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Season proclamation predictions

younggun308 said:
In the commission meeting, he was totally laying the groundwork for a "Saturday closest to April 7th" opener, which could range from April 4th most years to an occasional April 10th opening.

To me, this would be a disaster, as for the next several years it's going to be on the earlier end of the spectrum. They hardly seem to be breeding in the mountains that early most years.
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Hasnt been a disaster for the last 25 years? Hens get bred every year and have for the last 40 i know of, it's getting the poults out the eggs and into the trees is where the problem is
 
For just one season, we've delayed the season opener to the middle of April. We've had a good hatch since then. Maybe it's because Chamberlain is right—maybe it's not.

But to not stick with that strategy for at least 5 years seems utterly ludicrous.
Comm. Cox tried to strongarm the rest of the commission into undoing the change last year, and they ignored him. They should continue to ignore attempts to move the season earlier.

We cannot be the only Southern state north of Florida to open that early. It was a colossal zoo in the 2022 opener, out of state tags everywhere and zero gobbling. Last year I think we coincided with Kentucky and maybe Georgia.
 
younggun308 said:
For just one season, we've delayed the season opener to the middle of April. We've had a good hatch since then. Maybe it's because Chamberlain is right—maybe it's not.

But to not stick with that strategy for at least 5 years seems utterly ludicrous.
Comm. Cox tried to strongarm the rest of the commission into undoing the change last year, and they ignored him. They should continue to ignore attempts to move the season earlier.

We cannot be the only Southern state north of Florida to open that early. It was a colossal zoo in the 2022 opener, out of state tags everywhere and zero gobbling. Last year I think we coincided with Kentucky and maybe Georgia.
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Yeah Tennessee, Kentucky and Fort Campbell all started at the same time in 2023
 
JJ3 said:
They said on the video No to straight wall ML.
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The TWRA said no 2 buck limit too, then the commission had them change it. Like others have said no way they did all this work with focus groups for nothing… IMO change is coming just don't know what.
 
Rakkin6 said:
Leave the opening turkey season date alone on April 15th. While I don't want to cut non-resident hunters out completely I would like to see it changed. Maybe a lottery where you get points like they do for Oak Ridge etc.
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Making nonresidents use a points system for turkeys would be a giant step in the right direction.

Tennessee has the potential to be THE destination eastern hunting state in the country.
 
CrossVolle said:
Tennessee has the potential to be THE destination eastern hunting state in the country.
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Alabama USED to be the hot spot for turkeys. went there for over twenty years until the bottom fell out of the population on the managed areas we hunted. their opening up two weeks earlier than TN and having the cheapest NR license fees anywhere made it VERY attractive, i've killed more birds in 'bama than here in TN. LOTS more...
 
Wooden Arrow said:
Alabama USED to be the hot spot for turkeys. went there for over twenty years until the bottom fell out of the population on the managed areas we hunted. their opening up two weeks earlier than TN and having the cheapest NR license fees anywhere made it VERY attractive, i've killed more birds in 'bama than here in TN. LOTS more...
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Lots of bird down there. And they act completely different.
 
Wooden Arrow said:
didn't stay too long watching, but i see gobblers strutting in with flocks of hens as early as late January down at Cades Cove. if they aren't breeding, it's not the gobblers fault...;)
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You do realize from a biological standpoint the gobblers do not determine when turkeys breed???

Hell, gobblers strut 365. Poults strut, hens strut.

Strutting has zero relevance to actual breeding.
 
knightrider said:
Hasnt been a disaster for the last 25 years? Hens get bred every year and have for the last 40 i know of, it's getting the poults out the eggs and into the trees is where the problem is
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Only a disaster last 20 years. That's when populations began to decline in many parts of TN.

But the decline is multifactorial. 4 bird limit, more turkey hunters, more effective killing techniques all cause a larger percentage of adult males to be removed from the population and leaving fewer or no birds left to fertilize hens in June.

