Quote from: Fan Club on March 06, 2016, 04:21:04 PM
Quote from: lunghit on March 01, 2016, 05:41:33 AM
My question is what other hen noises do you use and when to use them. Clucks, purrs, cutts, yelps, etc. Maybe someone can link a you tube video or point me in the right direction. Thanks in advance.
You've received some great advice so far but no one has specifically answered your question. The yelp is the main form of communication from the hen and it basically means "Here I am and I wouldn't mind some company." The cutt indicates that the hen is excited and ready to breed. Use it sparingly though, because if the gobbler thinks you are that excited he will just wait for the hen to come to him. It can be used to agitate other hens though and possibly pull a group to you bringing a tom with them. Clucks and purrs are what old time turkey men term "Confidence calls." They are used if a gobbler has hung up at a distance or has gone silent but still may be coming in. They are intended to give the gobbler confidence that all is well and that other content turkeys are nearby. The single cluck means "I am over here" and a purr is a signal of contentment and indicates the turkey is relaxed, just like a cat purr. Use these calls judiciously too. If a gobbler can see all the way to your location and you call, he will pinpoint the source of the calling and if other turkeys or decoys are not present he will go on alert. As a final note, a single cluck can be used to get a gobbler to raise his head for the shot if you are ready and he is in range.
This is of course a nutshell calling primer and location and strategy factors can come into play. There are scores of YouTube videos showing how make each call but most don't tell you when or why to use each call, if they did they would be an hour long. Ray Eye's DVD "Calling Is Everything" does both, giving calling instruction and practical use application and discusses strategy. Highly recommended if you could have only one instructional video. Let us know how you do this Spring!
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Fan Club gave you some very good advice, but lets break it down a little bit more.
The yelp is the mostly used call, and no. one in turkey communication. There are a few different kinds of yelps. Your plain yelp, your excited yelp, your assembly yelps, and your lost yelps. Plain Yelp, used when birds are just walking a long or feeding or communicating with each other in thick cover. It's a soft low tone yelp. Excited Yelp, used when a gobbler surprises a hen, if he comes in silent over a ridge or out of thick cover, a hen will light up when she sees him. She'll also use it if a gobbler isn't paying attention to her. A fast 5-6 note yelp with cutts and cackles mixed in. Assembly Yelp, used when birds get separated from each other and want to regroup. A long string of 8 to 12 yelps, that start out soft and gain loudness and then taper back off. Lost Yelp, birds will yelp 5 to 6 times in a fast high pitched yelp, then go silent to listen for a few seconds, then start back up doing the same until she gets a response. Begging Yelp, used if a gobbler isn't giving her the attention she wants. A slow longer drawn out yelp.
Cutts, cuts are used by a hen when she wants attention from a gobbler, they are also used by a hen when she comes into an open field and sees birds in the middle of it or on the other end of it. She'll run a series of 6 to 8 cutts to let then know she's there.
Clucks, Often used when a hen is going to a gobbler, she doesn't yelp at him if she can see him, she just goes relaxed clucking softly as she's going. If she gets there and he's gone, she'll yelp or cackle a couple times to find out where he went.
Purrs, purrs are used in 3 or 4 different ways. You have your cluck an purr, a relaxed soft cluck followed by 1 or 2 soft purrs. Fighting Purr, used just for that. A sharp loud cluck followed by3 to 4 loud aggressive long purrs, that'll sometimes end in a deep soft growl, if it's a boss hen. Breeding Purrs, used as a gobbler is getting close to a hen that wants to breed. A sharp loud cluck followed by a short fast high pitch purr. Feeding Purr, used by a feeding hen or hens. A soft low tone purr with no clucks.
Cackles, used when flying down or up to the roost, also mixed in with excited yelps, or to locate a gobble that disappeared.
Whines, used as a gobbler is getting close to a hen that wants to breed, or if a gobbler turns away from a breeder hen to give his attention to another hen. A soft high pitched long whistle.
Putts, used when birds are alarmed, and when a bird is ignoring a bird at wants attention. Alarmed Putts, 3 to 4 loud sharp raspy clucks followed by 2 to 3 quick yelps, as they leave. Attention Putts, used to get the attention of a bird that's ignoring calls from another bird. A single loud putt followed by a soft yelp or two.
