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Wisconsin 2014 Final Spring Harvest/Kill Stats

June 8, 2014 by Charlie 6 Comments

 

We’ve all been waiting for these.  Well all of us serious turkey hunters.  Scroll down for the final, complete 2014 Wisconsin Spring Hunt Wild Turkey Stats.

2014 Wisconsin Wild Turkey Spring Harvest/Kill

2014 Spring Turkey Harvest
Zone A B C D E F LTH Youth Total
01 3,300 2,446 2,090 1,737 1,260 607 155 545 12,140
02 2,016 1,865 1,700 1,356 1,421 1,149 285 571 10,363
03 2,669 2,181 1,955 1,452 1,032 569 192 467 10,517
04 1,187 1,050 926 907 725 626 99 238 5,758
05 386 416 361 266 261 183 56 84 2,013
06 122 122 101 75 73 31 5 15 544
07 61 77 74 54 51 28 2 7 354
01A 2 4 4 1 1 12
01B 6 4 6 1 17
01C 3 1 0 4
01D 3 1 0 4
01E 0 1 0 1
01F 3 5 0 8
02A 0
03A 1 0 1 2
04A 0
04B 3 1 1 5
04C 0
01G 1 1
01H 0
01J 1 1
01K 0
01L 0
02B 0
FM 29 22 1 7 2 10 0 0 71
Unks 0
0
Total 9,790 8,198 7,218 5,856 4,827 3,203 794 1,929 41,815

 

2014 Wisconsin Spring Wild Turkey Kill by Age and Sex Ratio

2014 Turkey Kill by Age and Sex.
Zone Toms Jakes Hens   Total  % of Adult Toms  
01 10,978 1,058 104 12,140 90.4%
02 9,258 1,008 97 10,363 89.3%
03 9,581 867 69 10,517 91.1%
04 5,340 396 22 5,758 92.7%
05 1,828 174 11 2,013 90.8%
06 489 54 1 544 89.9%
07 306 45 3 354 86.4%
FM 64 5 2 71 90.1%
Total 37,844 3,607 309   41,760  90,6%  

Wisconsin 2014 Spring Wild Turkey Success Rates by Unit and Season Time Period

2014 Spring Turkey Success Rates
Zone A B C D E F Total
01 27% 20% 17% 14% 14% 14% 19.3%
02 27% 25% 23% 18% 19% 15% 23.0%
03 25% 21% 19% 14% 16% 17% 20.3%
04 20% 18% 16% 19% 16% 14% 18.4%
05 19% 21% 18% 13% 16% 12% 18.1%
06 16% 16% 13% 10% 10% 5% 12.6%
07 10% 13% 12% 9% 9% 8% 10.6%
01A 17% 33% 31% 32.4%
01B 40% 27% 40% 37.8%
01C 38% 13% 0% 15.4%
01D 25% 8% 0% 11.1%
01E 0% 20% 0% 6.7%
01F 14% 24% 0% 12.7%
02A 0% 0% 0% 0.0%
03A 0% 17% 0% 10.5%
04A 0% 0% 0% 0.0%
04B 38% 13% 0% 20.8%
04C 0% 0% 0% 0.0%
01G 0% 0% 0% 20.0%
01H 0% 0% 0% 0.0%
01J 0% 50% 0% 16.7%
01K 0% 0% 0% 0.0%
02B 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0.0%
FM 35% 22% 3% 18% 8% 25% 21.9%

Wisconsin 2014 Spring Wild Turkey Mail Issued tags

2014 Mail Issued Spring Turkey Permits
Permits Available Applicants Period 1 Period 2 Period 3 Period 4 Period 5 Period 6 Total
74,400 36,109 12,400 12,400 8,438 1,872 623 245 35,978
45,000 35,981 7,500 7,500 7,500 7,500 2,487 651 33,138
63,000 29,649 10,500 10,500 6,851 1,397 432 163 29,843
34,920 20,785 5,820 5,820 5,821 2,123 560 242 20,386
12,000 9,047 2,000 2,000 2,000 2,000 371 166 8,537
4,500 4,936 750 750 750 750 751 576 4,327
3,600 3,594 600 600 600 600 600 348 3,348
36 128 12 12 13 37
45 78 15 15 15 45
24 46 8 8 10 26
36 66 12 12 12 36
15 23 5 5 5 15
63 89 21 21 18 60
18 26 6 6 6 18
18 54 6 6 7 19
6 23 2 2 2 6
24 68 8 8 8 24
15 24 6 4 5 15
6 4 2 2 1 5
6 4 2 2 2 6
6 21 2 2 2 6
6 22 2 2 3 7
3 1 0 1 0 1
18 80 4 3 3 3 4 2 19
415 324 84 101 36 39 24 40 324
238,180 141,182 39,767 39,782 32,108 16,284 5,852 2,433 136,226

