once again, I am showing my short beard.

[Nsghunter]

Actually, it is pretty simple. If you don't see a beard, you don't shoot.

Actually, it is pretty simple. If you don't see a beard, you don't shoot.

Well that is easy

 

[deerhunter10]

IMHO.... a bearded female is no trophy. Neither human nor turkey. hahaha

I agree especially on the latter

I don't understand the killing of hens anytime and even more so in the spring. I was raised to believe hens were sacred and do not view a bearded hen as a trophy in anyway.

x2

x3. No reason to ever kill a hen IMO, and the world's top turkey biologists agree.

x4 but it is not very hard to tell the difference. just be 100 percent sure if you're not then don't shoot better safe then sorry.

 

[TLRanger]

Another thought: even if you know it is a gobbler, you still must be able to see the beard before he is legal. Sometimes the beard is not visible/there due to an accident. The rules say bearded turkey. And no, I would not shoot a bearded hen. They are not a trophy to me.

 

[Setterman]

Another thought: even if you know it is a gobbler, you still must be able to see the beard before he is legal. Sometimes the beard is not visible/there due to an accident. The rules say bearded turkey. And no, I would not shoot a bearded hen. They are not a trophy to me.

Many moons ago I killed a 3+ year old gobbler on a draw hunt, for whatever reason the bird never grew a beard. There was no place for his beard to grow. I took him to the check station and did not receive a ticket, or catch any grief because it was beardless. The officers told me that the rule was adopted to help the less educated avoid shooting hens, and that a male bird with no beard was legal in their eyes.


Maybe scn can weigh in on this one, and I'm not trying to get anyone in trouble with the above.

 

[TheRealSpurhunter]

IMHO.... a bearded female is no trophy. Neither human nor turkey. hahaha

I agree especially on the latter

I don't understand the killing of hens anytime and even more so in the spring. I was raised to believe hens were sacred and do not view a bearded hen as a trophy in anyway.

x2

x3. No reason to ever kill a hen IMO, and the world's top turkey biologists agree.

Devils advocate here, why does TWRA allow the killing of bearded hens?
As to whether I would shoot one personally, it would depend on my mood that day. I have never had the opportunity so it just remains to be seen.

 

[Southern Sportsman]

Many moons ago I killed a 3+ year old gobbler on a draw hunt, for whatever reason the bird never grew a beard. There was no place for his beard to grow. I took him to the check station and did not receive a ticket, or catch any grief because it was beardless. The officers told me that the rule was adopted to help the less educated avoid shooting hens, and that a male bird with no beard was legal in their eyes.

Maybe scn can weigh in on this one, and I'm not trying to get anyone in trouble with the above.

I saw a guy check one in at LBL one time with a thick 10" beard and not the first indication of a spur on either leg. It was weird looking. But I've never seen one with no beard at all. I personally like the Mississippi "any adult gobbler" or "gobbler with 6-inch beard" rule. It allows for beardless or beard rotted gobblers.

 

[Setterman]

Many moons ago I killed a 3+ year old gobbler on a draw hunt, for whatever reason the bird never grew a beard. There was no place for his beard to grow. I took him to the check station and did not receive a ticket, or catch any grief because it was beardless. The officers told me that the rule was adopted to help the less educated avoid shooting hens, and that a male bird with no beard was legal in their eyes.

Maybe scn can weigh in on this one, and I'm not trying to get anyone in trouble with the above.

I saw a guy check one in at LBL one time with a thick 10" beard and not the first indication of a spur on either leg. It was weird looking. But I've never seen one with no beard at all. I personally like the Mississippi "any adult gobbler" or "gobbler with 6-inch beard" rule. It allows for beardless or beard rotted gobblers.

Strangely enough I've killed multiple birds that had no spurs. The weirdest being one I killed in Benton county several years ago that was a real sob to kill, took me almost 4 hours and he had around9 hens to himself. How in the world he fought off other gobblers mystifies me.

 

[Spurhunter]

Devils advocate here, why does TWRA allow the killing of bearded hens?

I can't answer that. The bigger question is why do they allow hen killing at all when the turkey biologists are against it? Why protect them in the spring but allow flock shooters to kill 6 a day in the fall, while injuring and not recovering countless others? It makes NO sense.