Hickman Co silent birds

[BamaHudson]

First year on a 1700 ac lease in Hickman county. I know they have a good population here. Buddy who joined with me went Sunday of opening weekend, heard plenty of gobbling, and killed one by 7am.

I had to work opening weekend but took Monday and Tuesday off. Hunted all day both days and did not hear a single gobble. Had to work Wednesday and yesterday but took today off too and haven't heard a gobble this morning either.

I've seen an abundance of sign as well as seen several birds with my own eyes cause I've accidentally snuck up on them.

Let me tell yall, this is aggravating me to death. I've hunted public the last several years and it seems like I only hear gobbling turkeys if I bring a new hunter along with me. Otherwise if I'm alone they lock up like it's some kind of command by God.

I'm about to take up fishing

 

[Gravey]

Our lease is in Hickman county and they were hammering last Saturday and Sunday. One of our guys went down yesterday and said they were still vocal and he killed a good one. Don't give up.

 

[REN]

I hunted Hickman county Tues and Wed. Birds were really vocal from roost until about 11am then fairly silent after that. Granted both of those days the wind really picked up around 10 and was blowing pretty good the rest of the day.

 

[megalomaniac]

Looking at kill numbers, Hickman has been on FIRE this year.

Take a tube call or trumpet next trip out. Give them something different.

 

[poorhunter]

I live out in the sticks in Hickman so I get to listen to them every morning, every year. Birds gobbled good on the roost first week of April and the day after youth season, but have been very silent most mornings. Only been hearing at most one bird each morning and usually not till after fly down and not on my property. The day after youth season I heard at least 10 birds gobbling and gobbling well, but since then it's been really quiet. I hunt each morning till about 7 when I need to leave for work, and haven't really worked one yet.

 

[Andy S.]

Looking at kill numbers, Hickman has been on FIRE this year.

Very true when looking at kill numbers alone. Other things to consider is Hickman is a huge county (11th most acreage out of 95 counties, pretty rural), and the northern half of the county typically is stronger than the southern half for turkey population and turkey kill numbers.

One of my best friends is a physician in Nashville. IMO, he hunts some primo turkey habitat in southern Hickman, about 2,000 acres, and has hunted the same area since the mid 1980s, with additional primo private/restricted ground around him on all sides. Same cabin, same land, same spot, some land cover changes over the years due to nearby timber company land changing hands and new owners cutting timber and replacing with cutover and pines, but pretty constant for the last 40 years. He's got some turkeys this year, but it has been an odd year for him as well, with some of his feedback aligning with what you and poorhunter stated. He is hunting today, so anxious to hear his feedback on how this weekend goes for him/them. He is ecstatic about the new turkey season change (Saturday before April 10th) that starts next year. He told me yesterday he would have much rather hunted his birds April 4th this year than April 11th, especially with the early spring we have had.

What quadrant of the county is your lease in? NW/NE/Central/SW/SE?

 

[Andy S.]

On a similar note, I talked with a couple of hunters yesterday who have turkeys (camera photos/personal sightings) in SW TN, who both hunted yesterday. No gobbling on the limb, minimal gobbling on the ground. They both deer hunted their turkeys yesterday (doable and can be effective, but boring AH IMO). One killed around 9AM blind calling every 20 minutes and eventually an old bird slipped in on him at 9AM (never gobbled), and the other deer hunted his birds 10+ hours yesterday, with random sporadic sightings and gobbles but none of the birds were interested, and he was never offered a shot. Very few hens on camera or seen on these two farms for 2 weeks now. Male birds solo and running together. Extreme SW TN.

 

[marty d]

On a similar note, I talked with a couple of hunters yesterday who have turkeys (camera photos/personal sightings) in SW TN, who both hunted yesterday. No gobbling on the limb, minimal gobbling on the ground. They both deer hunted their turkeys yesterday (doable and can be effective, but boring AH IMO). One killed around 9AM blind calling every 20 minutes and eventually an old bird slipped in on him at 9AM (never gobbled), and the other deer hunted his birds 10+ hours yesterday, with random sporadic sightings and gobbles but none of the birds were interested, and he was never offered a shot. Very few hens on camera or seen on these two farms for 2 weeks now. Male birds solo and running together. Extreme SW TN.

