Turkey hunting tips aim to increase success in the field
News Release Published: September 13, 2012 by the Central Office
Contact(s): Scott Walter (608) 267-7861; Krista McGinley (608) 261-8458
MADISON – With strong season prospects and plenty of opportunities remaining to buy leftover fall turkey hunting permits, biologists encourage more hunters to give fall turkey hunting a try and offer these tips to help increase their success in the field.
“This year, hunters will have a really good chance to encounter birds because it was warm and dry through the nesting and brood rearing period, which should result in strong production,” says Scott Walter, Department of Natural Resources upland ecologist. “The key to getting a bird during the fall hunt is to understand that it’s a totally different season than the spring season, and to adjust your tactics accordingly.”
The fall turkey hunting season opens statewide Sept. 15 and people interested in buying leftover turkey permits can do so throughout the season or until permits are sold out.
Walter says that three important steps for a successful season are to take the time to scout for flock locations, learn where they’re feeding, and always keep safety first. “Remember that other hunters will be in the woods,” he says.
Walter shares some of his tips, along with guidance from the “Wisconsin Turkey Hunter’s Guide,” below.
Buy your leftover turkey permit for the fall season now
Locating flocks
One of the more valuable techniques is to locate and break up a fall flock and call them back for a close kill shot. Check with local landowners, who can often give hunters information on flock locations. Do your own scouting. Look for tracks, droppings and the telltale feeding areas with windrows of leaves scratched in a line. Large flocks, which are often made up of hens and their young of the year, leave similar sign as spring turkeys, but on a larger scale.
Listen. Fall flocks are quite verbal, so listen for turkey talk as you scout for the flock. Locating roost sites the evening before is a great way to find success in the morning. Flocks can be heard flying up to roost on calm evenings
Breaking up the flock
Once a flock is located, breaking it up is mandatory for a successful hunt. Many hunters rush the flock, shouting or even shooting in the air to startle the flock into scattering. Hunters also have the opportunity to use dogs to help them locate and break up flocks during the fall season. This opportunity is available statewide, and offers yet another way to enjoy getting out in the woods during the fall turkey season.
Using the right call
the point of the break up. Wait about half an hour or until you hear birds calling before you try to call them. The most frequently used call in the fall, which is also effective in the spring, is the “kee kee run” or lost bird call. It is a high pitched “kee kee kee” in a series followed usually by a yelp or two. Normally the young birds will “kee kee” in an attempt to locate each other a short time after you have broken up the flock. By responding to this sound you can get them to approach within gun range.
Another call to try if the “kee kee run” call is unsuccessful is a hen assembly call. This is the call of an adult hen attempting to gather her flock. It is a long series of yelps raising slightly and then declining in volume and pitch. Hens will often use a series of 15 to 20 yelps for a gathering call. This will often lure a young bird within gun range.
Hunters have also had success calling adult gobblers and hens by locating their flock and reproducing the calls they are making. Often a gobbler flock will approach and give a coarse gobbler yelp to investigate the intruder. Successful fall gobbler hunting requires a great deal of patience and woodsmanship.
Another technique worth trying if you are working adults without young is to reproduce their call exactly and add more aggressive calls after each series.
Pay attention to patterns
If you have been able to keep a close eye on a flock of birds, another hunting technique that works well is to get to know their pattern and ambush them when they pass through a particular area. Placing yourself along a trail or field edge that turkeys have been using frequently can be a very effective technique.
Turkeys will generally move between roost and feeding sites once they fly down in the morning. Find where they’re feeding and you can have luck later in the day. Locate oak stands and determine acorn abundance. Look for signs of turkey scratchings, and determine which fields (i.e., corn, soybean) they may be frequenting.