4th highest harvest recorded

[catman529]

2 bird limit and no fall hunting for 5-6 years might help spread em back out and populate better.

maybe we need units like for deer season? because some areas seem to handle higher bag limits although 6/either sex for fall season does seem a bit excessive, as much as I love to shoot em in the fall. I think the generous fall limits have to do with the low amount of people who actually fall hunt....

I despise the very idea of fall hunting and shooting hens. However, I don't think enough birds are harvested to make a tinkers dam one way or the other. I tried it once, and thought it was a stretch to even consider it turkey hunting, there was no challenge to me in calling in a bird which has only been alive for a few months, and is desperate to find its friends.

you called in poults? I heard quite a few last fall but called in and shot adult hens. Goal this year is a fall longbeard, because it's supposed to be a big challenge to call one in to the gun. But I will bushwhack one too. I don't think it's a stretch to call it turkey hunting, because if you are in the woods hunting turkeys, then wouldn't it be turkey hunting? I know what you're saying though... it's nothing like the spring. It's more of a meat hunt and I also like the chance to legally shoot more than 1 bird in a day, and go for those double or triple one-shot kills. Fall hunting is fun just in a much different way.

 

[Lawrence]

Yea i didnt word it very well. I just have a problem when someone is satisfied with a result when it could be much better. I could be completely off base here. I guess its sad too me because i remember the good ole days of turkey hunting around my home.

You also need to look at how many hunter are in the woods today
It seems like everyone turkey hunts these days. I too remember those good ole days. It was nothhing in Mo. back in the 80's to see 350 or 400 birds in winter flocks

 

[REN]

I just have a problem when someone is satisfied with a result when it could be much better.

define much better and also define WHERE it would be better. I mean 4th highest ever recorded sounds pretty good to me considering the crazy winter and spring we had, not to add we were on schedule to break the record the first week or so.

I see people always reference the "old days" or "10 years ago" to the point it just gets old. Yes i remember it 10 years ago and yes it was awesome, however most dont consider that it was a anomaly year or sub set of years same as this spring was an anomaly when considering the weather and breeding season. Mother Nature has a way to ALWAYS even the playing field and given weather and things that have happened the past five years, from a biology standpoint TN has an awesome population. Heck we have areas that have turkeys now that never had them before. With the rise of deer and turkey populations every year a land mass can only contain so many at a given time. having 300-400 turkeys on a 500 acre area is NOT a healthy population most times it is an excessive one.

If you are more concerned with YOUR area then thats fine but trying to create rules or regs based on 1 1000 acres area or even a given county is not possible to really do. People say we need UNITS like deer however the life-cycle and population needs are not even the same between the 2 species not to mention other issues that Units still dont solve (and i am a modified Unit guy just FYI). You said you didnt believe the limits are the cause of the loss of turkys so what do you propose done to get the population back in your county??

Habitat always changes so no matter what you try the game we are after is still WILD and will do and go where it sees fit.

 

[Setterman]

2 bird limit and no fall hunting for 5-6 years might help spread em back out and populate better.

maybe we need units like for deer season? because some areas seem to handle higher bag limits although 6/either sex for fall season does seem a bit excessive, as much as I love to shoot em in the fall. I think the generous fall limits have to do with the low amount of people who actually fall hunt....

I despise the very idea of fall hunting and shooting hens. However, I don't think enough birds are harvested to make a tinkers dam one way or the other. I tried it once, and thought it was a stretch to even consider it turkey hunting, there was no challenge to me in calling in a bird which has only been alive for a few months, and is desperate to find its friends.

you called in poults? I heard quite a few last fall but called in and shot adult hens. Goal this year is a fall longbeard, because it's supposed to be a big challenge to call one in to the gun. But I will bushwhack one too. I don't think it's a stretch to call it turkey hunting, because if you are in the woods hunting turkeys, then wouldn't it be turkey hunting? I know what you're saying though... it's nothing like the spring. It's more of a meat hunt and I also like the chance to legally shoot more than 1 bird in a day, and go for those double or triple one-shot kills. Fall hunting is fun just in a much different way.

Shooting longbeards in the fall makes little sense to me as well. Why would I want to shoot a bird which in a few months will gobble/strut on its way to me, rather than slip in or get bushwhacked?

Fall hunting did nothing for me, and I thought it was stupid. Then again, I was raised in the south where turkeys are only meant to be hunted in the Spring, and only longbeards should be killed. We were taught that hens were sacred, and during the fall we hunted deer. Maybe it's a southern thing, I don't know. But fall hunting is not for me, and I don't see me ever supporting it, or participating in it ever again.