OTC Tags/Permits Wisconsin 2014 Spring Wild Turkey

2014 Spring Turkey “Over-the-Counter” Permits
Zone     Period 1 Period 2 Period 3 Period 4 Period 5 Period 6 Total
01 3,960 10,521 8,445 3,999 26,925
02 5,011 6,851 11,862
03 3,647 9,102 6,008 3,226 21,983
04 2,771 3,946 4,184 10,901
05 1,219 1,376 2,595

Wisconsin 2014 Spring Wild Turkey Total Permits

2014 Spring Turkey Total Permits
Zone Permits Available Applicants Period 1 Period 2 Period 3 Period 4 Period 5 Period 6 Total
01 74,400 36,109 12,400 12,400 12,398 12,393 9,068 4,244 62,903
02 45,000 35,981 7,500 7,500 7,500 7,500 7,498 7,502 45,000
03 63,000 29,649 10,500 10,500 10,498 10,499 6,440 3,389 51,826
04 34,920 20,785 5,820 5,820 5,821 4,894 4,506 4,426 31,287
05 12,000 9,047 2,000 2,000 2,000 2,000 1,590 1,542 11,132
06 4,500 4,936 750 750 750 750 751 576 4,327
07 3,600 3,594 600 600 600 600 600 348 3,348
01A 36 128 12 12 13 0 0 0 37
01B 45 78 15 15 15 0 0 0 45
01C 24 46 8 8 10 0 0 0 26
01D 36 66 12 12 12 0 0 0 36
01E 15 23 5 5 5 0 0 0 15
01F 63 89 21 21 21 0 0 0 63
02A 18 26 6 6 6 0 0 0 18
03A 18 54 6 6 7 0 0 0 19
04A 6 23 2 2 2 0 0 0 6
04B 24 68 8 8 8 0 0 0 24
04C 15 24 6 4 5 0 0 0 15
01G 6 4 2 2 1 0 0 0 5
01H 6 4 2 2 2 0 0 0 6
01J 6 21 2 2 2 0 0 0 6
01K 6 22 2 2 3 0 0 0 7
01L 3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
02B 18 80 4 3 3 3 5 2 20
FM 415 324 84 101 36 39 24 40 324
 
Total 238,180 141,182 39,767 39,782 39,718 38,678 30,482 22,069 210,496

Wisconsin 2014 Spring Wild Turkey Learn To Hunt Harvest/Kill

2014 LTH and Youth Turkey Harvest
Count of Harvest HARV_SEX HARV_AGE
F M Grand Total
Zone Period A J A J
01 LTH 1 136 18 155
Youth 5 2 475 63 545
1A YH . . 1 . 1
1B YH . . 1 . 1
2 LTH 5 . 245 35 285
YH 3 . 506 62 571
3 LTH 5 . 162 25 192
YH 3 . 428 36 467
4 LTH 1 . 87 11 99
YH 1 . 221 16 238
5 LTH . . 52 4 56
YH 1 . 71 12 84
6 LTH . . 5 . 5
YH . . 13 2 15
7 LTH . . 2 . 2
YH . . 7 . 7
Total 25 2 2412 284 2723

A lot of wild turkey stats here.  Appears to it was a fantastic spring turkey hunt.  Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments section.

Filed Under: News, Spring Turkey, Turkey Hunting Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, hunting, news, Turkey Hunting, Wild Turkey, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

Tough to Hunt Gobbler Led to Ghillie Suited Grass Setup

June 1, 2014 by Charlie 2 Comments

You all know this gobbler or at least have met/heard him.  He sits on his roost proclaiming himself king for the day.  He wants all the other toms to back off and leave all the hens to him.  Because he is stuck on gobble every hunter in the areas thinks Mr. Loud Mouth will be an easy mark only to find out this bird is king of hunter avoiding strategies.  My advice is when you meet this turkey find another to hunt or you’ll find yourself addicted to killing this particular bird.  You find yourself getting up earlier and earlier in order to head him off while each time for some not so obvious reason or maybe an obvious reason you can’t figure out due to the additional sleep deprivation.

grass setup closeup (1024x766)

Ghillie Suit hides the human form.  Make sure it is made of natural materials they reflect less light.

Anyone who knows me, knows I can’t bring myself to give up, so my sound advice above goes right over my own head which leads me to unusual or some would say desperate tactics.  Such is the case in the following tale of the grass setup.

