Got a bearded hen :(

[zeus1gdsm]

2nd season. First time ever i got a bird in range.. Bird hung up up about 50 yards away and was all puffed and strutting. It then relaxed and came in to my decoy.. I continued calling it in and used the binos to confirm the red and white head and the beard... Confirmed them both. And took the shot at 20 yards.

So excited to get what I had identified as a young Jake. I was fine with taking a Jake because of getting skunked last season. I only saw birds once last year.

You can imagine my disappointment when I turned the bird over looking for spurs and found none

Oh well learned a valuable lesson. Hopefully I can get a hen and Tom into range this season so I can see the differences in real-life... Only so much can be gleaned from hunting TV.

Note: to be clear had I recognized the bird as a hen I would not have taken it.

Crappy photo below.

On the plus side I learned alot. Actually called a bird in to me. Took it with a clean shot. Processed my first bird with only a crappy YouTube video for guidance. And now have the fan, a wing and beard curing so I can do a cheesy mount..

I do have one item that concerns me. The bird was missing the majority of its chest feathers. And the. Belly feathers that were there appeared to be molted/juvenile feathers.

I'm guessing it's just a case of a young bird that was still in process of getting it's new set. Thoughts?

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[Bowguy 1]

Bud with all due respect, you need to learn the difference between a gobbler and a hen before you hunt. In some states bearded hens are legal n in many places they arent. I can tell you feel bad n don't want to worsen that but identification of a target is absolutely necessary

[MACHINIST]

Bud with all due respect, you need to learn the difference between a gobbler and a hen before you hunt. In some states bearded hens are legal n in many places they arent. I can tell you feel bad n don't want to worsen that but identification of a target is absolutely necessary

 

With all due respect that's a bearded turkey and legal in NY.Here's what the website says

 

 

Spring Turkey Season

• In the spring you may take two bearded birds. You may only take one bird per day.
• Immediately after taking a turkey, fill out the carcass tag and attach it to the bird.
• You do not need to save and send in turkey legs in the spring. You do need to take careful spur, beard, and weight measurements for reporting.
• Spur measurements: spurs should be measured from the tip of the spur to the base of the spur, where it emerges from the scaly part of the leg. Measure to the nearest 1/4 inch. Do not measure to the forward edge of the leg, only to the base of the spur.
• Beard Measurements: beards should be measured from the tip of the beard to the base, where it emerges from the skin. Butt the end of your ruler against the base of the beard and extend the beard along the body of the ruler. Measure to the nearest 1/4 inch.
• Record the weight to the nearest pound.

 

 

You shouldn't slam someone for doing something legal,is it your choice not to shoot one?Yea but its his tag,his time and his choice....A LEGAL CHOICE AT THAT!!!!!

[Bowguy 1]

Bill no excuse for mis identification. What's with the bad advice? No reason to bash the guy n no reason to excuse it. There's posts all the time about people getting shot because of misidentification.

If it's too unclear to be positive it's a good target n safe shot, no matter the weather we need to pass. The op made a mistake n hopefully he can learn to identify better but fog is no excuse! The man said he would not have shot had he known

Edited May 3, 2016 by Bowguy 1

[WNYBuckHunter]

Sigh...Theres always "That Guy" in these threads.

 

Hey, congrats on your LEGAL bird! Ive been trying to knock one down for a few years and still havent done it. Great job!

[wooly]

Congrats!

Perfectly legal in NY.

Fire away if you desire!

I never killed a bearded hen, but I'd like to..., just to say I have.

 

Lots of turkey identification material online for you to research if you choose to distinguish between the genders better.

Look it up and learn if it bothers you that much. If it doesn't, then don't sweat it. To me it would be a unique trophy!

 

[WNYBuckHunter]

Bill no excuse for mis identification. What's with the bad advice? No reason to bash the guy n no reason to excuse it. There's posts all the time about people getting shot because of misidentification.

If it's too unclear to be positive it's a good target n safe shot, no matter the weather we need to pass. The op made a mistake n hopefully he can learn to identify better but fog is no excuse! The man said he would not have shot had he known

 

Theres a big difference for not knowing a hen from a jake and not knowing a person from a turkey. Youre comparing apples and oranges.

