Midwest Turkey Decline

[tellico4x4]

Turkey Population Declines in the Great Plains Lead to Canceled Seasons and Reduced Bag Limits

Kansas canceled its fall turkey hunting season. Nebraska and Oklahoma have reduced their bag limits. More restrictions could be on the way.

www.outdoorlife.com

 

[Methane]

The farm we deer hunt in Missouri is loaded with turkeys. It's east MO, though.

 

[Wrangler95]

Seems alot of states are dealing with declining flock's like Tn is!Cutting limit down plus starting season later may help!In my county the population has went down severely!

 

[Chickenrig]

I think it has a lot to do with the fact that the entire world has changed in that products are made out of man made materials nowadays. Nobody uses real fur and animal products any more . Coons,foxes,coyotes,opossums ,feral pigs and every other fur bearing critter gets a pass . I trap on my little slice of heaven and i still find turkey eggs scattered around . Birds of prey play a big role in the decline too.
All we can do is our little part to help with the decline .

 

[Huntaholic]

I think it has a lot to do with the fact that the entire world has changed in that products are made out of man made materials nowadays. Nobody uses real fur and animal products any more . Coons,foxes,coyotes,opossums ,feral pigs and every other fur bearing critter gets a pass . I trap on my little slice of heaven and i still find turkey eggs scattered around . Birds of prey play a big role in the decline too.
All we can do is our little part to help with the decline .

KILL EM ALL! Let God sort them out.

 

[Tn Joe]

IMO it's has more to do with bad habitat and the increased in the number of turkey hunters than predators.

 

[Speedwell-Hunter]

Turkey Population Declines in the Great Plains Lead to Canceled Seasons and Reduced Bag Limits

Kansas canceled its fall turkey hunting season. Nebraska and Oklahoma have reduced their bag limits. More restrictions could be on the way.

www.outdoorlife.com

Good article

Sad

What is going on! No one really knows

 

[FallRutSpringStrut]

Definitely, hard hunting in the Midwest. I just returned from western Kansas. All of the local hunters we talked to had a lot to say about the population decline. I had one good morning and it paid off.

 

[elknturkey]

Gotta love social media. It was the best hunter recruitment tool ever. THP and all the others have put so much focus on public land and traveling it's a circus now. It'll never get better overall but it will get worse. Few gobblers survive anymore so a few bad hatches make for a quiet spring. Eventually every state will have a late opener and a 1 maybe 2 bird limit and a draw for nonresidents. The hay days a lot of us experienced in the 80s and 90s will never be seen again. The demand has far exceeded the supply.

 

[Popcorn]

I think it has a lot to do with the fact that the entire world has changed in that products are made out of man made materials nowadays. Nobody uses real fur and animal products any more . Coons,foxes,coyotes,opossums ,feral pigs and every other fur bearing critter gets a pass . I trap on my little slice of heaven and i still find turkey eggs scattered around . Birds of prey play a big role in the decline too.
All we can do is our little part to help with the decline .

Don't forget crows!!
I raise heritage turkeys and a few geese that are free range. I turn some turkeys out after I hatch poults and the hens will try to nest, sometimes community nest. But crows will sit and watch for the nest location and even have a call for when they find it. Needless to say but a crow will puncture an egg and carry it off to eat the yellow. They will clean out a nest or reveal its location to a 4 legged predator and then it's over.

 

[Huntaholic]

Things need to go back to the way they were. I well remember the days when if a farmer saw a crow, hawk, owl, coon, possum, etc.... They took care of it with extreme predjudice. I can remember when just seeing a hawk was rare. Now, they are everywhere. Is it a coincidence that back then we had rabbits, quail, grouse, etc.....???????

 

[megalomaniac]

Things need to go back to the way they were. I well remember the days when if a farmer saw a crow, hawk, owl, coon, possum, etc.... They took care of it with extreme predjudice. I can remember when just seeing a hawk was rare. Now, they are everywhere. Is it a coincidence that back then we had rabbits, quail, grouse, etc.....???????

Hawks are dang near plague status now... 75 years of federal protection has exploded their numbers, but esp in the past decade. There aren't many days I'm in the field and don't hear a hawk squawking.

 

[TN hunter]

IMO it's has more to do with bad habitat and the increased in the number of turkey hunters than predators.

Completely agree! There are more turkey hunters now more than ever before that are very successful at killing turkeys.

 

[TN hunter]

Gotta love social media. It was the best hunter recruitment tool ever. THP and all the others have put so much focus on public land and traveling it's a circus now. It'll never get better overall but it will get worse. Few gobblers survive anymore so a few bad hatches make for a quiet spring. Eventually every state will have a late opener and a 1 maybe 2 bird limit and a draw for nonresidents. The hay days a lot of us experienced in the 80s and 90s will never be seen again. The demand has far exceeded the supply.

100% correct!