Seasons

[lindy rig]

Does the turkey mating season depend more on the weather or calendar (daylight or something)?

I have season D, which is first week of May.

Worried that they will be all "gobbled" out by then

[Musky Buck]

That is a good ? Going by what I've seen in the last 10 days or so they are definitely breeding in my area, observed that happening. But I always think back to many walleye openers and hearing them gobbling then for 1 reason or another. Come on experts chime in.

[DonBo]

I honestly don't know how to answer your question, but IF they do not gobble for you, are you not going to hunt? You may just have to do some better scouting and set up in areas they frequent. Just because you don't hear them doesn't mean they've crawled into a cave and won't come out till next March.

Personally I have a WS season in May also, and I'm not one bit worried about it being "over".

[rundrave]

so if the situation occurs and birds are not talking whats your best means of bagging a bird? Do you spot and stalk or determine where they are going and sit and wait if you think they are moving through a particular area?

I know there's lots of variables to consider but whats a good strategy to use if you know birds are in the area but not talking?

[lindy rig]

We hunt far SE Minnesota, six miles or so from the Iowa border. I have been going down there with my uncle for 6 years or so, hunting hard all day when I am down there. I have yet to bag a Tom.

So, cut me a little slack I'm just trying to learn

[arrow]

My daughter shot one during the last open season in Spring of 2011 and they were still gobbling. It was private land which had been hunted only in one of the previous seasons however which makes a big difference. If your hunting public land my experience has been they really go quiet after the first few seasons regardless of the spring. If your on a good piece of private land you probably will still hear them gobbling in early am. As much as possible try to pattern the birds and if you don't already own a ground blind it might make sense to buy one. They seem to figure out early on they are safest in the middle of the biggest fields they can find. If your hunting public land I would say 10% success ratio is not rare at all based upon my experience and those of many I know, especially later seasons. If its a good piece of private land your probably due. Good luck and have fun.

[Cheetah]

D is fairly early still in the grand scheme of things. Biggest problem will be if the birds are pressured by other hunters and if many were shot yet in your hunting area. Or if they are extremely call shy in general. The public land birds I am used to hunting are like that.

[BIGRED07]

i have had good luck hunting the last two seasons with the bow. they seem to respond better because there are less hens to be bred. that saying i always put in for the first week, just because. shot just as many though and the later stages

[Borch]

Does the turkey mating season depend more on the weather or calendar (daylight or something)?

I have season D, which is first week of May.

Worried that they will be all "gobbled" out by then

Typically that is the early portion of the second gobbling period here in MN. They gobble though out the year. I've had very vocal birds the afternoon of the last day of the year before. So I'm confident that there will be birds talking late even with our early spring.

But to you original question I don't know for sure where the actual breeding is link to temp or hours of daylight...

[Borch]

I rely heavily on scouting when birds are not vocal. I move less because you bump birds you didn't even know were there. Find a confidence spot and sit it out as long as you can and then 10 minutes longer. I might move to other properties because I often find that they are talking on one property but not another on any given day.

[Shu]

I was at the WI Deer and Turkey Expo on Saturday in Madison and I sat through a seminar and this question came up due to the early spring....they said it's the amount of daylight that determines when a hen will be bred. Same for deer.

[Musky Buck]

I'm with the guys on this, they're breeding now and will continue for some time, but I'm an April 28th C guy and I have 5 different properties ready to hunt, figured 5 day hunt might as well have a spot for each day, I think that's my best course of action, multiple locations so I can zero in closer to the 28th as to where they are, breeding or not I'll be in their backyard trying to intercept 1 one way or another. I'm a turkey Newb for sure, hope to connect on # 1.

[DonBo]

Several years ago a friend who had never hunted turkeys before bugged me for weeks leading up to the opener about the when/why/hows of hunting them. I tried to answer all his questions as best I could.

Well, opening morning he calls me about 9am and says "I never even heard one gobble. What did I do wrong?"

"Are you calling from your blind?"

"No. I'm in my kitchen drinking coffee."

You can see where this is going. There will be mornings both early and late in the season where it just doesn't happen. Borch hit it right on the head. Sit tight, all day if you can. They move around all day. I like to set up a pop-up blind and settle in, maybe on a high spot at the edge of a field where you can see a long way. Bring a comfy chair, a book, some lunch and plenty of water.

Try a decoy. On a field edge, when a bird sees this you may not even need to make a call. If you only knew how many times I've woken from a nap to see birds right in the middle of my dekes.

Anyway, the best advice I can give is just get out there, you'll never shoot one from your kitchen.

[goblueM]

Try a decoy. On a field edge, when a bird sees this you may not even need to make a call. If you only knew how many times I've woken from a nap to see birds right in the middle of my dekes.

Anyway, the best advice I can give is just get out there, you'll never shoot one from your kitchen.

Great advice! The last bird I shot in MN was in a place I knew they were going to be at SOME point in the day... I didn't really feel like sitting there all day, but went anyway. Fell asleep and woke up to loud putting close behind me. If he hadn't have sounded the alarm, he'd probably be still walking around in the woods!