[Bowguy 1]

With all due respect that's a bearded turkey and legal in NY.Here's what the website says

Spring Turkey Season

• In the spring you may take two bearded birds. You may only take one bird per day.
• Immediately after taking a turkey, fill out the carcass tag and attach it to the bird.
• You do not need to save and send in turkey legs in the spring. You do need to take careful spur, beard, and weight measurements for reporting.
• Spur measurements: spurs should be measured from the tip of the spur to the base of the spur, where it emerges from the scaly part of the leg. Measure to the nearest 1/4 inch. Do not measure to the forward edge of the leg, only to the base of the spur.
• Beard Measurements: beards should be measured from the tip of the beard to the base, where it emerges from the skin. Butt the end of your ruler against the base of the beard and extend the beard along the body of the ruler. Measure to the nearest 1/4 inch.
• Record the weight to the nearest pound.

You shouldn't slam someone for doing something legal,is it your choice not to shoot one?Yea but its his tag,his time and his choice....A LEGAL CHOICE AT THAT!!!!!

I know it's legal n I hunt NY. The man stated he would not have shot. That means he made a mistake. Yes it's legal but might not have been elsewhere. I'm by no means giving the man the slightest bit of grief.

[Bowguy 1]

Theres a big difference for not knowing a hen from a jake and not knowing a person from a turkey. Youre comparing apples and oranges.

How many times has someone been shot because the shooter thought they saw a turkey? I realize that's not the op but we need to be sure at all times.

[Bowguy 1]

You're advice was only bad excusing a mistake as anyone could do it cause of the weather. Shot should not be taken than that's all

[Culvercreek hunt club]

2nd season. First time ever i got a bird in range.. Bird hung up up about 50 yards away and was all puffed and strutting. It then relaxed and came in to my decoy.. I continued calling it in and used the binos to confirm the red and white head and the beard... Confirmed them both. And took the shot at 20 yards.

So excited to get what I had identified as a young Jake. I was fine with taking a Jake because of getting skunked last season. I only saw birds once last year.

You can imagine my disappointment when I turned the bird over looking for spurs and found none

Oh well learned a valuable lesson. Hopefully I can get a hen and Tom into range this season so I can see the differences in real-life... Only so much can be gleaned from hunting TV.

Note: to be clear had I recognized the bird as a hen I would not have taken it.

Crappy photo below.

On the plus side I learned alot. Actually called a bird in to me. Took it with a clean shot. Processed my first bird with only a crappy YouTube video for guidance. And now have the fan, a wing and beard curing so I can do a cheesy mount..

I do have one item that concerns me. The bird was missing the majority of its chest feathers. And the. Belly feathers that were there appeared to be molted/juvenile feathers.

I'm guessing it's just a case of a young bird that was still in process of getting it's new set. Thoughts?

DSC_0368.JPG

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I would love to see a pic of the feet. I took two jakes years ago and they were very small birds. Both had beards and the only thing on their feet was a little nub. no spurs. When you gutted that bird was there any indication of any eggs in it?

[MACHINIST]

How many times has someone been shot because the shooter thought they saw a turkey? I realize that's not the op but we need to be sure at all times.

 

He took his time and identified it as a bearded turkey.....how the F*** would he have mistaken it for a person,dog or any other damn animal that walks the earth????

[alloutdoors]

Regarding the missing feathers, you are probably describing the brood patch. It let's the hen get bare skin on her eggs to incubate them.

[dbHunterNY]

he comfirmed it had a beard, therefore it was legal.  wasn't quite what he thought but there's really no concern for safety or breaking the law.  anyone else notice that he seemed to say that the bird was puffed and strutting.  I've come across a few bearded hens to this day.  one's a boss hen still walking the family farm as far as I know.  I've never seen them strut.... to my knowledge it's something not even a bearded hen would do.  maybe I'm wrong.  also I've come across many jakes that have barely noticeable nubs that are the start of actual spurs.  I'm not convinced he didn't shoot a jake.