This turkey out gobbled every turkey in the valley making him impossible to ignore.  He seemed to have a easy pattern and at first glance I thought he would be wearing my tag in short order.  However, his habit of leaving the roost and walking to the upper field ended the first time I setup there; he walked down hill.  Must have seen or heard me, odd all the other turkeys flew or walked into the upper field.  Next morning I arrived earlier and snuck into woods middle ridge, it stayed quiet except for the wing beats landing in the field.  Then after my 2+ hour wait he started gobbling at 6 O’clock and stayed on roost until 7 before dropping the ground and sprinting up into the field gobbling all the way.  His zigging and my zagging went on for days.

Then I remembered my grass ghillie suit.  A disappointing apparel purchase mainly because it was very hard to move in.  It picked up every sticker and snagged on every piece of vegetation.  I realized that would not matter since the field was freshly planted and the 12 inch high grass strip would provide sufficient cover to lay in.  There was one particular fold in that field where the turkeys moved through out of range of any edge setup.  With only 2 days left to fill 2 tags I smirked at how well this idea would work.

grass setup 2 (1024x493)

View the approaching turkeys see.

Morning dawned on me lying on dew coated grass wearing an artificial grass boonie hat dressed in a grass suit with gun resting along my right side.  Sure glad only turkeys are out in those early mornings.  Someone from normal society might try and lockup a camo painted face grass clad hunter.  Some things are just too hard to explain to those outside the know.

The target turkey sounded off and stayed on roost while a hen moseyed along staring at me.  I had called on a tongue teaser call, she came to point of call.   She purred and stared looking for the turkey she had heard.  A hunting buddy had told me a story of how he moved while hiding in some logs during a fall hunt thinking he messed up his chances when all of sudden the flock of turkeys came over to investigate.  He figured they were expecting to see movement and his movement looked turkey like to them, he shot his bird.  So I moved my head and the hen immediately came within a few feet of me continuing to purr.  The two us played this game for at least a half hour.

The turkeys were within and never showed any concern as I laid still watching.

The turkeys were within feet and never showed any concern as I laid still watching. Bagged a second gobbler from this setup the next day.

He appeared without warning, I had been distracted playing with the hen and not paying attention of the gobbler’s approach.  The gobbler stood at attention staring at me and the fading away hen, she moved up the field past my head out of sight.

The gobbler moved to a 45 angle a few feet from my feet looking down at me.  My plan, as had happened on so many other open area setups was to wait for him to strut,  pirouette until his fan blocked his vision, rise up with gun pointed and shoot as he came out of strut.  Sounds easy, that is, until the gobbler is not in the mood to strut and looking down on you.  Come on, there is a hen please strut your stuff….

As the gobbler resumed stiff legging closer it was very apparent he was not going to strut.  My fingers found the shotgun’s grip, fumbled the safety off as the barrel aligned with his beak.  Pink mist filled the air with the headless turkey flopping on his back, he felt no pain.

Second Turkey using Grass Ghillie Suit.

Second Turkey using Grass Ghillie Suit.

History of Ghillie Suits

The word ghillie is an old Scottish term for a special kind of game warden. Ghillies were tasked with protecting the game on their Lord’s lands from poachers. From time to time, the ghillies would stalk the game by hiding in the grass and lying perfectly still. They would wait for unsuspecting deer to amble by and then leap out and grab it with their bare hands. Ghillies would then haul their prize back to the keep so the Lord could shoot it in the castle courtyard in a “mock hunt.”

 

Grass setups work to get tough gobblers in close.

Grass Ghillie Suit setups work to get tough gobblers in close.

 

Filed Under: Stories, Think Pieces / Opinion, turkey hunting tips Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, wild turkey story, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

2014 Wisconsin Spring Turkey Harvest, Results

May 28, 2014 by Charlie 11 Comments

Update for 2015 Spring Turkey Drawing and OTC tag availability.

Wisconsin’s  preliminary 2014 spring wild turkey harvest or if you prefer the number of gobblers killed during the spring of 2014 hunt:

  • Unit 1 – 12,147
  • Unit 2 – 10,313
  • Unit 3 – 10,490
  • Unit 4 –   5,727  (OTC permits were unnecessarily cut 25%)
  • Unit 5 –   2,000
  • Unit 6-       541   (OTC permits were unnecessarily cut 25%)
  • Unit 7-        354  (OTC permits were unnecessarily cut 25%)
  • FM-              86

Statewide Total- 41,659

If WDNR had not cut the OTC permits Wisconsin’s turkey hunters would have had more opportunity to hunt in what was one of the best turkey springs ever.

