sunshine and turkeys is like pb&j!

[tippatah]

Last weekend it was extremely foggy and I didnt hear one gobble or shot. This morning was overcast but no fog and they were gobbling their heads off.

[mgm1955]

My experience is fog will slow them down.

[turkey_slayer]

Have heard them gobble their fool heads off in thick fog and have seen it shut em down till it burnt off then they started so I can't say for sure how it effects them. I just go.

[mechanical31]

I was out Saturday morning in southeast missouri and it was very foggy. They were hammering for almost 2 hours. The barometric pressure was 30.15. That is the key it seems to me. I have a hunt log and pretty much 30.05 and rising and above is good. 30.1 and falling and they will shut up quick. I love hunting in the fog by the way. Just makes for beautiful mornings turkey or no.