Merriams!!!

[GobbleNut]

You may be right, but I've not noticed it.

While they may be shorter than an Osceola or Eastern (I've never measured) it's not by much.  They are significantly taller than tame birds.  For the most part, their beards are a sparse broken up mess.  They'll have a stub of a beard hiding in there that could produce a good beard, but I've rarely seen a stub that could produce some of those really thick paintbrush eastern beards.  I think their beards are a result of genetics, nutrition, and weather.  The best Merriam's beards I've seen have been riverbottoms birds.

I think the appearance of short legs on Merriam's is at least in part due to the fact that the feathers on their lower body are typically much thicker and fuller than those of other subspecies.  I believe that is possibly a function of where they live,...often cold, mountainous climes,...that require added insulation on those lower extremities.  I also agree that the lack of beard development is primarily a genetic trait of the subspecies (same with spurs in many cases). 

[randy6471]

Similar to Yoder...

  A couple years ago a buddy and I did a trip to Wy and Mt. We each took a bird in Wy and then we both scored on birds in Mt. The 2 Wy birds had really white tips, but the tips on our Mt birds were definitely much more of a buff colored. Even though we hunted different states, the distance between the area we hunted in Wy, to the area we hunted in Mt was only about 10-15 miles.

[mdb]

Thanks so much for all the info this is fabulous.  I don't know why I totally forgot about Colorado and New Mexico, though don't they have lower densities of birds? I will likely only have a couple days out there so naturally trying to maximize the odds.  Anyway, thanks for all the info

[mtns2hunt]

Seemed like plenty of birds in New Mexico when I killed mine. One was very white the other buff. White one is my avatar.

[Rapscallion Vermilion]

I posted this some years ago, but Photobucket took it away.  This seemed like a good thread to put it back up.  The map is from J. Stokley Ligon's 1946 book, History and management of Merriam's wild turkey.  The purely dashed lines show the known Merriam's range at the time of greatest contraction in the 1920s to 1940s.  The dashed lines with dots show some of the early reintroduction areas as of 1942.

[RutnNStrutn]

I understand the desire for the white tips, but Merriam's range from a buff color to snow white wherever you find them.  More often than not you'll find sort of a blonde color.  Photos taken in the right light will appear more white than they are.  There is however those birds on the white end of the spectrum.  To confuse it more, states like Nebraska and SD have transplanted both resulting in a cross.   However, the Pine Ridge and Blackhills are Merriam's.  Some of NMs birds that are native Merriam's are more buff than white.  Consider the range of colors in Eastern birds.  If you've not seen it you're not paying attention.

Absolutely Hobbes!! Spot on accurate!! I got my Merriams in NW Nebraska. My friends and I got 5 birds. 4 were buff colored, and only one was white. Also, you're right about the Easterns. I've had some with dark fan tips, some buff colored like Rios, and some brown. I even got an Osceola with a reddish tail one time. There are many variations in turkey colors.

[Yoder409]

Gonna pose a pretty straightforward question here................

But first.....  I bowhunt whitetails.  I hunt ONE PLACE.  Its a 113 acre tract.  I only shoot mature bucks.  Some of those bucks have a large white throat patch.  Some small.  One had a double throat patch.  Some have a wide, white nose band.  Some narrow and white.  But they're ALL whitetail bucks. 

So, snow white............buff-ish............somewhere in between............   What DIFFERENCE does it make, so long as the bird came from an area recognized as pure Merriam's territory ?   It is its OWN individual and unique trophy of a lifetime.   

[GobbleNut]

Gonna pose a pretty straightforward question here................

But first.....  I bowhunt whitetails.  I hunt ONE PLACE.  Its a 113 acre tract.  I only shoot mature bucks.  Some of those bucks have a large white throat patch.  Some small.  One had a double throat patch.  Some have a wide, white nose band.  Some narrow and white.  But they're ALL whitetail bucks. 

So, snow white............buff-ish............somewhere in between............   What DIFFERENCE does it make, so long as the bird came from an area recognized as pure Merriam's territory ?   It is its OWN individual and unique trophy of a lifetime.   

Perfect summation. 

[nebgoosehunter]

I've been turkey hunting for 11 years now in the Panhandle of Nebraska in Merriam country (Pine Ridge and Wildcat Hills) and just last year got my first "pure white" fan that I mounted.  All the others over the years have been buff.  Not saying impossible to get one, but if you come and get a buff, you should just be thrilled that you got a Merriam in beautiful country!

[Hobbes]

I think the creamy color with just a hint of buff is actually a better looking fan than those with snow white tips.  I'll try to post up some photos (on this thread or another) of the variations that I've killed in different regions.  I've done it previously, but that was before I shut my account down for awhile and probably from the old Photobucket, so they probably aren't available anymore.