 

[catman529]

2 bird limit and no fall hunting for 5-6 years might help spread em back out and populate better.

maybe we need units like for deer season? because some areas seem to handle higher bag limits although 6/either sex for fall season does seem a bit excessive, as much as I love to shoot em in the fall. I think the generous fall limits have to do with the low amount of people who actually fall hunt....

I despise the very idea of fall hunting and shooting hens. However, I don't think enough birds are harvested to make a tinkers dam one way or the other. I tried it once, and thought it was a stretch to even consider it turkey hunting, there was no challenge to me in calling in a bird which has only been alive for a few months, and is desperate to find its friends.

you called in poults? I heard quite a few last fall but called in and shot adult hens. Goal this year is a fall longbeard, because it's supposed to be a big challenge to call one in to the gun. But I will bushwhack one too. I don't think it's a stretch to call it turkey hunting, because if you are in the woods hunting turkeys, then wouldn't it be turkey hunting? I know what you're saying though... it's nothing like the spring. It's more of a meat hunt and I also like the chance to legally shoot more than 1 bird in a day, and go for those double or triple one-shot kills. Fall hunting is fun just in a much different way.

Shooting longbeards in the fall makes little sense to me as well. Why would I want to shoot a bird which in a few months will gobble/strut on its way to me, rather than slip in or get bushwhacked?

Fall hunting did nothing for me, and I thought it was stupid. Then again, I was raised in the south where turkeys are only meant to be hunted in the Spring, and only longbeards should be killed. We were taught that hens were sacred, and during the fall we hunted deer. Maybe it's a southern thing, I don't know. But fall hunting is not for me, and I don't see me ever supporting it, or participating in it ever again.

Not sure if it's a southern thing, or a generational thing, but I got into turkey hunting all on my own so I wasn't raised to hunt them a certain way.

I've seen video of toms strutting in a winter flock in Marshall Co. in December a couple years ago before fall season was moved to October. I doubt they were gobbling but that's pretty cool to see them strut at that time of year. But I'm not looking for strutting and gobbling in the fall obviously, I am more looking for a different experience, and as always, more fresh wild turkey meat for the table.

 

[Roost 1]

Tennesse has some of the very best turkey hunting in the whole country. I have hunted a bunch of different states and TN ranks right up there with the best. I would say even a mediocre county in TN is better than what some other states have to offer. However I understand what some are saying about things not being as good as it used to be but do some research to find out why? I personally think the turkey hunting at Fort Campbell has went way down-hill, however if you didnt hunt there "10yrs ago" you wouldnt understand what I am saying because it is still good hunting. I dont think the areas up front can handle the 4 bird limit but I am sure someone else prolly dont think it matters. I will continue to hunt there tho...............

 

[Andy S.]

However I understand what some are saying about things not being as good as it used to be but do some research to find out why?

In my opinion, the once booming population (10 years or so ago for many areas in TN) has now stabilized, or is in the process of stabilizing for many counties and areas. The MDC does a good job of explaining how a turkey population explosion is often followed by stabilization of the flock to a sustainable level. Here it is in their words.

MDC Turkey Outlook Pay particular attention to the section titled "Transitional times"

 

[ruger7mag]

I would really hate to see the limit lowered. The hunting was amazing ten or so years ago, but it's still pretty dang good. My dad and I just hunt more farms now so we don't burn one farm up.

 

[muddyboots]

Ren,
I am not a biologist and have no formal wildlife training. I go by years of hunting the same piece of ground and try to use logic. My lease is 900 acres with a 10000 acre area too the north that used to be a hunting lease but now is a military training area with no hunting. I have hunted this piece of ground since 1990. Thats 22 years and when i first started hunting this lease any morning u would hear 10 to 20 gobblers and see 20 to 30 turkeys every morning in the spring. It was unbelievable. In the fall we would see flocks of 100 hens and 25 longbeards going to roost on different afternoons. It was that way until the limits started getting raised. Then the population slowly started changing. Now a good morning is hearing 4 gobblers. Lawrence has a good point with there being lots more turkey hunters now than then. Why this happenned i dont know. Me an the local warden have talked about it over and over and he requested to lower the limit back to 2. This is what he told me and i have not verified but just took his word for it. I was told we have twice as many turkey hunters killing the same amount of turkeys that half that many turkey hunters killed when the limit was 2. He says that the limit is too high. I used to go along with him on that but like i said i still see way more gobblers than hens. So what is happenning to the hens? I dont know. With as many more turkey hunters we have these days and the limit doubled it just seems to me that we should be breaking harvest records. Just an old turkey hunters opinion who misses the days of hearing fifteen gobblers gobbling until lunch. But it does make for good forum banter doesnt it? LOL I am not bashing twra because tennessee as a state is very good. In my small piece of the world its just not what it used to be. It seems to be that way in lots of things not just turkey hunting.