[lindy rig]

Now this is helpful

I feel like I have tried everything. Decoys and no decoys. Hen only decoys, jake decoys, and a full fanned Tom decoy. Once we had a nice Tom come close but he saw the jake decoy and turned around. He was quiet and didn't seem aggressive.

I have tried no blind, pop up blinds, and more elaborate natural blinds. Have come close on a few occassions but can't close the deal.

Just getting a little frustrated I guess. Part of it is I am probably more of an active pursuit guy. I feel like I want to run and gun but I know I've bumped birds at least twice.

[Musky Buck]

Just watching turkeys for the last 8 years or so and my dads daily observations, definitely oddball times or what we may think are oddball times, last few springs many mid morning or mid day etc. movement, more so than early or late and no real certain pattern or time of day. Right now in my area there's a certain pattern, but it's only a matter of time and that will change. Put in your time, don't get discouraged, and hope for the best and that statement covers most fishing and hunting endeavors.

[rundrave]

Just getting a little frustrated I guess. Part of it is I am probably more of an active pursuit guy. I feel like I want to run and gun but I know I've bumped birds at least twice.

I am the exact same way, its hard for me to sit still for too long when its not yielding results. One of my favorite things about turkey hunting is I love getting out and hiking and covering a lot of ground.I know I need to be more patient but its hard to just sit and wait.

[Borch]

Running and gunning shines when you have lots of territory to hunt and pockets of birds. It's my go to when I hunt the Black Hills. But if I hunted this way on the smaller properties I hunt in MN I'd burn them up real fast and educate the birds quickly as well.

For those who have struggled to close the deal some common mistakes to keep in mind. I've made at least a few of these.

Calling birds to places they aren't comfortable in. (Scout and find where birds spend their time and set up there)

Calling too much. (Once a tom answers my calls a few times I back off and only call when I need to "redirect". The more a tom gobbles the more "real" hens you need to compete with. By the way, You can't compete.)

Leaving after you get an answer and then nothing. (Toms love to come in silent)

Calling too aggressively. (Cutting, Yelping loudly). Purrs, clucks and leaf scratching has killed a lot of birds for me.)

Not hunting in bad weather, (I love hunting in the rain. Hit the fields. If it's windy look for a windbreak).

Moving/getting gun up when you can see the tom, (These things see movement like you wouldn't believe. They can see almost 360 degrees. If you can see them, they can see you.)

Not patterning your gun/shooting bow, (When you get a chance you want to know your equipments limitations)

[sticknstring]

Great list of advice right there! Every season you'll be humbled with mistakes you never thought you could make. Patience has probably killed more turkeys than all other secrets combined. One second you're about as frustrated as one can get, the next you're kneeling over a beautiful bird! What a blast!

[goblueM]

Patience has probably killed more turkeys than all other secrets combined. One second you're about as frustrated as one can get, the next you're kneeling over a beautiful bird! What a blast!

No kidding. Turkey hunting taught me patience. I try to sit until I can't take it, then sit another half hour. Its amazing how many times you get up to move and there's a bird just out of your sight that was coming in silent.

[Archerysniper]

I know what you mean stick's I hit the blind and most days I dont leave till the tag is punched or the birds have roosted.

[Hoyt4]

Friend in Forest lake area just had a hen breed in the yard yesterday afternoon. He said this was the 2nd bird he saw breed in the area.

Hope to find a love sick tom still when I hunt season B.

[delzz7]

Everybody better go out and get your Squealing hen call

[Tim_Anderson]

Last year was probably my most "complete" year of turkey hunting. I don't hunt out of state (YET), but hit it pretty hard here in Minnesota. Many of my friends hunt, and take their kids hunting - and I love it so much that I will go along just to experience the hunt, video the hunt, take pictures, call, strategize, and assist in any way that I can.

We scout hard (I've been scouting several mornings and evenings a week for several weeks already), and get permission on A LOT of properties so as not to burn anything out. That has been suggested already, and I agree that it's pretty key.

What I can tell you is that I was "out there" every season last year, from beginning to end. The turkeys were gobbling the whole time, and with persistence, we shot birds every season. In the final season or two, they were definitely wiser and more cagey, but they were gobbling nearly as much - especially in the morning. They were more difficult to call in, but by then we had them pretty well patterned, and were able to "bushwhack" a couple by getting on their line of travel. Another technique that worked great was to have the hunter sneak as close as possible to the turkey between the caller and the turkey. Then have the caller call aggressively while walking directly away. Sometimes I was 300-400 yards away when I heard "BANG"! Pretty fun. Also keep in mind that the late birds can become pretty desperate and their mood changes big time from day to day. We get to know these individual birds pretty intimately. One day they are completely unsociable and the next, they want to climb in your pocket.

They sure are gobbling like crazy right now on the roost, but seem to quiet down fairly fast once their feet hit the ground. Like you, I have a license for the D season. I'm not worried about it one bit.

Only a couple of weeks left to wait! Good luck...

[Archerysniper]

Tim,sounds like you had a good year guiding last spring.