Report by Matthew Mattoida, Senior Wildlife Biologist
Current gobbler activity: With the season starting 10 days later than last year, hunters can expect a slight change in turkey behavior than what they are used to on opening day. Breeding groups should be well established, and most gobblers should be with hens by now, with only a few toms still looking for a hen. I have only seen a few hens by themselves in the morning, but they head in the direction of the nearest gobble as soon as they fly down. Gobbling has been very active on the roost and shortly after they hit the ground on the days when it hasn’t been too windy to hear them. I expect many of the toms will be involved in breeding activity until late morning during opening week of the season.
Condition of habitat: Although opening day is now 10 days later, hunters should not be expecting typical mid-April vegetation. Cool soil temperatures and lack of rainfall have resulted in a slower-than-usual green-up across the central region. Even though the trees are late to leaf-out this spring, most turkeys have left their reliable winter food sources in search of better breeding and nesting habitat and are not having any trouble finding food throughout the day. Several of the WMAs in the region have completed multiple prescribed burns over the past few months. Look for these areas to provide great strutting areas for toms in the mornings.
Reports from landowners or scouting hunters: Landowners and hunters out scouting have had similar reports over the past month: Several of the mornings have been too windy to hear anything, but on the calm mornings they were hearing at least one bird gobbling but often hearing multiple birds. It appears that the farther west they go in the region, the more turkeys they are seeing, which is typically the case. Many of the reports are of groups from two to five birds each, with some saying they have seen larger groups.
WMA best bets: Several of the WMAs in the region should be good for the opening weekend as they have not received much hunting pressure to this point. As the season rolls along, the best bets to chase a gobbler will likely be at Kaw WMA in the northern part of the region and Hickory Creek for the southern half. These two areas consistently have good turkey numbers year to year.
Tips for success: Scouting is crucial. Locating roosting birds in the mornings or evenings leading up to a hunt is an invaluable wealth of knowledge; just be sure to not get too close. But don’t stop there. Quietly look for droppings, tracks, strutting marks, and dusting areas to give an idea of where these turkeys are spending much of their time.
Be PATIENT. We all dream of the hunt where turkeys fly off of the roost straight into your decoys, but that just doesn’t happen all that often. If things don’t go as planned at first light, be patient, listen to where your bird goes, and set up again and again if you have to. Just be sure you don’t spook them when you move. A lot of turkeys are harvested during midday when all of the hens are on their nests and the gobblers get lonely. Also, if you have a bird responding to you, don’t give up because he quits gobbling; oftentimes he is heading your way.
Get away from the road. If you are able, you need to be willing to walk a little, or a lot sometimes. If you are hunting public land, there is a high probability someone has already been calling to these birds from the road. And even if the turkeys are responding, they probably won’t come within shooting range.
Mistakes to avoid: Trying to get too close while the birds are on the roost. This is an easy and costly thing to do. Even though we are starting later in the year, many of the trees do not have a lot of, if any, leaves on them. Be cautious when setting up in the mornings.
Calling too much. Lots of hunters like to hear those gobblers gobbling back, but excessive calling is not a normal interaction between turkeys in the wild and can often cause toms to hang up and not come close enough for a shot. Only call as much as you have to in order to increase your chances of success.
Underestimating a turkey’s vision. Decoys help to distract turkeys’ attention. But even with them, turkeys are constantly looking for anything that might be a threat. Be sure to move only when you are sure they cannot see you.
Opening-day expectations: Birds should be gobbling a lot on the roost and shortly after fly-down but will likely be “henned up” first thing in the morning. Pack a lunch in case you have to stay a little longer than you are hoping. Although turkey numbers have been trending downward over the past few years, there still seems to be plenty of turkeys to hunt. A decent number of jakes are being spotted, indicating at least an average hatch last year. Opening day this year falls on a Saturday, so that means there will likely be plenty of folks out hunting, especially on the WMAs. Arrive early and stay late, but please be courteous of other people’s space. Conditions are great, and the strutting and gobbling should be in full swing, with hens making visits to their nests midday and leaving the gobblers all alone throughout the region.
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