The Pocket Guide to Spring and Fall Turkey Hunting by Monte Burch

Author:Monte Burch
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing
Published: 2015-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Portable blinds help conceal hunter movement, making them great for hunting with youngsters.

7. SCOUTING

As with most hunting, turkey hunting success depends on locating the game. The first step is to pick an area to hunt. In the days when turkeys were a bit more scarce, picking the right area was important. Turkeys are just about everywhere these days, but if hunting out of state or a new area, information from state fish and game departments can reveal best areas. Harvest data from past seasons, as well as maps and brochures listing public hunting lands are all available from state agencies. Aerial photos and topographical maps will reveal more detailed information such as streams, open fields, areas with mature timber, brush, and so forth.

With paper scouting done, walk the area before the season opens, looking for sign such as scratchings, droppings, tracks, and lost feathers. Turkey scratchings are easy to find in the woods as you’ll see numerous small scrapes where turkeys have scratched away the forest duff to get at acorns and seeds. You can often determine which way the birds are headed by the debris thrown backwards as the birds feed. Gobbler droppings are usually J-shaped while hen droppings are small round masses. Dropped breast feathers can be good scouting signs. Gobbler breast feathers are black tipped while hen breast feathers are buff tipped. It’s hard to distinguish between gobbler and hen tracks, but tracks do indicate the presence of birds.

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