When the gobbler quits gobbling, look at your watch, and force yourself to stay on your stand. Don’t move around for an hour after the bird has quit gobbling. If you’ll use this strategy, you’ll see more turkeys, and you’ll take more turkeys.
What do you do when Tums aren’t gobbling?
If the birds aren’t being vocal, either get moving and mobile or get to a high-percentage strut zone to put the odds in your favor of tagging that tight-lipped gobbler.
What time of day do turkeys gobble the most?
You can’t expect a turkey to gobble 50 or more times in the afternoon like he might first thing in the morning. Most birds won’t even gobble as much as they might around 9 or 10 a.m. You need to crow call or hen cutt and listen closely for a faint gobble or two.
Can gobbling turkeys be heard a mile away?
(But we don’t want him to gobble too much because that will call other hunters into the area.) Turkey gobbles can be heard for a long way on a still day, up to a mile.
When should you gobble at a turkey?
In my view, the best times of the day are right off the roost, then again from about 8:30 to 9:30 when more hens start to leave the gobbler to go lay an egg, and again from about 11 until noon. It’s somewhat obvious why gobblers respond off the roost; it’s a new day and they’re not necessarily with hens yet.
Why do gobblers go silent?
In short, the theory goes, we have killed the noisier, more eager toms, leaving the craftier, quieter ones to pass on their genes. That theory sounds good around the campfire, but there is no real evidence or studies to support it, says Ken Duren, wild turkey biologist for the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
Why do turkeys gobble one day and not the next?
Some days, turkeys gobble from dawn to dark. Other days, they don’t gobble at all. Why? The easy explanation is that they’re unpredictable.
How do you find a gobbler in the morning?
In the mornings, about half hour before shooting light is a perfect time to fire off a locating call. Setting up on a good listening vantage point is the first key. Being able to audibly survey lots of ground from a place where you likely wont spook birds from their roost is where you need to start.
Do turkeys still gobble when its cold?
Once the turkeys adjust to the cold snap, you may be in for a treat. Some of the best gobbling and vocalization days have been witnessed on these cold, high pressure days.
How often should you turkey call?
But don’t call too often – less is more. Calling every 15 minutes or so and starting off quieter and then getting more aggressive/louder as the day goes on are good rules of thumb. If you hear a hen, try to mimic her exact vocalizations.
Do turkeys follow the same path every day?
Turkeys tend to travel the same routes or circuits to the same areas every day, as long as those areas provide what turkeys need and want. Hunters can use this information to place themselves right in the path of the birds, or at least pretty close to where those birds typically travel on any given day.
Will a deer blowing scare turkeys?
When they do, turkeys can hear and understand that the alarm sounds of other animals means there’s danger in the woods. You may be set-up and working a turkey when a deer comes in downwind of you and starts blowing and stomping, because he smells human odor. If the deer smells you, it will spook the turkey.
How can you tell how far a gobbler is?
It is clearer and less muffled. As a general rule a gobble made in a tree can be heard twice as far as one made on the ground. That same “twice-as-far” rule applies to all other turkey sounds. A gobbler in an open field will sound clear and can generally be heard twice as far as a gobbler in timber.
Can you shock gobble turkeys at night?
When they are sitting on the roost, gobblers tend to be more vocal since they are safe from predators and because they are trying to find the rest of the flock. Timing is everything. In the evenings wait to shock gobble turkeys until the last half hour of daylight.
Is morning or evening better for turkey hunting?
The fact that birds gobble and their location is known takes some of the guesswork out of it. Again, mornings generally provide faster and hotter action with vocal birds, making it the preferred time to turkey hunt.
What weather do turkeys gobble the most?
60-69 degrees Fahrenheit
Because turkeys are most active during times of mild weather, it’s been estimated that they are the most vocal in temperatures of 60-69 degrees Fahrenheit.
Why are turkeys quiet some days?
On rainy days, especially cold rainy days, gobblers go quiet. Turkeys will opt to stay in the roost longer. Once they do fly down, they will alter their daily routine. Rainy evenings and mornings can also produce fog.
Will a missed turkey come back?
If you shoot and miss a turkey, and if that gobbler starts running or flying away, sit still until you know for certain he’s all the way out of sight. Then, sit still for another 30 minutes or an hour to see if that turkey will start gobbling again. The turkey doesn’t know what’s happened when that gun has gone off.
Can turkeys hear you?
Though there’s not a lot of science to quantify it, we know wild turkeys have very keen hearing. It is not so much their ability to hear, but how they use it that is most remarkable.
Does barometric pressure affect turkeys gobbling?
Researchers showed that when the barometric pressure dropped below 29.7 inches the birds were much quieter. They probably like to watch movies on rainy days too. Back to the turkey science. In the studies, wind direction didn’t change the rate at which turkeys gobbled, but wind speed did.
Do Gobblers Gobble in the afternoon?
Turkeys Don’t Call as Much: You’ll occasionally run across a noisy, gobbling fool in the late afternoon and evening. But more common is the silent, laid-back gobbler that doesn’t make a peep until sounding off on his limb for the night.