[alloutdoors]

It's 100% a hen, there is no question of that. Hens strut, full strut is not very common but they half and quarter strut regularly. Also, it's been very wet so far this season and someone calling in their first turkey who doesn't know the difference between a hen and a jake/gobbler probably would mistake a bird puffing out its feathers to dry off as "strutting".

[Terry]

My son shot a jake a couple years ago that had no spurs, not even little nubs. I have also heard of full grown toms without spurs, it's a genetic defect. It's possible you shot one of those, your pic isn't loading for me, so I can't tell. I have also watched a hen go into full strut and gobble, so who knows what you shot!

If a bearded hen showed itself right now I would take it. I really want to make a wingbone call and hen bones work best.

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[Terry]

The pic is loading now, I agree it's definitely a hen

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[grampy]

Congrat's to zeus on your first turkey! Please don't lose sight of the fact you got a legal turkey! And should be commended for the hunt and not criticized for it.  Who among us has done everything perfectly, every time, while afield? Any hands?........Didn't think so......

[Bowguy 1]

He took his time and identified it as a bearded turkey.....how the F*** would he have mistaken it for a person,dog or any other damn animal that walks the earth????

You guys are arguementive. You're piecing parts together n a way I hadn't. I never said the man made an unsafe shot. I said he misidentified. An answer to his post was it could happen to anyonr since it was raining/foggy.

Than the shot shouldn't be taken imo because if it's too unclear to be sure what it is its too unclear to shoot. Certainly not what happened to the op.

However one of the primary rules of firearm safety is know your target n beyond. The op certainly didn't know his target n he said that. It's ok, it is legal so no harm no foul. But since he stated hed not have shot a hen, bearded or not, he needs to learn to be sure what he's aiming at

[dbHunterNY]

now that I look at the picture loaded and blown up based on the head and tail feathers it's definitely a bearded hen.  maybe it wasn't in actual full strut but just fluffed a bit?  the rest of my previous post stands though.  he verified the beard.  excitement at times causes minor mistakes to happen but he still did enough to be safe and lawful.

[stoneam2006]

Congrats on the bird...as a new Turley hunter myself I will try and confirm a male but if it's got a beard and gets close enough it's a dead bird....as legal in ny

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[DirtTime]

Congrats on your first turkey zeus.

[LetEmGrow]

#1 - This guy did not do anything illegal.  I is perfectly 100% legal to shoot any BEARDED turkey in New York.  And he did identity the target as a bearded turkey.  Honestly, I cannot say I would not shoot one.  I might!

 

2.  @Terry  So have I.  In fact I took a bird a few years ago with a full booming fan, 8" beard, 18 lbs.  And no spurs!  None.  He was either one hell of an exceptional jake or an unlucky Tom.   But from the size of everything else I believe he just did not grow spurs.

3.  This was posted to NYOutdoorNews.com last week.  It is pretty amazing.  It is a hen strutting just like a Tom.
http://www.outdoornews.com/April-2016/Wild-turkey-hen-struts-like-a-tom/

Good job on getting a bird Zeus!  And if next time you'd prefer to not shoot one then you will have a little more experience under your belt.  But personally I think it is kind of cool 

[zeus1gdsm]

Thank to those not ripping me apart. I expected to get it from all sides posting here.

As for a safe shot. I identified the bird as being a turkey. Having a beard and being small... I took it for a Jake. Having never seen live turkey this close before. I was shooting down a slight Hill and behind the bird was a hummock of earth left from some old project which was over 5 feet high.

20 yards isn't far. I wasn't shooting at a blue head. I was shooting a clearly defined Jake ( to me). Having seen it half strut. It's not like this was a 60 yard shot 20 minutes before legal light at what could have been someone's dog.

Turns out hens do half/full strut. Lots of videos out there.

Take into account that I am learning all of this on my own and doing it on my own. Real beneficial for future hunters out there when the old dogs rip em down at the tiniest perceived infraction. Gives all hunters a bad rap.

Again thanks all for the insight. I assure you now that I have had this experience I will be waiting for a full Tom. And all the precious Bearded hens are safe from me.

Either way it was legal.

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[Cabin Fever]

Congrats on your bird zeus!!