Wild Turkey Hunting and Calling Gobblers
Spring turkey hunting requires calling in the gobblers. Practice before going on the hunt.
Turkey hunters have to know how to turkey call. Wild turkeys are very alert and wary birds. Knowing how to turkey call increases the chance of successfully taking a gobbler home. The turkey call is imitating the turkey hen call, which is what the male turkey is trying to find in the spring. The practice is the key to making yelps, clucks, purrs, and tree calls sound realistic.
Evaluate Turkey Hunting Location Conditions
Determining which turkey call or calls to use takes some practice, and turkey hunters may change their preference as they gain experience hunting.
Turkey hunters also hunt from a variety of locations, this also plays a part in turkey call selection. Wild turkeys are very alert for any movement, hunters that are in a fully enclosed blind may make a different selection for a turkey call than would hunters that are behind natural cover and might move around during the hunt.
Types of Turkey Calls
Turkey box calls are great for the starting hunter. They are a box that has a pivoting lid and as you slide the lid across the surface it makes the turkey call. The movement of the turkey call usually requires a moderate amount and might be best used in a full blind. This call can usually be fairly loud if you need to get the attention of a gobbler that is very far away.
Push-button turkey box calls are good since they only require the movement of one finger to operate them, some can be mounted on the turkey gun.
Diaphragm turkey calls take more practice since they are placed in the hunter’s mouth and use air passing over them to make the turkey call. Hunters behind natural cover might like this best since it doesn’t involve any movement for the turkey to spot.
Slate calls are very popular and can be mounted to a leg, where one hand can operate a striker discretely to rub across the slate producing the call. There are many different types of strikers and slate surfaces. Different strikers can be used in combination with a slate call to make different sounds.
Hunting in wet conditions also plays a roll in selecting a turkey call. Some calls may become slick when wet and won’t be able to produce a sound.
Wild Turkey Hunting Requires Calling Gobblers
Successful turkey hunters take more than their turkey gun to a hunt. A variety of calls fit different conditions. Practice turkey calls before hunting season and optimizes the chance of a successful hunt.