Has anyone else seen a large decrease in turkey numbers in your area?

[Grizz1219]

Ny like other states in the NE are experiencing a decline in turkey #'s mostly due to loss of habitat.  Check with the local chapter or state chapter of the NWTF, we are currently in the process of developing a plan to go forward called "Save the Hunt, Save the Habitat"... where each state works to improve a set # of acres and increase hunting #'s by a projected amount... If you are a turkey hunter and not a member of the NWTF, you should really think about joining... It is a GREAT conservation org. and they truly have a plan to make things better in your state.. I know we have done amazing things in my home state of Ma...

[Mr VJP]

Use to see whole flocks of turkey during the first week of turkey season.

Hunted from dawn till noon today. Did not see ANY turkey. Did not even hear ANY turkey. Did not even hear ANY gun shots! I think the turkey numbers are down a bit lately.

[sits in trees]

Yea I think I'm actually done, sure looks like there's not going to be a turkey season here, at least in my part of Ulster. Very bummed.

[Mr VJP]

Well, today things were a little better. I heard a Jake on the roost before sun up. I was able to get within 100 yards of him on the roost as he gobbled. I was west of him and a little downhill, but he flew down towards the east and then walked north as he gobbled. He was alone too. I think he may have heard me in the dark. There were no hens with him at all though.

Later on, about 9AM, I heard two other birds below me, but they didn't respond to my calls as I was uphill from them.

I heard two separate shots today. I believe at least two birds were taken today by the sounds of it. One was probably the one I saw on the roost at dawn, as the shot came from the direction he walked off.

At least the weather was nice. Tomorrow's another day.

[2012_taco]

Went out to little valley Catt co. and did not hear a bird until 10:30 this morning. (one single gobble) Saw 2 hens in the cut corn last night, 1 hen today same field. There was very little scratching in the woods even though there were acorns everywhere! Yesterday I did not hear any shots, today I heard 2 all morning. I definitely believe the numbers are way down. I am sure it is a lot of factors such as: predators, bad springs/ poor hatches, habitat, and  increased hunting pressure. I won't be surprised if NY cuts back or eliminates Fall hunting for a few years. Ugh!

[greensider]

i heard the dec is trying to figure out what is killing them they are dying all over the state

[Bowshotmuzzleloader]

I'm in Manlius area and they are definitely not the same as current years ,,lot of winter kill this year..

[sweet old bill]

_{In our area the town of Franklin the bird numbers are down due to weather and the coyote killing off the young birds...}

[sits in trees]

Went out to little valley Catt co. and did not hear a bird until 10:30 this morning. (one single gobble) Saw 2 hens in the cut corn last night, 1 hen today same field. There was very little scratching in the woods even though there were acorns everywhere! Yesterday I did not hear any shots, today I heard 2 all morning. I definitely believe the numbers are way down. I am sure it is a lot of factors such as: predators, bad springs/ poor hatches, habitat, and increased hunting pressure. I won't be surprised if NY cuts back or eliminates Fall hunting for a few years. Ugh!

yea there's no scratching anywhere, My woods are usually torn up in the spring with hungry turkeys doing their part in controlling the insect population, barely a turned leaf..

[2012_taco]

I went out in Erie Co. this morning and not 1 gobble. I saw a single hen in a gas line. This is very quiet for spring turkey. I think I may have to take up fishing!

[turkeyfeathers]

9h opening day 3-5 jakes I presume touched off, booted 2 adult birds off roost on way in , 3-4 more on other mountain

2nd day multiple gobbles on other mountain

Today few jake gobbles, adults on other mountain , had one going and booted two on way out

Tons of coyote tracks while deer hunting and fisher tracks. My bird numbers seem to be intact. And I'm done nothing to reduce those numbers in last 3 days lol. Have to agree on number of coon. I see at least 3 every hour drive out there. Nobody is trapping or hunting them for $3-5 per pelt.

[coonhunter]

Some of the guys complaining about the coon need to realize that there are houndsmen that would love to help with the coon population. Unfortunately, the deer hunters do not want people or dogs on their land because they think it will scare the deer right out of the area. This allows the coon population to grow until disease knocks it back down again.

 

Coons love to raid nests, and turkeys being ground nesters, are vulnerable just like the ducks and geese. Hounds are allowed on the two farms I hunt the most. Both have plenty of turkey and deer.

[Mr VJP]

Had a Tom on the roost today at dawn. He flew down and headed my way about 100 yards out. Suddenly two deer ran from the area he was in and he stopped answering my calls. Next thing I saw was a coyote running from the area. I didn't see a turkey in his mouth and didn't find any feathers on the ground, so I guess my success was the only casualty of that episode.

[turkeyfeathers]

Some of the guys complaining about the coon need to realize that there are houndsmen that would love to help with the coon population. Unfortunately, the deer hunters do not want people or dogs on their land because they think it will scare the deer right out of the area. This allows the coon population to grow until disease knocks it back down again.

Coons love to raid nests, and turkeys being ground nesters, are vulnerable just like the ducks and geese. Hounds are allowed on the two farms I hunt the most. Both have plenty of turkey and deer.