2014 Wisconsin spring turkey hunters will find more 2-4 year old gobblers and fewer jakes than in past spring turkey hunts.  2012 spring recruitment was excellent due to near perfect spring nesting conditions.  2012 Fall hunters regularly encountered large numbers of jakes of the year.   There is no reason to think many of these birds died off making them 2 year olds for spring 2014 hunt. All of the negative news stories could take a toll on  hunter attitudes and  suppress their efforts.  For those hunters that do not let that negative narrative discourage them and go out hunting will find a spring woods with more mature gobblers than ever before.

According to active spring turkey hunters, there were more encounters with mature gobblers this spring than in any previous year.  The bad news is the small number of jakes due to the low recruitment in spring 2013.   What is most irritating to veteran turkey hunters who understand the population dynamics of turkey populations was having the number of permits cut during a year of unusually good gobbler numbers.

What about spring turkey season 2015?

Of course, it depends on spring 2014 recruitment numbers and so far that is looking good.  Even though spring temperatures have been 10-15 degrees below average rainfall has been moderate with no snowfall to speak of.  Cool temps have reduced springtime insect numbers a valuable high protein food source of freshly hatched poults.  Warmer temps are better than cooler temps for wildlife, especially birds.  A couple of weeks ago while hunting, I found the first poults of the season and even if they don’t survive due to early hatching their hen will have plenty of time to re-nest.  Usually, during the last two Wisconsin turkey seasons gobblers are forming into summertime bachelor groups.  Not so this year, reports of henned up gobblers right to the last day of hunting season were common.  Indicating either the hens are re-nesting or due to cooler temps causing a late snow melt are breeding later.

Early 2015 spring  turkey hunt thoughts

  • If 2014 recruitment is good with fall hunters finding a large number of birds of the year, then the 2015 spring hunt will feature few adult gobblers and plentiful numbers of young jakes.
  • If 2014 recruitment is poor, well then be ready for some tough 2015 spring hunting.
  • Wild turkeys live about two years whether you hunt them or not.  Meaning most of the spring 2014 “surplus” gobblers will not be alive come spring 2015.

 

Filed Under: News Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, news, Turkey Hunting, Wild Turkey, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

Lucky Striker Turkey

May 27, 2014 by Charlie Leave a Comment

This gobbler seemed so easy at the  start, it’s now been 2 hours and quiet has settled in with no response to any call.   He gobbled and moved closer only to fade off as they so often do.  In the meantime there were many gobbles off somewhere else causing my stiff body to yearn for another setup.  A little while longer, his last gobble was so very close he can’t be far.

After another half hour or so with more gobbles echoing through valley I succumbed to the move bug.  Planning to return later I crept as quietly as possible back to the boat.  While stowing my gear I noticed my favorite striker was not in its designated pocket, must be back at the setup. My gaze noticed my gun laying in the boat, a quick internal debate decided it should come with even though it is a short hike to the setup.

Lucky Striker (1024x326)As I bent to pick up the wayward striker laying right where it had been set the feeling of something staring came over me.  Slowly my eyes rolled around scanning the woods, nothing… I grasped the striker and rose to leave my  hunter’s scan continuing to look for the out place line and there it was as my back straightened to full height a tom staring in my direction.  He continued advancing towards me in a juking head zigzag obviously searching for the hen who had so seductively called for so many hours.

Wild turkeys have a sharp eyesight so the slightest misstep now would send the turkey off to safe refuges only turkeys know.  Gently I leaned my left shoulder against the aspen, it had the same dappled color tones as my camo.  At this moment the tension in the that woods was stifling.  The purring turkey would take a step or two then stop, look and listen.

My right hand readied on my  gun that was pointed at the ground  in line with  my leg, both (my gun and I) were doing our best impersonation of that little tree as the turkey had slunk well within range.  The left hand must soon be brought into play…

The turkey’s head crossed behind a small tree as he started to puff into strut thought the better of it and increased his pace apparently satisfied the hen was gone there was no reason to stay.  Fingers loosened from the striker and grabbed the forearm of the rising shotgun,  my body rolled around the tree now turned to face the turkey.  The tom should have run or flew but as is so often the case they stop to get a better look when they see movement from where they expected to see a turkey.

As the roar of the gun subsided there was barely a break in the other springtime sounds.  Just me with a lucky striker laying on the ground pointing at a dead turkey.

IMGP1103 (1024x560)

Filed Under: Spring Turkey, Stories Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, Turkey Hunting, turkey hunting story, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

Will Wisconsin Beat Missouri Turkey Harvest?