Very early spring in Hamilton Co near the Ga line…. Our birds began exhibiting their mating activities at the end of February…by mid March it was wide open but last week we never even heard a gobble. I did this morning but it was more of a shock gobble from an ambulance on the highway. I am all about helping to increase the numbers and would gladly say I would only take one bird but it would be nice to get to hunt when you didn't have to set up and ambush them on an old logging road. Oh well, that is the way it is here anyway.

 

[megalomaniac]

On a similar note, I talked with a couple of hunters yesterday who have turkeys (camera photos/personal sightings) in SW TN, who both hunted yesterday. No gobbling on the limb, minimal gobbling on the ground. They both deer hunted their turkeys yesterday (doable and can be effective, but boring AH IMO). One killed around 9AM blind calling every 20 minutes and eventually an old bird slipped in on him at 9AM (never gobbled), and the other deer hunted his birds 10+ hours yesterday, with random sporadic sightings and gobbles but none of the birds were interested, and he was never offered a shot. Very few hens on camera or seen on these two farms for 2 weeks now. Male birds solo and running together. Extreme SW TN.

I slipped out to my lease in south MS before work to listen this morn. Bulk of breeding was done 3w ago. Yet I still heard one twice on the limb at sunrise. I suspect the jennies are becoming receptive and they are getting fired back up.

In middle TN, the ones that arent dead are still on fire all day long This pic was on one of my farms at 5pm yesterday afternoon

 

[marty d]

I slipped out to my lease in south MS before work to listen this morn. Bulk of breeding was done 3w ago. Yet I still heard one twice on the limb at sunrise. I suspect the jennies are becoming receptive and they are getting fired back up.

In middle TN, the ones that arent dead are still on fire all day long This pic was on one of my farms at 5pm yesterday afternoon

It's funny how certain regions are wide open and others divided by a mountain range or a river are the absolute opposite. I realize there's no way TWRA could make it perfect for everybody in every county in Tennessee but what you have in middle Tennessee yesterday is what we had here foreign 4-5 weeks ago.

 

[Andy S.]

Most of our hens (all except jennies) have been missing in action for a while now. This pic was taken after landowner on tractor flushed the hen off of her nest on April 15th middle of the day. Looks like 17-18 eggs (super mom).

 

[megalomaniac]

Most of our hens (all except jennies) have been missing in action for a while now. This pic was taken after landowner on tractor flushed the hen off of her nest on April 15th middle of the day. Looks like 18 eggs (super mom).

View attachment 319475

No, that's a parasitic nest with 2 or three hens laying in the same nest.

Not rare at all.

Sneak 1 out, crack it open, and you can tell if that hen is setting yet and if so, when she started

 

[Andy S.]

No, that's a parasitic nest with 2 or three hens laying in the same nest.

This can be determined from a poor quality photo? What are the key indicators? 17 eggs?

If so, and it's a favorable nest location, it may be a win versus predation, but if not, a substantial loss if found. I wonder what the strategy is for species survival.

 

[megalomaniac]

This can be determined from a poor quality photo? What are the key indicators? 17 eggs?

If so, and it's a favorable nest location, it may be a win versus predation, but if not, a substantial loss if found. I wonder what the strategy is for species survival.

Yes, number of eggs indicates more than 1 hen using same nest.

Improves survival of the parasitic hen/ hens who contributed to the nest, but dont have to sit exposed on the ground for 28 days with little food or water. Parasitic hen passes on her genes, but takes none of the risk.

Happens a lot in multiple species of birds, also very common in wood ducks when they lack adequate numbers of satisfactory nesting holes.

Some DNA studies indicate as many as 25% of all turkey nests are parasitic in some populations

A normal clutch is 10 to 12 eggs. Any clutch ober 14 is likely to be parasitic.... and a waste... a hen isnt big enough to adequately incubate many more than 14, so several wont hatch because of physical limitations.