Times are good here, I know I'm lucky. Decoy use is kinda impossible in the mountains and lots of coonhunters definitely help.
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Were the 'newer' counties you are referencing restocked later than the rest of state? I track some county/public land harvest data and there is no doubt one part of TN is in good times. Just wondering if that region was restocked later than other portions of the state.
megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
Yes. Those counties you are referring to were restocked later.
tree_ghost
Well-Known Member
I have seen lots of good scratching so I know they're there but I haven't heard a gobble at daybreak yet.
I would love to exclusively hunt in that kind of environment. Hardwoods with relief, no decoys and coon hunters at night sounds like a dream come true. Enjoy it while you can and make the most of it.
Not sure the "newness" of restocking is affecting the population in any one area today, when most of the State was finished restocking in the mid to late 90s, basically 25 years ago. Most (not all) restocking efforts happened 1974-1999. This verbiage and the quotes originated from an interview with Dan Gibbs with TWRA.
"Between 1940-1950, Tennessee conservation officials tried to restore the turkey population by releasing birds raised in captivity. Of the 3,719 pen-reared turkey released across the state, few had the survival skills to survive in the wild.
In 1949 the Tennessee Game and Fish Commission was created as the state's first independent wildlife agency. Over the next decade a total of 119 turkeys were trapped in areas of Tennessee that had self-sustaining turkey populations and then released where the birds were scarce. By 1960, eight counties across the state were opened to turkey hunting.
In 1974 the Game and Fish Commission was reorganized into the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, and turkey stocking hit full stride. The use of rocket-propelled nets enabled biologists to catch more turkeys, and with white-tailed deer restoration winding down, more attention was given to statewide turkey restoration.
"The early thinking was that turkeys needed large expanses of forested habitat," Gibbs said. "Like deer, we soon realized that turkey do better in open landscapes where trees are interspersed with fields."
By the end of the 1980s, most counties in East Tennessee had enough turkeys to support hunting. Stocking continued during the 1990s until all 95 counties in Tennessee were opened to turkey hunting. From 1951-2000, wildlife officials trapped and moved a total of 13,761 turkeys across the state."
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Checked time lapse, trail cam pics from our food plots last night from the past 3 weeks.
A group of 4 gobblers still together have been using it just about every day, and then a group of 10-12 hens from time to
A group of 4 gobblers still together have been using it just about every day, and then a group of 10-12 hens from time to