May 17, 2014 by Charlie 1 Comment

Just in Missouri’s 2014 wild turkey season has come to an end with a total 2014 wild turkey harvest of 43,273 birds.  This is Missouri’s  third year in row of increased harvest numbers, very good news.  Congratulations Missouri hunters.

At the time of this writing Wisconsin has a statewide harvest of 35,882 with 10 days of hunting season remaining.  If Wisconsin hunters register another 7,391 wild turkeys we will tie Missouri.

Why does this matter you ask?   Well it really doesn’t- Just interesting because Missouri is considered a turkey hunting mecca, a turkey hunting powerhouse of t he nation.  On the other hand Wisconsin ranks low on the turkey hunting community’s radar.  How many turkey hunters dream of making a trip a Wisconsin in the spring.  Heck a lot turkey hunters I know travel out state seeking to find the promised land of turkey hunting.

Perhaps, my fellow Wisconsin turkey hunters we are living in the turkey hunting promised land.  The turkey population is high, depending on who is estimating the range is somewhere between 500,000 – 600,000+.  No one counts turkeys in the state and harvest data has no mathematical bearing on the actual numbers.  There are only about 85,000 turkey hunters in the entire state and the hunters are spread out over 6 weeks.  A single hunter may buy as many permits over the counter as they choose and there are still thousands left that will likely go unsold.   The terrain is varied from big northern pine woods, big central hardwoods that cover both flatland and steep bluffs, farmlands,  rivers, swamps and prairies.  Allowing a turkey hunter to select the type of hunt they feel like without driving large distances out of state.  Without all that windshield time a hunter can spend more time in the turkey woods.  What’s not to like?

Hunt on to end of the last season.  Remember it’s a long wait to spring 2015.

 

Filed Under: News, Spring Turkey, Turkey Hunting Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, hunting, news, Turkey Hunting, Wild Turkey, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

Sometimes It’s Easy

May 7, 2014 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Season-C-Unit-2-Wisconsin-Turkey

It was one of those rare magical turkey hunting mornings yesterday, when the weather is beautiful & the turkeys are loud & suicidal.

Morning alarm set at 3am, 70 mile drive to northern unit 2, in the woods before 5am, turkey down at 5:30am.  Nice size, 22+ lbs.  5+ pounds of turkey breast to be smoked at Maplewood Meats.

I had planned to hike in about a mile, most of it no-trail, to a wooded ridge.  But turkeys gobbled nearby while I was getting out of the car.  Set up just a few hundred yards in, 100+ yards from two competing gobblers.  Then I fixated on a bunch of brush about 8 yards in front of me, worrying that I wouldn’t have a clean shot.  So I stupidly crawled forward & snipped branches.  Bad move.  I never heard the two gobble again.  But somebody must like me, since a third soon lit up 200+ yards out in a different direction.  I only ended up calling twice to bring him in, soft yelping & clucking.  He came in quiet the last hundred yards, stopping to strut every half dozen steps.  While I was tagging him & taking photos another nearby tom began gobbling & was still gobbling as I walked out.

It was the 3rd day I hunted, & the first decent weather day.  The other hunts had several non-turkey critter adventures involving a fox squirrel, multiple deer, & a coyote.  Had one turkey near-death Thursday.  The tom was 60 yards out, coming uphill gobbling to me when a doe & two yearlings stepped out between us.  Never saw them until they were in front of me.  Incredibly they lingered for 15 minutes 15-20 feet from me while the tom gobbled & plucked on the other side of them.  A lot more to that story, but the ending was no turkey.

Interesting thing about the online harvest count.  I looked at the Zone 2 number when I registered just before noon yesterday.  Then at 5pm I refreshed the page.  The count went up ONE, me I assume, from 6249 to 6250.  Later at 9pm a refresh added 95 more, where it stays this morning.

Filed Under: Spring Turkey, Stories, Turkey Hunting Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, hunting stories, Turkey Hunting, turkey hunting story, Wild Turkey

How to Hunt Turkeys in Wind & Rain

April 28, 2014 by Charlie 1 Comment

Wisconsin wild turkey hunters are moving into their third season.  That comes with rain and wind which is typical of springtime weather.  Most hunters think this is better than snow, although on May 5th of 2013 20 inches of wet snow suffocated the woods.  Let us all hope there will be no repeat performance this year.   The thing a spring turkey hunter must keep in mind is the turkeys are still there doing turkey things no matter the weather.  Where else are they going to go?

Soggy rainy days can be productive. The turkeys are still doing what turkeys do.

Soggy rainy days can be productive. The turkeys are still doing what turkeys do.