I can see your point but have to slightly disagree regardless of your forum name. Coon hunters don't have as much freedom to roam where they want say 20 years ago when trespassing wasn't as faux pas and frowned upon and less was actually posted Fur prices down right suck , not as many " coon hounds " as fur prices suck and try and find some .22 ammo for dispatch. And fur prices suck. IMO for what it's worth.

[coonhunter]

That is just it. I gave up running hounds because too many people became trophy deer hunters and posted up their land. There are still plenty of competition coon hunters in our state and Pennsylvania that would love to shoot some coon when the hides are prime just to cover the price of gas and dogfood. You cannot run hounds without getting off the property you are hunting on every time. To me, it just wasn't worth it, but others stick it out just because they love training and running their dogs for competition.

 

The animal rights people put a big dent in the fur trade, and deer hunter soon will kill the running of hounds. This allows the fox, coyote, coon, etc. to have free reign on other wildlife, and turkey nests are a prime target. Training dogs, running dogs, and trapping is hard, time consuming work. With the fur market shot, I have no answer on how to keep the predators out of the turkeys and their nest without finding a diehard trapper or coonhunter, and giving access to the land.

 

 

 

[nyslowhand]

Same situation where I hunt, northern 8F. Fewer turkeys past 4-5 years, cold & wet spring nesting periods and mostly the nest robbers. Not so much the deep snow cover like other areas of the state have experienced. Have done my due diligence by trapping coons, not taking any opportunistic shots at fall turkeys and adopting a one-n-done May hunt quota.

 

Hear the DEC is considering canceling the fall turkey season for at least a few years. Which isn't a bad thing. Maybe they should also consider reintroducing the split spring llimit, like it was years ago. I'm more than willing to make sacrifices to re-establish the turkey population in my area! Can only imagine the grim results if the current population decline continues across specific areas of NYS.

[RangerClay]

I came here looking for such a thread.  We went out on Saturday the 2nd day of season.   We were hunting near Hamilton in 7M.  We were in the woods at sunrise and hunted till 11am and we hunted 3 different properties.  In that time we never heard a single bird gobble, we saw a single bird, nor did we hear a gunshot.  If you know the area, you know about the rolling hills and you can hear gunshots for miles.  I have never had an opening (2nd day) day like this.  Very depressing   I guess this hard winter was a little too hard on the birds.  Populations have been dropping rapidly the past 10 years but I never thought I would see this.

[sits in trees]

I cleaned my turkey gun and stuck it back in the gun safe.

[jjb4900]

it was pretty much status quo in my area......4W & 4R, I think we saw the big population decline several years ago and it seems to have leveled off.

[Curmudgeon]

Like jjb, there are good numbers of turkeys in my area but jake numbers are down. I don't hunt them but my brother hunts my land. I also spoke to Virgil who has a place nearby. Both encountered uncooperative Toms. Neither saw jakes. My brother saw 3 long-beards out in a large field but couldn't call them in.

 

Turkeys increased exponentially like an invasive species when they were reintroduced. It was natural for the population to then decline and level off as jjb has seen. This area has plenty of predators, including mesopredators, yet turkey numbers are good. The woods look like someone has been out there with a rake. I have one nesting under a Christmas tree next to a main tractor road. This is a pain because I am need to make long detours to keep from disturbing her. 

 

Blaming the "usual suspects" is too simple. Do you have farms nearby to provide a winter food source? How much snow pack did you have and how long did it last?

 

 

[The_Field_Ager]

Apparently bird flu is decimating domestic chicken and Turkey. Then I saw this:

 

Iowa hunters asked to watch for bird flu in wild turkeys

 

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/money/agriculture/2015/04/22/bird-flu-hits-turkey-hunting-season/26201771/

 

 

 

 

[gdgnyc]

I have been showing someone what turkey hunting is about. We have scouted twice in areas that have had birds in the past. We saw very little sign, saw one hen, and today we finally went into the woods to hunt. We hunted Putnam county and were in the woods at 4:45 AM. Couldn't locate any gobblers, heard no gobbling, no birds and called it a day by 10.

 

One scouting trip we did spot a huge coyote, 30-40 yds. away, looking at us.

Edited May 19, 2015 by gdgnyc

[Curmudgeon]

A couple of days ago on a late day stroll around the grounds the wife and I watched 4 toms and 2 hens. 2 of the toms had long-beards. I have also found 3 nests on my property over the past couple of weeks. The only nest I monitor is the one next to a main tractor road. That road is closed until the eggs hatch or the nest fails.

 

Virgil - If you find no birds on your place, I can point you in the right direction. Someone was hunting next door - near those birds - Sunday morning but I heard no shots.

[virgil]

Sounds good.  I'll be up there this weekend.  Hopefully, you'll hear a shot or two from my direction.

[Charder]

Huge decline. I hunt in Ellicottville NY. What was once loaded with turkeys, now I am lucky to see or hear a bird. 10 years ago it was common to hear several gobbles on the roost. No I don't hear anything at all. Lucky to see or hear a hen. Have to believe that hard winters and predation are the culprits. I hunted this morning and saw a Fischer and a coyote. It's really disappointing. I consider myself a fairly good caller and put a lot of time in the woods. Maybe time to change spots.