 

[muddyboots]

I also hate being in unit L for deer hunting. LOL

 

[REN]

I gotcha muddy and I'm really not trying to start anything. My main point was TN as a whole is a dang good state to hunt in. Also You are making a judgment of limits based on your area rather then a much larger scale.

Also as far as hens, the life span of hens va gobblers is much lower which has a lot to do with the ratio depending on pred rates and winter habitat.

A simple response to limit questions is the total population has grown steadily the past 4-6 years even with the limits.

 

[REN]

WOW, an almost all time high for state population and people are still not happy with things.

REN, you have to look at things from both sides. Why do you think I drive 5 hours to hunt with you and Grizz? Besides the grat company, of course! Because the hunting in West TN sucks! Why do you think I drive 2.5 hours one way for decent turkey hunting? You live in a turkey paradise and have some incredible farms to hunt. Everyone isn't so fortunate. We need units and West TN needs alot of help.

I don't disagree but units have reason why they won't work either. There are areas in west tn that are doing well especially compared to past populations and yes some still need help. "hunting" does not have as much of an impact on populations as some think as well.

I am more then thankful for the areas I hunt even if they are not as good as they once were. Every thing runs in cycles and some years are just gonna be down and others up that's just what happens when you depend on a finicky animal with a short life cycle like a turkey.

 

[FARMTOFIELD]

oh my gosh people some of you need to do a little traveling and talking if yall think the populations are good statewide. Wayne and Lawrence and hardin counties use to be right up there with murray and giles as far as numbers, now its an absolute SHI* hole for the most part. I do not know why and i dont blame twra, WHERE MY PROBLEM ARISES IS THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR 7 OR 8 YEARS. I ASKED A LEADING TWRA OFFICIAL WHAT WAS GOING ON AND HE SAID THEY STARTED DOING STUDIES THIS YEAR, I SAID WHY ARE THEY JUST NOW STARTING? his answer: WE HAVE JUST CAUGHT WIND OF IT?????? give me a freaking break people have been screaming these facts for nearly 10 years.

I love how people in the still turkey infested counties are so up to tell you how good the hunting is when they never leave there area to see statewide.

 

[REN]

Well I have hunted in more areas then middle tn if you are aiming that at me. In addition I know a few biologists that work for the state and I assure you they didn't "just start".

Also the population ACROSS the state as I put it has gone up and that's a simple fact.

 

[REN]

Before this gets to far I want to be clear that I am not TWRA goon or stating the season and limits are perfect.

My point was some want to complain about the 4th best totals in history which is hard to understand. TN is a top 5 state to hunt with a long season and liberal bag limit which makes it one of the best to hunt period.

 

[8 POINTS OR BETTER]

"hunting" does not have as much of an impact on populations as some think as well.

If you have several good hunters in one area, it can have a major effect when you have a four bird limit.

 

[Andy S.]

......the population ACROSS the state as I put it has gone up and that's a simple fact.

How is the population calculated? Is it an estimate or a solid number that can be supported with hard data? The last estimate I saw was 300,000 birds in 2008, and that estimate was " crude at best" per Daryl's (BGG) post on TnDeer.

 

[catman529]

I have personally decided next year I am not going to join a lease unless I find one covered up with birds. I will spend my season in Middle TN hunting WMAs. The sad truth is the hunting here is so bad here I would rather hunt public land there.

there is good public land over here, I can show you some spots

 

[FARMTOFIELD]

Well I have hunted in more areas then middle tn if you are aiming that at me. In addition I know a few biologists that work for the state and I assure you they didn't "just start".

Also the population ACROSS the state as I put it has gone up and that's a simple fact.

Not pointing directly at anyone thats what i was told and led to believe. As far as population we use to have one of those 15bird a mornin countiess andi can assure you renit has went nearly extinct you killed as many birds this year as i have heard in my end of the county in 7 years i promise. As far as populations going up across state maybe in the last 3 years but not the last 7 or 8 and i. Have trouble believing that. Maybe in pockets but not statewide

 

[FARMTOFIELD]

I agree that its a great place to hunt but something is definitely wrong i use to walk ten minutes one way to hunt turkey now i have to drive 1.5 hours one way to evene attempt to hunt. Its crazy how it has just went dead and the fact that they cant tell u whats going on is aggravating. As i have said in other posts i have seen more promise this year than the past 5 it has me really excited for next year but im not gettin my hopes up