Wind and rain bring some advantages to the turkey hunter who perseveres through their discomfort.  Both help hide hunter’s movements and noises.  When the wind is blowing there is movement all around from greases, brush and trees. A turkey’s eyesight is their first line of defense however it is only 2 dimensional eyesight so background movement makes it harder for the turkey to pick out danger.  This causes turkeys to move less and become more wary,(if you can imagine that).  A turkey’s second defense is their acute hearing which also is impaired due to wind and rain  moving plants while causing background noise that aids in covering accidental human made sounds setting the stage for a successful hunt.

To avoid the loss or degradation  of the their primary defenses turkeys hangout or loaf  around in areas where the wind has less affect.  Such as hollows in hilly country or even folds in open field land and flat woodlands.  Rain seems to keep turkeys from moving around as much so when a hunter finds turkeys they’ll be less likely to leave the sheltered area.  If the hunter can enter these zones relatively undetected and waits 15-20 minutes for “settle time” before calling softly they may soon find a lonely turkey silently responding to their calls.  Keep in mind the rain and wind that takes away from the turkey’s senses also diminishes the hunter’s.  This will make identifying the approaching turkey more difficult.

Today’s modern turkey hunters if they go hunting in the rain and wind setup in a blind.  This is better than not hunting but remember turkey movements are curtailed during times of less than perfect weather.   These blind and decoy spreads are occasionally successful.  I have little advice to offer with these blind setups even though I have killed a few gobblers from blinds on bad weather days.

My preferred bad weather tactic is “sneak’n and gun’n”.  A version of running and gunning at a much more careful and focused pace.  A rain suit is a give away, way too noisy.  Instead I wear fleece which is quiet, warm, sheds quite a bit of water and dries quickly using wearer’s body heat.  Wood and slate calls will not work wet.  Mouth calls, wingbone calls. and crystal pot calls with synthetic strikers are the order of a inclement weather days.

When possible setup with the wind to your back.  This is more comfortable and call sounds carry downwind better than upwind.  There is a theory turkeys prefer to travel into the wind rather than against it.  Traveling into the wind keeps their feathers down in natural position, where as traveling with the wind pushes their feathers forward causing some discomfort and soaking under their feathers if it is raining.

If the hens are nesting they are more likely to stay on nest rather than be interested in any advances from a gobbler.  So the hunter may have  more lonely receptive gobblers to work with.

Remember when morning weather is bad turkeys will usually leave the roost later.  I’ve encountered roosted turkeys as late as 11 am.  Unless the hunter has roosted turkeys the night before they may want to wait until they hear turkeys or it’s light enough to see before heading into the woods.  On the other side of the day if late afternoon/evening weather turns windy and wet turkeys may go to roost earlier.

So when is a good time to hunt?  Whenever you have the open tag and time off.

Good turkey hunting.

 

Filed Under: Spring Turkey, Stories, turkey hunting tips Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, Turkey Huntig Story, Turkey Hunting, Wild Turkey, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

After Melt Winter Kill Finds

April 7, 2014 by Charlie Leave a Comment

A lot of questions are being asked about the extent of Wisconsin’s winter deer and turkey kill.  Of course it will vary by area.

All the reports coming in here concerning turkeys are indicating the population is strong and vibrant with strong gobbling reports coming from all across the state of Wisconsin.  So it is looking like as predicted Wisconsin’s 2014 spring wild turkey season is going be a good one.   Additionally the early reports are of strong gobbling all across northern Wisconsin including  units 4, 6, & 7 where WDNR needlessly cut the spring permits.  Apparently northern turkeys are either well adapted for survival during adverse conditions or they use their wings and sharp eyesight to find better areas of food and cover to move to.  Then return as temperatures become mild and  the snow melts.

Unfortunately deer become stranded in deep snow leaving them dependent on local food and shelter conditions.  This clearly has led to some die-off in areas exactly how extensive we don’t know yet.  Apparently all the monitoring takes place on computer screens these days rather then in the field.  In West Central Wisconsin I documented 31 winter killed deer in about a 1,000 acre area, additionally buddies reported more dead deer further north.  I reported my findings to the local WDNR manager, he did not inquire any further than expressing surprise at the high number.  Even with that overwinter kill deer sightings are very high this spring.  A lot of deer survived here in spite of the harsh winter.

WDNR does not have teams that go out and observe deer or turkeys across the state to assess the health of populations.  Many think they do but old fashion hands on wildlife management is rarely practiced any more.  This is true with the vast majority of game departments across the country.  For better or worse they rely on internet postings on social sites and blogs.

