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Tennessee Hunting Forums
Long Beards & Spurs
Turkey season changes....
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<blockquote data-quote="TheLBLman" data-source="post: 5515817" data-attributes="member: 1409"><p>For the areas I hunt, the single best thing TWRA has done to help our turkey populations is to delay the opening date by 2 weeks.</p><p></p><p>Yes, trapping predators would be even better.</p><p>But TWRA cannot make people trap them, and people have the opportunity to trap them already.</p><p></p><p>About all the only practical things TWRA can do is set season dates & bag limits.</p><p></p><p>Whether the season opens around the 1st of April or the middle of April, I'm expecting the first two weeks to be great hunting, perhaps even better if it starts mid-April instead of earlier.</p><p></p><p>I'm sure those who rely on decoys hate the delayed opening, as it's a real killer for easy decoying. But perhaps the best thing about the mid-April opener is how it will reduce the early slaughter by non-resident (and resident) hunters <em>BEFORE</em> most hens have even been bred.</p><p></p><p>If more turkey hunters would now start trapping, we could really help get our statewide turkey population flourishing again. I'll start running my trap lines just as soon as deer season ends.</p><p></p><p>But nest raiders may not be the biggest "issue" of declining turkey populations in many areas. There are some pretty large areas in TN where the raccoon population really isn't as high now as in times past. </p><p></p><p>In many areas, the bigger culprit has become raptors, such as Cooper's hawks and owls quickly killing an entire flock of baby turkeys. Next, the red-tails can slaughter the surviving young poults. And if that's not enough, now the bald eagles are increasing in population, and evolving to hunt more inland, specifically for adult turkeys. Most vulnerable are strutting Toms.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="TheLBLman, post: 5515817, member: 1409"] For the areas I hunt, the single best thing TWRA has done to help our turkey populations is to delay the opening date by 2 weeks. Yes, trapping predators would be even better. But TWRA cannot make people trap them, and people have the opportunity to trap them already. About all the only practical things TWRA can do is set season dates & bag limits. Whether the season opens around the 1st of April or the middle of April, I'm expecting the first two weeks to be great hunting, perhaps even better if it starts mid-April instead of earlier. I'm sure those who rely on decoys hate the delayed opening, as it's a real killer for easy decoying. But perhaps the best thing about the mid-April opener is how it will reduce the early slaughter by non-resident (and resident) hunters [I]BEFORE[/I] most hens have even been bred. If more turkey hunters would now start trapping, we could really help get our statewide turkey population flourishing again. I'll start running my trap lines just as soon as deer season ends. But nest raiders may not be the biggest "issue" of declining turkey populations in many areas. There are some pretty large areas in TN where the raccoon population really isn't as high now as in times past. In many areas, the bigger culprit has become raptors, such as Cooper's hawks and owls quickly killing an entire flock of baby turkeys. Next, the red-tails can slaughter the surviving young poults. And if that's not enough, now the bald eagles are increasing in population, and evolving to hunt more inland, specifically for adult turkeys. Most vulnerable are strutting Toms. [/QUOTE]
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