Hens initiating nests at lower rates than before, fewer eggs hatching, fewer poults surviving is causing the population to decline.

From a selfish standpoint (because I love calling turkeys to me), I much prefer the mid April to Memorial Day weekend season. Unpressured birds in mid April are just SO much easier to call in than henned up birds end of March. And I LOVE being able to hunt Memorial Day weekend. No need to head out west or up north to prolong the days I get to spend afield.
 
younggun308 said:
I'm perplexed by how they are gearing up for changing the start date of turkey season with some "compromise."

Agree or disagree with it, they had a scientific rationale (Chamberlain's theory of nest disruption, alpha gobblers) for why they pushed the opener to the middle of April. Maybe I missed it, but I saw nothing suggesting the commission was no longer convinced by that notion in the presentation. So why would they just assume the good hatch this year had nothing to do with delayed opener?
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We have had great hatches the last 3 / 4 years , the hatch has everything to do with weather, predators and habitat as it always has. TN did a study which came back and proved the delayed areas of the state had no better reproductive success in delayed areas as opposed to non delayed areas. Remember parts of the state were delayed before they delayed the whole state. Problem was when they voted to delay the whole state the data from our study was not in yet. The data from the study came in a few months later , after they made the change. Data stated delayed areas had no more reproductive success than non delayed. As far as non residents have a quota, open to residents only first week, open private lands first/ then public the next weekend. Whatever you need to do but don't let non residents be the driving force behind the TN opener.
 

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megalomaniac said:
Only a disaster last 20 years. That's when populations began to decline in many parts of TN.

But the decline is multifactorial. 4 bird limit, more turkey hunters, more effective killing techniques all cause a larger percentage of adult males to be removed from the population and leaving fewer or no birds left to fertilize hens in June.

Hens initiating nests at lower rates than before, fewer eggs hatching, fewer poults surviving is causing the population to decline.

From a selfish standpoint (because I love calling turkeys to me), I much prefer the mid April to Memorial Day weekend season. Unpressured birds in mid April are just SO much easier to call in than henned up birds end of March. And I LOVE being able to hunt Memorial Day weekend. No need to head out west or up north to prolong the days I get to spend afield.
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Hardly, weve had great turkey numbers , weve had great hatches, bad hatches etc. yes theres been a decline last 5-6 years in some places, but its not because hens aren't being bred. Delaying the season means nothing as you just stated, birds are easier to call in . The only change they have made that will help is lowering the limit. The predator explosion and the grip and grinners with their fans are more to blame than anything. Of course this all just my opinion
 
megalomaniac said:
So.why not keep season mid April thru end of May? Easier for hunters to kill birds. Better hunting.

Birds in March are much more vulnerable to corn piles and reapers. Screw those 'hunters'.
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I will try to answer and it's just a guess. I am guessing it's because the majority of hunters would rather turkey hunt closer to the traditional opener and spend more time in the woods in April than late May/ memorial day weekend, especially since there is no proven benefit for our turkeys to the mid April opening date. Did they say we would open in March? I was under the impression they only wanted to push it back a week from where it opens this year? Which is still a week later than the traditional opener.I also wouldn't think they base the season for all of us on poachers that shoot over corn those guys will do whatever, whenever to kill , they are not even turkey hunters at all.Reaping has been banned on public land, so now you just have the guys that do it on their private. No way I would attempt it but no clue what percentage people actually take part. Just guessing the reaping works in mid April also , but again not something to base an opener on for all turkey hunters.
 
Although most baiters hunt the first couple of weekends there are several that use bait the entire season. Two properties that I have hunted has a nearby landowners that feed deer and turkey year round but don't hunt. When the gobblers fly down they usually head toward the corn.
Another thing I've wondered about is several counties that had drastic declines in turkey populations had liberal fall seasons and each county had its own limit. From what I remember of the birds that were checked out most were older gobblers. It may be that lots of the hens are being bred but the eggs not fertilized because the younger Toms are not sexually mature and lack viable sperm to fertilize the eggs.
 

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