News Breaker

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission’s annual report on wild turkey reproduction contains some familiar numbers, but the agency is interpreting them a little differently. Chris Kreh, the Commission’s wild-turkey project leader, said the poults/hen survival ratio of 1.9 observed statewide the past summer, previously considered “poor” is nothing to worry about.

For the first time in seven seasons, North Carolina wild turkey hunters saw a decline in the total spring harvest. During the April 12-May 10 gobblers-only season, hunters downed 16,912 birds. 

Of all the game species with which North Carolina is blessed, wild turkeys are one of a very few that must be pulled into shooting range with a series of calls.

Hunters judge turkeys by a collection of characteristics, including weight, spur length, beard count and beard length. Every hunter wants to harvest an old, trophy gobbler, but, knowing a tom’s age is a tough task in the field — before and even after the kill. However, a tom’s age can be estimated fairly accurately by following a few general guidelines.

Late-season gobblers can drive a hunter insane. They become wary of the same old calls from the same old spots in the same old fields. Though they may still roost in the same areas, they may avoid feeding grounds that have had constant and consistent hunting pressure in prior weeks.

Spring turkey season arrived for North Carolina hunters a couple of weeks ago, so it’s been long enough for the drive to tag a longbeard to falter when normal tactics didn’t produce. But instead of hanging up their camouflage and trading their calls for a fishing rod or golf club, the last two weeks of the season can be the best time to lure a gobbler into range and should never be avoided for a true feathered fanatic. 

Veteran turkey hunter Brian Sykes of the Caldwell community in northeastern Orange County has had little trouble filling his tags in recent season, but a gobbler he took two weeks ago is a first for him: a 5-bearded bird that ranks in the top 10 all-time in North Carolina.

Early in the season, gobblers will often be grouped in pairs or larger groups. Seeing several toms coming into decoys gobbling every step can be one of the most exciting sights of any hunter’s season.

For a species with a brain the size of a walnut, wild turkeys are fairly clever at avoiding the talons or the teeth of predators, but their poor sense of smell allows hunters and other predators to take a few turkeys each year.

For more tips on taking wild turkeys in the Carolinas, visit these links on NorthCarolinaSportsman.com and SouthCarolinaSportsman.com:

Mitchell Johnson feels that when hunting a field, too many hunters set up too close to its edge. Try this approach: position decoys about 15 to 20 yards inside a fence line and a hunter another 20 yards or so back. Look for trees that lie in deep shade. The decoys should keep an approaching gobbler’s eyes from wandering too much. Once the tom steps inside the fence line, he will be within range.

Mitchell Johnson, 32, attributes hard work for the success he has experienced in competitions and with his call company, but he also lists another reason.