Not much happens if a hunter shoots an obliviously sick animal and takes it to a WDNR headquarters or sends pictures.  There is no tracking or analysis performed.   Hunters are left to their own to really figure out what has happened in their areas or what is happening.

Now is the time to get out to inspect your hunting area if you think there has been an overwinter kill. It’s easy to see the remains now.  Here are some pictures of what you may find.

Turkey feathers are well preserved during winter in Wisconsin.

Turkey feathers are well preserved during winter in Wisconsin.

Turkey feathers last a long time.

These feathers were left overwinter from a fall kill.

These feathers were left overwinter from a fall kill.

The feathers above are well preserved so if you scout your area evidence of winter kill will still there.

These turkey bones are from an owl kill about a year old.

These turkey bones are from an owl kill about a year old.

Carcass bones remain in the natural kill area longer than most people think.  Look for these and feathers as you scout your area.

This is a picture of deer I found in late January. Still easily identifiable after the spring thaw.

This is a picture of deer I found in late January. Still easily identifiable after the spring thaw.

Deer carcasses are easy to find especially if you hike with your dog.  It is natural for them to become curious and point the way to you.  This grizzly stuff to find but important in order to try and understand how a hunting area was affected by the severe winter.  If deer were stranded in a deer yard for the winter you will find several carcasses in the general vicinity.

If you do not find evidence of dead turkeys or deer as pictured above perhaps you can consider your hunting area in good shape. Be thankful.  Study what deer  and turkeys ate over the winter and work to increase the supply of those food items for the next severe winter.  This is how carrying capacity of the land can be increased.

 

 

Filed Under: Deer Hunting, News, Spring Turkey Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, deer, news, Turkey Hunting, WI deer hunting, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

Wisconsin 2014 Spring Turkey Hunt Forecast

March 29, 2014 by Charlie 18 Comments

Wisconsin is divided into 7 turkey management units.  Units 1,3, and 4 are covered in this post.  According to a  consensus of retired turkey biologists and dedicated hunters who are year round turkey observers Wisconsin has one of the largest turkey populations in the nation numbering in excess of 500,000+.  In spite of a severe winter across the

northern third of Wisconsin the turkeys seem to have survived intact.  There are some localized reports of dead turkeys being found and these may have started a perception of a higher than average die off.  Every winter results in the death of some individual turkeys due to disease or for whatever reason entering the winter in a weakened state.   In actuality Vic the turkey dog and I have not found any evidence of massive turkey die off nor have any of my fellow turkey hunting buddies.

 

2014 Spring Turkey Forecast for Wisconsin Turkey Management Unit 1, 3 & south unit 4

Turkey hunters  should expect to have solid turkey numbers.  The 2012 spring recruitment was excellent due to near perfect spring nesting conditions.  2012 Fall hunters regularly encountered large numbers of jakes of the year.   There is no reason to think many of these birds died off making them 2 year olds for spring 2014 hunt.  Also consider the spring 2013 weather was horrible keeping hunters on the sidelines staring out their windows in disbelieve of all the May snow.  2013 gobbler harvest was down 30%.  Most of these toms survived adding above normal 3 and 4 year old gobblers to the total 2014 spring population.

Bad news here is spring 2013 did not have good recruitment.  2013 Fall hunters encountered fewer birds of the year.

2014 Forecast summary for Wisconsin Spring Turkey Units 1, 3 and 4 –

2014 Wisconsin spring turkey hunters will find more 2-4 year old gobblers and fewer jakes than in past spring turkey hunts.  At the right times 2 year gobblers are the easiest

turkeys to call in, sometimes referred to as the bread and butter of spring turkey hunting. With more of those2 year old  turkeys available hunter success rates should increase significantly over spring 2013.  Perhaps there will be fewer hunters afield due to the perception of hard winter effects on turkeys.  Considering  the suppressive effect on hunter numbers due to the misguided WDNR reduction in unit 4 permits.  All of the negative news stories could take a toll on  hunter attitudes and  suppress their efforts.  For those hunters that do not let that negative narrative discourage them and go out hunting will find a spring woods with more mature gobblers than ever before.

At this time judging by the slow sale of OTC permits and the lackluster conversion of drawn permits into turkey license purchases;  Wisconsin’s spring 2014 turkey hunt will  see a higher population of gobblers with fewer hunters out chasing them.  What’s not to like?

The above forecast is based on my extensive 2014 field observations along with other hunters who have been putting on miles scouting turkeys.  All of us get out of your trucks to hike miles of turkey habitat, glassing distant ridges and fields while taking notes of our observations.  I digest all this “data” and come up with my gut instinct based on decades of turkey hunting and observations.

