Shooting a roosted turkey

[putt]

unsportsmanlike conduct, imo

[Spitten and drummen]

Not sure about where y'all hunt but here in the south, sneaking under a roosted gobbler is equivalent to The Clinton's telling the truth.

Amen brother.

[Spitten and drummen]

To me , roost shooting a bird is low down in my opinion. I dont care if its legal or not or the hunt anyway you want if its legal thing. Bottom line , we turkey hunt for the sport. If we dont kill a bird , its ok , our family will not starve to death. I just dont understand the people that just have to kill the bird to feel as though they are successful.  I love dropping the hammer on them , but only after we go head to head. I call him , i fool him , i get him close , i kill him. Any other way , the bird wins and we do battle another day. If you want a turkey to eat that bad , save all the cash on guns , calls , and gas to go and just stop by the super market. Trust me , you will save a lot of money.

[greencop01]

There are those who say if it is legal......and there are those of us who are like Gene Nunnery author of 'Old Pro Turkey Hunter." Turkey hunting is watching the woods wake up. Watching a Ruby-Crowned Kinglet land on your cap go upside down and stare at you. Have a cottontail hop right next to your foot and jump 2 feet high when you nudge him with your foot. Watch a sunrise thru the branches of a pine across from the one your sitting under. Watching an owl catch a mouse fifteen yards from you and he was so quiet doing it, he unnerved you.The tingling nerves, the rapid beating heart and the shaking hands you get when you see that limbhanger at twenty yards after you have been calling to him for one and a half hours, and that feeling you get when that tom out foxed you after having him in range and you biow it, but instead of being mad you tip your hat to him. This is real turkey hunting! It makes me feel sad that some people miss all this. All the stuff I like about turkey hunting. Read "Old Pto Turkey Hunter." I just finished reading it , getting ready for the upcoming season. Just my  worth.

[mikejd]

I have snuck under some of the biggest birds I have ever seen through the years. Always in hopes of them flying down where I need them to. They rarely do. I have never even thought about shooting one off the rooste. I would rather never kill another bird then shoot one off the rooste.

[g8rvet]

When my son was a little guy, maybe 13-14, we accidentally set up right under one.  A bird gobbled in the swamp, right where we thought he would be and then one gobbled right over our heads. 25 yards out and about 25 yards up.  My 13 year old son was wide eyed, but did not ask if he could shoot it because he knew it was illegal and unethical.  (there are some things that are illegal, but ethical - ie water whacking a cripple duck that you shot before your boat comes to a complete stop). 

I have harvested wood ducks with water shots when I was making a fancy dinner and wanted them clean and pretty, but I was not hunting. I was harvesting.  I have maybe killed 6 that way in my life. 

[Wvgobbler]

IN my opinion if I can't call him into shotgun range then I don't need to kill him. Some people shoot them out of a field with a rifle when there out there strutting. If I couldn't do no better than that I guess I'd give up hunting. To me spring gobbler season is about calling them in weather you kill them or not but to some people killing is everything no matter how they do it.

[appalachianassassin]

not cool with me.

[saltysenior]

Not sure about where y'all hunt but here in the south, sneaking under a roosted gobbler is equivalent to The Clinton's telling the truth.

an old gentleman who owned a ranch in S.Fl. that he used for wild Quail hunting yrs back....there were lots of turkeys,but he claimed they were too easy to take in the spring...He only let guest shoot turkeys in the fall and o k'd roost shooting.....said it was more of a "hunt''
Tom Gaskins told me personally the same thing..

[codym]

Well said spittinndrummin and greencop.

[Marc]

(there are some things that are illegal, but ethical - ie water whacking a cripple duck that you shot before your boat comes to a complete stop). 

There are also plenty of things that are legal, but unethical...  Shootin' a bird off the roost in the name of "hunting" would be one such thing.

[Strutr]

Well said, Spitten and drummen!

[vabeardhunter]

Ranks right up there with shooting deer from a truck. Awta be skull slapped.  http://oldgobbler.com/Forum/Smileys/classic/smiley-char092.gifJust speaking for myself, but I don't feel a need to "have to fill a tag". When the good Lord see's fit, he will present me the opportunity. If not, I still got to enjoy his creations.

[g8rvet]

(there are some things that are illegal, but ethical - ie water whacking a cripple duck that you shot before your boat comes to a complete stop). 

There are also plenty of things that are legal, but unethical...  Shootin' a bird off the roost in the name of "hunting" would be one such thing.

Amen.  Legality and ethics are not always the same.  They should be pretty close though.  But there are definitely more legal/unethical than the other way around.

[BB30]

Only way I could see shooting a turkey off the limb is if you worked the bird and he limb hopped to you. I have had a gobbler do this hunting in a swamp one time. He limb hopped about 100 yards to within 60 yards of me. It was early in the season and he didn't see the hen and limb hopped back the way he came. This is the only time I have seen this. He flew down back across the slough and proceeded to gobble heading away at a fast pace. I will say had he limb hopped about 25-30 more yards I probably would have killed him out of the tree as I still feel like that is calling a bird to the gun.