flocked-up toms
flocked-up toms
Hey guys....I need some help. Hunted during our opener and had a great morning. Several gobbles at daylight but were all henned-up at flydown. Decided to wait things out and called in and killed a nice tom at 9:15 AM. Text book stuff.
Went out again on April 29, to a different location. Again had gobblers sounding off all around me and again they flew down and went silent. Decided to employ the same strategy and rested things until mid-morning. Back out at 9:30 AM but nothing for an hour so decided to go looking. Found turkeys about 1/4 mile away from where I'd been calling earlier.....eight mature toms in a tight group with about half displaying at any given time...and not a hen in sight. I threw everthing in my call book at them but could not get a single response. They finally wandered off..all together.
In my years of turkey hunting I can't recall seeing this many toms flocked together at this time of year. And they seem to behave like they've lost interest in hens. Anybody got any ideas???
Went out again on April 29, to a different location. Again had gobblers sounding off all around me and again they flew down and went silent. Decided to employ the same strategy and rested things until mid-morning. Back out at 9:30 AM but nothing for an hour so decided to go looking. Found turkeys about 1/4 mile away from where I'd been calling earlier.....eight mature toms in a tight group with about half displaying at any given time...and not a hen in sight. I threw everthing in my call book at them but could not get a single response. They finally wandered off..all together.
In my years of turkey hunting I can't recall seeing this many toms flocked together at this time of year. And they seem to behave like they've lost interest in hens. Anybody got any ideas???
- soiltester
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Re: flocked-up toms
MMM.... A boss tom beat em' all up, and their scared to death to respond and get beat again
ever wonder where the white goes when the snow melts??
Re: flocked-up toms
They are just being turkeys. One year I hunted, "The Group of Five", five mature gobblers which I found in February and hunted unsuccessfully until mid-May. They would respond to calling and come within 60 yards, sometimes all displaying, but there were too many eyes and too much gobbler savvy. They stayed together as a group all winter and by spring opener their numbers had been reduced by one to four. I eventually killed one of the four the second week of the season, and it was a robust 23 lb., 4 year old bird. The remaining three gobblers stayed together all season.
Re: flocked-up toms
A buddy of mine killed a gobbler 5 or so years ago that came in "Yalping" with 3 other longbeards at the end of April here in Ga.
They were acting like winter time gobblers.
They were acting like winter time gobblers.
- guesswho
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Re: flocked-up toms
That's what they do. Many years during the late season they are just as interested in getting back together with their surviving buddy's as they are hens, and maybe even more so. Hunters that know and recognize this do pretty well late season. It's part of the cycle.
Double Naught Spy!
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RCD's Owner----------------Badonka Deke Prostaff
MoHo's Prostaff-------------Lighter Than HTL Shooter
The Storm Whistle Prostaff
Official Member Of The Unofficial Firedup Turkey Calls Prostaff
Re: flocked-up toms
They did that all the way through the season here this year.
- killerstump
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flocked-up toms
In that case a person would need to sound more a gobbler with his calling correct? And I do not mean it as in gobbling!guesswho wrote:That's what they do. Many years during the late season they are just as interested in getting back together with their surviving buddy's as they are hens, and maybe even more so. Hunters that know and recognize this do pretty well late season. It's part of the cycle.
- guesswho
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Re: flocked-up toms
Someone's paying attention.
Double Naught Spy!
RCD's Owner----------------Badonka Deke Prostaff
MoHo's Prostaff-------------Lighter Than HTL Shooter
The Storm Whistle Prostaff
Official Member Of The Unofficial Firedup Turkey Calls Prostaff
RCD's Owner----------------Badonka Deke Prostaff
MoHo's Prostaff-------------Lighter Than HTL Shooter
The Storm Whistle Prostaff
Official Member Of The Unofficial Firedup Turkey Calls Prostaff
Re: flocked-up toms
I,ve got a double-sided copper pot w/ glass inset on the back. The glass makes a great deep hollow cluck and has pulled in quite a few late season gobblers who will usually alert me of their presence w/ a corresponding gobbler cluck.
Re: flocked-up toms
Thanks guys...I appreciate the info and advice which I will consider as I continue my pursuit. Who knows....if "soiltester" is right I may just
hang the BOSS. One thing for sure, though....I'll try talking to the boys with loud clucks and some yelps thrown in. That's worked for me before but never thought about that tactic so early in our season.
hang the BOSS. One thing for sure, though....I'll try talking to the boys with loud clucks and some yelps thrown in. That's worked for me before but never thought about that tactic so early in our season.
Re: flocked-up toms
Larry Gresser makes a Jake Pot just for this sort of thing. It works.
- Stinky J Picklestein
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Re: flocked-up toms
Yep, that seems to be happening a couple weeks early for the birds I'm hunting, too. The sweet spot was definitely a couple weeks ago.
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Re: flocked-up toms
When I hunted in Nebraska the toms and jakes where still in large groups. I just use my regular calls as I can't tell the difference between a tom yelp and a dominant hen yelp. I have recorded both to compare and try to figure out a difference but I guess with my tin ear the difference is too subtle ! I can however do the jake toots ! A couple years ago while fall hunting I heard a bird calling like a boss hen doing assembley calls. I slipped in to look and saw several toms and jakes going to a single tom that was making the calls. Once the group or 8-10 birds were assembled they all walked off together ! I thought I was hearing a hen calling in her flock . It never ceases to amaze me the things I see and hear while turkey hunting .
Re: flocked-up toms
Here in New York also they are flocked up. Tuesday they were big time!!! On Thrusday-- I started to hear gobbling in different areas instead of in one spot. In past years we have had- Winter to Summer and that shuts down the gobbling by mid-May. This is a REAL spring though.