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Poults already?!?!?

I been watching some birds last couple weekends here and no poults yet but the hens are already leaving to nest at 9-10 am.
 
Good that a lot of breeding before season starts. I would think that will increase birds for next season .
 
Virtually impossible, naturally anything is possible but it is highly unlikely. I have been in the deep south for the past dayssssssssssssss, and have not seen the first hen out alone as if she was sitting. However, in Knoxville, TN where I live there are poults already on the ground.

Like I said anything is possible in nature, but the chances of this are rare like bigfoot.
 
The trees, the foliage, the grass, the insects, and the weather are all a good month ahead of schedule here. As far as I know theose turkeys ain't got no calendar, they are on nature's schedule too, so it seems perfectly sensible to me that they are also about a month ahead of schedule, a little early for poults, but certainly not out of the question, it's been 75-80 degrees for a month now. Normally at opening day there is absolutely nothing green adn growing here, a redbud blooming is the only sign of anything alive in the woods. Not this year, everything has leaves already, dogwoods been blooming a week, the wheat fields are knee high already. We're a month ahead of schedule easily.
 
This past weekend while in middle TN I saw several lone hens out in fields in odd places. Furthermore, I saw two hens that had been hit by automobiles, I swerved to miss one crossing the road and had one fly right across my windshield Saturday afternoon, both of those being alone. I typically start seeing live hens along the roadside acting nonchalant, dead hens on the roadside and these occurrences of hens in odd places about the second or third week of season. Take it for what it is worth. :)
 
You guys have not seen Poults yet,I do not care.... I am not going to sit here and listen to this nonsense...It takes a turkey 28 days to nest and hatch ..Most have not even bred right now
I cannot believe someone has not thrown the BS. flag by now.
The weather has nothing to do with the breeding,it is like deer mostly the length of the day..It will be some time in May before you see poults.This thread is ridiculous

Read this

Once the mating season is fully underway, hens seek out nesting areas to lay eggs. Laying generally begins in late March to early April through most of the country. Turkeys usually nest in areas (old fields, cutovers, pine forests, stream edges) with a well-developed under story that provides some bushy/vine concealment. One egg is laid daily until a clutch averaging 9 to 11 eggs is completed. Incubation takes 28 days, and all poults hatch within a 24-hour period. Depending on weather, the brood hen and poults leave the nest within 24 hours of hatching. Peak hatching period is from about May 20 to June 10. If the first nest is destroyed, some hens attempt a second nest. Hens that have to re-nest lay fewer eggs.
 
Why call people liars? If they saw poults, they saw poults.

What reason would one have to lie about it :confused: ?
 
I believe the guy saw poults before I'd believe that weather plays no role in breeding......that is ridiculous to me. So every bug, plant, tree, weed, flower, etc is a month ahead of schedule but turkeys are not affected in any way because some book you read says so?
 
Howa said:
I believe the guy saw poults before I'd believe that weather plays no role in breeding......that is ridiculous to me. So every bug, plant, tree, weed, flower, etc is a month ahead of schedule but turkeys are not affected in any way because some book you read says so?
Click to expand...

This isn't coming from any books, it is coming from spending the better part of 10 years in the field studying turkey behavior for various research projects. This also isn't coming from a book, the fact that I had had numerous conversations with some of the nations leading turkey bilogists over the years and not a single one believes nor has seen your theory pan out in there combined 260 years of field research.

What you feel or believe does not make one difference to me, or to what is actually happening or not happening right now in the woods. So in reality I could care less about a few unfounded claims say about the state of turkey breeding behavior. I just want to make sure the record is straight regarding turkey breeding behavior.

If you alls theories were true there would be years turkeys bred in January, and years (like last year) where breeding took place in late April and May. That would put poults hatching anywhere from Mid February some years, to late June early July other years. Wild "critters" cannot sustain a population based on every weather pattern, warm/cold spell, etc etc. Breeding happens during a certain period every year to allow for maximum survival of young "critters".

If you all's theories were true deer would rut during September if the weather got cold early, or wait until Dec/Jan on years when the temps stayed warm late. Go post that in the deer forum, and be prepared for BSK to run you out of there.
 

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