Feel free to get back to me with reports of your hunts and observation. Above all have fun and good hunting.

 

Filed Under: Spring Turkey, Think Pieces / Opinion Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, hunting, turkey forecast, Turkey Hunting, Wild Turkey, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

Wild Turkeys Migrate

March 25, 2014 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Flying Turkey GobblerDo wild turkeys migrate?

Winter 2014 has been severe in most of Wisconsin.  Also the winter of 2013 was challenging for wildlife survival.

While snowshoeing across a hilltop field a flock of 30 – 40 turkeys flew in loose formation over head looking like they were on their way somewhere not near here.  They were a couple hundred yards in the air and until that moment I had never seen such a flock flying so high.  My first thought was they were migrating.

Posted here on March 7, 2014 Turkey Turkeys Everywhere .

Suddenly after being absent all winter except for a few dead ones here and there I feared the worst.  Then suddenly where there were no turkeys on the 6th come the 7th there were turkeys all over the area.  The appearance of turkeys struck me as similar with waterfowl, not there one day and then there the next.

On March 8 and 9 more turkeys showed up.  While out in unit 4 I saw turkeys circling overhead looking for a place to land.  Their heads turning side to side and the turkeys on the ground starting  purring & clucking at the flyers which seemed to encourage those in flight turkeys to come in and land.  Much in the manner waterfowl arrive in an area.

For the next couple of weeks these wild turkeys ate heartily of box elder seeds, fallen apples, wild grapes and other assorted berries.  The berries of course were dried looking very much like small raisins. There was much gobbling and yelping from one end of the valley to the other.

Then one morning it was silent.  As I explored the valley it was apparent to the most casual of observers all of the box elder seeds and grapes were stripped away, gone, all consumed.  Clearly the turkeys numbering in the hundreds, it was not possible to count them all, ate all the “easy” food and moved on.

Were these turkeys from the northern part of the state that had come south and now on their way back?  Or just wide ranging winter flocks?  I have observed turkeys in this particular area for 14 years and have never seen turkey movement and behavior like this before.

Migration may not be the right term but clearly this winter of 2014 caused some very different wild turkey movements.  Friends in southern Wisconsin unit 1 have told me about seeing more turkeys than ever before during the winter.  Now as March thankfully comes to end they are reporting significantly fewer turkey sightings.  Other buddies in the north are reporting turkey sightings after a long winter of no or few turkey sightings.

 

 

Filed Under: Think Pieces / Opinion, Turkey Hunting Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, hunting, Turkey Hunting, Wild Turkey, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

Wisconsin 2014 Spring Turkey Permits Reduced 25%

March 13, 2014 by Charlie 1 Comment

2014 Turkey permits are being reduced by 25% according to WDNR press release:

Although Department of Natural Resources biologists recognize that spring harvests do not play a significant role in wild turkey population dynamics, it is clear that prolonged periods of cold and deep snow have impacted turkeys throughout the northern part of the state.

MADISON -“The concerns we are hearing from turkey hunters are justified,” stated Scott Walter, DNR upland wildlife ecologist. “The deep and persistent snow cover across the northern counties this winter has limited turkey movements. Those flocks without access to adequate food sources are having a difficult time, and mortality could be significant locally.

Remaining over-the-counter permits in Turkey Management Zones 6 and 7 will not be issued and over-the-counter permits in zones 4 and 5 will be reduced by 25 percent in response to hunter feedback requesting a conservative approach to the number of permits issued for this spring’s hunt, due to concerns that increased winter mortality has depressed turkey numbers.

“Wild turkeys were successfully reintroduced to Wisconsin through a broad partnership that was based on exactly the kind of interest and commitment being expressed by our hunters, and their successful management will continue to incorporate input from the engaged hunters who care about our turkey resource,” Walter said .

The decision was made to hold back on issuing the remaining 426 over-the-counter permits in zones 6 and 7, as winter impacts were likely to be most severe in these far-northern zones given the relative lack of an agricultural food base and large tracts of unbroken forest.

The 25 percent reduction in zones 4 and 5 will result in 866 fewer permits being issued. These reductions were put into place to help address concerns that turkey flocks may have suffered significant local losses in areas where they did not have access to adequate food. Permit levels will be reduced by 25 percent in each of the time periods for which over-the-counter permits are available.

Did anyone else get mental whiplash reading this press release?

 

Filed Under: Spring Turkey, Turkey Hunting Tagged With: 2014 spring turkey, 2014 WI turkey permit, Turkey Hunting, Wild Turkey, Wisconsin Turkey Hunting

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