CWTF 2017 Inaugural Member's Edition Magazine
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WHY GOBBLERS HANG UP &<br />
HOW TO DEAL WITH THEM<br />
ARTICLE WRITTEN BY OTHMAR VOHRINGER<br />
Anyone who has hunted North America’s<br />
most popular game bird for a season or two, had<br />
to learn to deal with the frustration of a big tom<br />
hanging up just outside the effective shooting<br />
range. The majority of these birds are the older<br />
wiser toms, the ones we hunters respectfully<br />
refer to as “Boss Gobblers”. They are masters at<br />
surviving and that makes them one of the most<br />
challenging game animals to hunt. In my opinion,<br />
shaped by my many years of observation and<br />
hunting turkeys, there are three main reasons<br />
why a tom hangs up and for each scenario<br />
there’s a solution. Let’s look at each and see how<br />
we can outsmart these Boss Gobblers.<br />
1. THE TOM COMES IN BUT THEN DOESN’T SEE<br />
WHAT HE EXPECTED TO SEE<br />
If a tom comes to your calling he naturally<br />
fully expects to see a hen. If he doesn’t he<br />
instantly knows that something is not quite<br />
right and he will hang up to check it out from<br />
a distance before advancing any further. A<br />
common mistake some hunters make is to set<br />
up where they can see for a long way. While it is<br />
nice to watch an approaching tom from a long<br />
distance it is worthwhile to remember that if the<br />
hunter can see that far then so can the gobbler.<br />
Turkeys know what to expect when they hear<br />
another turkey. Moreover, turkey ears can judge<br />
distance quite accurately and the location where<br />
the call is coming from. With that said the tom<br />
knows where and when he can expect so see<br />
what he came looking for. If he doesn’t he gets<br />
suspicious. Wouldn’t you if you heard someone<br />
calling you but didn’t see that person anywhere?<br />
While decoys help to give a visual stimuli to<br />
an approaching bird and might even fool him<br />
into coming a little closer it also needs to be said<br />
that turkeys, especially older, smarter gobblers,<br />
have become quite wary of seeing other turkeys<br />
standing motionless around in the landscape. A<br />
much better approach is to set up in such a way<br />
that the tom has to walk within shooting range<br />
to see where the calling is coming from. There<br />
are always features within the landscape that let<br />
you choose a set up that will force the tom to<br />
come close.<br />
One of my all times favourite features is a<br />
woodland or field corner. Also setting up just<br />
below a small crest or on the tip of a thicket will<br />
work just as well. Anywhere a turkey can’t see<br />
without approaching to within 30 to 40 yards<br />
to the decoys and your calling station is a good<br />
20 - canadian wild turkey federation conserve • enhance • protect cwtf.ca
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