Fight or Flight?

[roosterpull]

During recent years, I have had good success using my Montana full strut decoy. Here is my question.
At the end of the season in late May, would gobblers be less inclined to come to that sort of decoy? I'm thinking maybe they have had enough fighting and only want to frolic. Or would an aggressive bird come in no matter what time of the season?

[Duke0002]

I used my full strut decoy last week.  I'm going to give it a rest this week.

[neal]

Up where I'm at any decoy with a red head usually does not work well, they've been beat up many times and don't want to be again! And late in the spring there is so much cover I don't use any decoys let them come looking and get shot!


Good luck

[vaturkey]

IMO , Gobblers hate a lone jake. I have had gobblers run from a full strutter decoy but never ever a jake decoy. I use a jake the whole season. Just my 2 cents !


     

[TalksToTurkeys]

Around here my favorite late season tactic is to become a gobbler myself. I don't gobble, but just gobbler yelp. Most of the breeding is done and the gobblers are getting back into their bachlor flocks. I have killed my best birds that way. I don't know about using the strutter decoy, never tried it.

[roosterpull]

 

Very interesting replies. I will try them.

[surehuntsalot]

at the end of this season the gobblers were flocking back up with jakes
the last weekend I saw 1 lone gobbler traveling with 5 jakes

[roosterpull]

To Vaturkey: Bought a $10 blowup Primos jake decoy and stuck it out in front of my popup blind with a Montana hen and on May 16, getting on toward the end of the Md. season, got a nice longbeard. I would have killed him just by calling, but when he saw that jake he strutted once then stuck his head straight out and made for it. I shot him 10 feet before he could peck a hole in it. Thanks for the tip.

[drenalinld]

On May 21st in Nebraska, I had a full strutt longbeard decoy with a jake and a hen. Three hens came right in to our setup, but the gobblers avoided it for two hours. They drifted off a little ways and i belly crawled out and took down the strutter. After some aggressive calling, the two gobblers came in to 15 yards to the jake decoy. The gobblers were 3 and 4 years old. I was really surprised they wouldn't come in to the strutter.

[vaturkey]

To Vaturkey: Bought a $10 blowup Primos jake decoy and stuck it out in front of my popup blind with a Montana hen and on May 16, getting on toward the end of the Md. season, got a nice longbeard. I would have killed him just by calling, but when he saw that jake he strutted once then stuck his head straight out and made for it. I shot him 10 feet before he could peck a hole in it. Thanks for the tip.

  roosterpull

              Congrats !! Glad you got him !!  vaturkey   

[longbeardlife.com]

late season gobblers dont seem to be as aggresive here in florida.  a single jake works sometimes but alot of times good woodsmanship is the best thing a hunter can use.