Strutting on roost??

pressfit

pressfit

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Is this common? I got all set up this morning and about 200 yards away I could see a gobbler sitting on roost when it got daylight.. (and no, I didnt walk over there and shoot him out..LOL) anyway.. whenever a hen would cut loose he would blow up like a balloon.. while still on roost.. I have never seen this before..(probably because I dont get to go much in the mornings) is this normal?
 
Yep. I bet there's rarely a morning go by that a boss bird doesn't swell up while he's still on the limb. They do it all time.
 
Boll Weevil is right. That's a boss gobbler you got right there. I have seen it where 4 or more gobblers are roosted really close to one another and only the dominant bird is strutting on the limb.
 
A few years ago man and I were hunting the juvy opening morning in Dickson.

We were in a ground blind and I tried something radical.
Popped it up in the pitch dark, 40 yards from a tree line where I knew birds SHOULD be roosted.

Wake up time came and I was right. Had several birds HAMMERING all within 75 yards of us.

I peeked out the side window and started counting birds.
The one closest to us would blow up in strut every time they all gobbled.
He would never gobble though.

I whispered to man, "that is the one we want right there."

Sure enough, flydown time came and big boy sailed out of the tree and landed about 40 yards from us.

I purred once and ended it with a cluck.

He took 5 steps before man popped him. :D

24 pounds
10" and 6" beards
1 1/4" spurs

Good times.

turkeymount.jpg
 
One day there will be full strut decoys that you put on limbs so that people can shoot them out of the tree...

On a more serious note, yes, the love strutting, spitting, and drumming in the trees. If you learn how to listen to drumming, sometimes you will hear them drumming if they never gobble. I have located a few birds by just hearing them drumming in the roost. Never would gobble.
 
Boll Weevil said:
Yep. I bet there's rarely a morning go by that a boss bird doesn't swell up while he's still on the limb. They do it all time.
Click to expand...

I agree. I've seen it many times.
 
The only true double my son and I have he was watching a bird strut on the limb and I couldn't see it. First Lb flew down and I said get on him. He says nope that's yours. 2nd flew down and he said That's mine. Ready Shoot Bang!. Both drop. His, the limb strutter, was missing a tail feather so he knew he had the daddy mac.

You can hear them spitting and drumming in the tree also if you are close to them.
 
A few years ago we started the White County NWTF Chapter and when we were trying to decide on a name, I told about a a strutting turkey that I had seen strutting on a limb of a big white oak. That is why the chapter is called White County Limbstrutters.
 
My brother went in one morning before light and got set up with his back against a big tree. When it got lighter he said he could hear this tom spitting and drumming close by but couldn't see him. Finally he looked straight up and yep there he was in the same tree strutting on a limb.
 

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