Hardest subspecies of turkey to hunt? (Explain why if possible.)

[woodhavenman]

.

[neal]

They all are easy if you have enough $$$$$$

[GobbleNut]

Here's my opinion, based on my own personal experiences with each subspecies:

#5 (easiest)----Goulds----as a subspecies, they haven't been hunted enough, as a whole, to develop good survival and hunter-avoidance skills;  easy to call, in most instances, and mostly clueless as to recognizing humans as being dangerous to their well-being.  Cons---mostly hunted in Mexico, which is a real pain-in-the-assumption logistically for almost everybody,... not to mention you, instead of the turkey, could end up dead down there right now.
#4---Merriams---these guys can be difficult at times, but they have the unhealthy habit of gobbling way to much for their own good.  A turkey that keeps telling everybody where he is all the time is eventually going to end up dead.  The only reason Merriams are #4 rather than Rios is because Merriams are much slower to react to close range encounters with hunters than Rios are.  If you get a Merriams in close, unless you are totally inept with your shotgun, he is a dead turkey. (...and yes, there have been times when I have been totally inept!)
#3---Ryoh Grandys---where they are plentiful, you can't help but kill one.  Like Merriams, they often will gobble to beat the band.  They also like to roost in the exact same spot every night, which is as good as a death sentence for them if somebody has more than a day to hunt them.  They beat out Merriams for the #3 spot because their reaction time in close quarters with hunters is much faster than their lighter-feathered cousins.
#2---Osceolas---I have hunted them the least of the five,...only three times, but have had little trouble killing them.  Of course, my hunts have been on private property with lightly-hunted birds.  I would suspect hard-hunted, public-land Oscies can rival turkeys anywhere for difficulty, though, so I can accept any criticism of my #2 choice here.  Cons---those that have them on their property somehow think they are made of gold;  i.e.-- my arms and legs are still important to me.
Numero Uno---the Mad Gobblers (Easterns)---this is really a subjective choice because most of my Eastern hunts have been public land affairs in an area where there aren't a lot of them to start with.  In that spot, however, they are some tough, frustrating customers.  They won't hardly gobble...ever...and that in itself makes them border on being no fun at all.  Their reaction time is lightning fast, and if you so much as blink when they are close, they are gone in an instant.  They seem to be the least predictable and most paranoid of all.  I love hunting them, love hearing that angry gobble of theirs, even though they are way too stingy with them.  When I kill one, it comes with a great sense of satisfaction.  In my book, they are the kings!

Jim

[yukonhunter]

def  easterns   not as many and over hunted

[Gobble!]

easterns and what he said

[joshua]

Never hunted any of the others but the Eastern wild turkey will at times make you second guess everything you ever thought you knew about hunting them.  I was always told a critter is gonna do what a critter wants to do and every season I am reminded of that fact. 

[Boparks]

I really like  how Gobblenut laid it out and I'm in agreement with his assessment.

I've  hunted all of em except the  Gould....To me the Eastern is the toughest

I've only hunted Oseolas one weekend but I killed a bird the first morning. I'm sure there's an argument for this bird to be the toughest due to limited geographical location and the public land birds and quite honestly, hunting pressure being the same, I'm not sure just how different these birds are from Easterns.

I will say:

I had this discussion with two Florida boys that hunt with me in Texas. they agreed that although sometimes their Osceola could be as tough as any, day in and day out, they have a tougher time kiling Eastern birds on their lease in Alabama and Georgia

I realize any bird that gets pressure can be tough but I've hunted Rios and Merriams  for tha past 7 years and it's been a slaughter compared to hunting here at home in Georgia. Like Jim kind of said, part of their problem is they can't keep their mouths shut.

If I looked at it as Days hunted per bird killed....Rios and Merriams avg about a bird a day for what I've killed and more than a bird a day if I factor in birds I've called in for others on those hunts.

It ain't a bird a day on Easterns

[870BkWht]

I can not comment on other subspecies, nor can I say what the hardest bird is to kill.  I will say that turkey hunting in general isn't as easy as it looks on TV or hunting videos.  Thats just my opinion. 

[Scottyb]

I have only hunted easterns, however a guy I know has killed  a bird in every state on public land, except in ND ( he did kill one there on private.}

His assesment was that the Eastern is day in and day out around the country the hardest of all, with the merriam being the easiest. He also said that the hardest place to kill an Eastern was in the area of South Carolina public land that I have hunted.  I can attest to the difficulty of these birds, they will cause you to pull your hair out....

So not sure if he is correct, but his assesment is based on hunting public ground in every state in this country, so while it may be a little biased and by no means gospel, it is a pretty good opinion.

[drum817]

The Easterns here in western NC are the hardest birds in the world.....if you don't believe me just come give em' a try 

[sodfather]

The Easterns here in western NC are the hardest birds in the world.....if you don't believe me just come give em' a try 

A N.Y bird gets my vote cause I never gone anywhere else

[gobbler74]

I wont say there arent as many Easterns because they have the greatest range of all..I do believe that public land easterns especially in hard hunted areas are the toughest. It's kind of by the numbers though..ex. If there were as many hunters per square mile in merriam territory as there were easterns I guess they would be tougher too..I cant imagine any other gobbler having as much pressure as the Osceola..I believe the toughest gobbler to hunt considering terrain and pressure may well be between Fla and Va among the southern states on public land with the hardwood ridges and pine thickets among other bramble.  The gobblers on average seem to not want to move but so far before he hangs up or meets terrain barriers. It is mentioned that turkeys have more personalities that any other animal in the wild..so consider what kind of mood the gobbler you are hunting tends to have also. I have had tough hunts all over and the easier hunts as well. The hardest have been on pressured public land..Am I correct in saying that there are more easterns on pressured public land  with hunter competition than other species? That would be my guess to why its the hardest species to hunt and not that it's necessarily a smarter gobbler. Just my opinion though..what do you all think?- Jim