I can't think of a single bird, other than one Tom that I bushwhacked coming back to roost. A few jakes have, but I never pulled the trigger on them.
I've called in and killed several gobblers that came in silent. I don't know exactly how many but i'd guess 18-20. The majority of them slipped in while I was working a different gobbler.
I have had a good many come in silent.I think years ago it to much calling in my part.but have killed a few that didn't gobble at all
Opening day a couple years ago went in late afternoon to a spot where I heard one free gobbling 2 days before season. I bumped him in a thicket and then ran into 2 hunters headed back out along the field edge. Went and set up in some open woods in the direction the bird went when I bumped him. Nothing came of that setup, so I walked around the fields just looking for birds. Made a big loop and came back to the top of a big field looking down toward the woods where I had set up earlier. Sure enough that tom was standing on the field edge and luckily he didn't see me. I got behind trees and made my move. Got within 150 yards or less, in a fence row between two fields. He could come down either side, so I set up where I could shoot into either field. Few yelps clucks etc and waited, 5 mins later here comes a red and white head silently bobbing down the field edge to my right. Shot him at about 15 yards, only time I heard him gobble was 2 days before.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Quote from: JMalin on March 20, 2019, 10:02:31 PM
I can't think of a single bird, other than one Tom that I bushwhacked coming back to roost. A few jakes have, but I never pulled the trigger on them.
Coming in silent while calling?? A bunch...Bushwack?? None...Id just go to the store and buy a turkey..I had numerous times where I happened upon Turkey's I could have shot by simply being in the right place at the right time,but I hunt for the challenge and wouldn't get any satisfaction from a happen stance kill.
Several. Just because you don't hear him don't mean he ain't comming.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190321/e43a2581ad8f48b1f0a4c3ee4cd7983e.jpg)
This guy came in silent this afternoon. Opening day in SC. Never really hear birds gobble here in the evening.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
1 or 2 or more
Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
I would say 3
Sent from my XT1710-02 using Tapatalk
I have killed a few birds that did not gobble or otherwise carry on a conversation with me. Every single one of them was the result of me knowing where gobblers were likely to show up whether I called to them or not. Yes, I did call some, but I have no clue as to whether those birds came to my calling or if I was just where they wanted to go. The only thing I really know when that happens is that my calling did not scare them off.
We have a standing joke about birds like that. If a bird shows up without acknowledging our calling, we always tell the shooter right before he pulls the trigger,..."Yelp at him before you shoot so you can say you called him in". In the meantime, if anybody hunts where the birds do not answer their calls and believe, when a gobbler shows up, that it was because of their calling, good for them. I just happen to believe that to say you actually called a turkey in, the conversation has to be two-sided. If it isn't, you are just speculating.
Quote from: GobbleNut on March 20, 2019, 11:02:51 PM
I have killed a few birds that did not gobble or otherwise carry on a conversation with me. Every single one of them was the result of me knowing where gobblers were likely to show up whether I called to them or not. Yes, I did call some, but I have no clue as to whether those birds came to my calling or if I was just where they wanted to go. The only thing I really know when that happens is that my calling did not scare them off.
We have a standing joke about birds like that. If a bird shows up without acknowledging our calling, we always tell the shooter right before he pulls the trigger,..."Yelp at him before you shoot so you can say you called him in". In the meantime, if anybody hunts where the birds do not answer their calls and believe, when a gobbler shows up, that it was because of their calling, good for them. I just happen to believe that to say you actually called a turkey in, the conversation has to be two-sided. If it isn't, you are just speculating.
I mean, if he comes in strutting and drumming, I'd say your calling likely had something to do with it. But every bird that I've killed that has come in strutting and drumming has also gobbled at least once in response to my calling. I'm guessing it comes with different approaches on how one hunts their spring birds. I'm not one to sit for long periods unless conditions are terrible or I'm taking a break from hiking.
Come to think of it, there are a couple of occasions I think back to when I had gotten a hen talking to me and coming in that had a gobbler in tow. One of those occasions I know for sure that the Tom never did gobble. Spitting and drumming though and with a live group of hens feeding out in front of me, no reason to call.
Completely silent...some, but of the non gobbling type more were drumming than not.
I am going to say that it is a very small minority.
However, I will say that only about half of the ones I ever see are actively gobbling as they come in. The vast majority of birds gobbled at some point in the process, but were quiet when they came in.
I attribute this to two things. First off, it is the way I hunt. I'm not one of these guys who pound their calls. I try to keep my calling understated. I figure if I get two gobbles from him and the second is closer than the first, he knows where I am.
The second reason is the weather. Most of the time, I'm dealing with wind. Our ridge is very exposed. This tends to suppress gobbling. In the afternoon, I may get a gobbler to honor my call at 1 PM and he won't show up until 5. The call may have carried several hundred yards.
Quote from: Gooserbat on March 21, 2019, 01:00:43 AM
Completely silent...some, but of the non gobbling type more were drumming than not.
Silent the last 60 yards, a bunch. Most of the others were while working another bird. Biggest bird I ever killed came in silent and put a beat down on the bird that was gobbling. All it got him was a face full of longbeard #5's. And he had 6 beards and adorns my wall of fame at my house. :funnyturkey:
Killed a few, but I don't consider spitting and drumming silent. I'm always listening for the other more suttle sounds in the turkey woods than just a gobble. You would be surprised just how many birds play the game but know not to gobble.
Quote from: GobbleNut on March 20, 2019, 11:02:51 PM
I have killed a few birds that did not gobble or otherwise carry on a conversation with me. Every single one of them was the result of me knowing where gobblers were likely to show up whether I called to them or not. Yes, I did call some, but I have no clue as to whether those birds came to my calling or if I was just where they wanted to go. The only thing I really know when that happens is that my calling did not scare them off.
We have a standing joke about birds like that. If a bird shows up without acknowledging our calling, we always tell the shooter right before he pulls the trigger,..."Yelp at him before you shoot so you can say you called him in". In the meantime, if anybody hunts where the birds do not answer their calls and believe, when a gobbler shows up, that it was because of their calling, good for them. I just happen to believe that to say you actually called a turkey in, the conversation has to be two-sided. If it isn't, you are just speculating.
Agree with this for the most part . Particularly in the afternoon, you'll be hunting birds that may be moving to a feeding location or towards a roost area. Soft, "blind" calling serves a purpose to let any birds in the vicinity know that there are other birds in the area, it's safe, and can attract them I believe.
Don't know the exact number but I have been calling and had several just show up. I figured this out the hard way years ago when I was turkey hunting with a good friend who has now passed. It was around noon and we had been walking and calling. We decided to sit down for lunch, ate lunch and when we went to get up, we both heard the alarm putt, turned and looked through the open bottom we were in and there he was turning to run. From that day forward, I always look 360 slowly before getting up from a set, lunch etc. Lesson learned!
Quote from: turkaholic on March 21, 2019, 06:26:16 AM
Killed a few, but I don't consider spitting and drumming silent. I'm always listening for the other more suttle sounds in the turkey woods than just a gobble. You would be surprised just how many birds play the game but know not to gobble.
For sure, if a bird comes in spitting and drumming, but without gobbling or otherwise "talking" to you, that is a pretty sure sign that he came to your calls. Of course, there are always other indications besides gobbling that a turkey is coming to investigate calling. It is just my position that there has to be clear evidence that a gobbler is responding to your calling in some manner to claim "I called him in".
The old "I clucked once thirty minutes ago and a gobbler showed up,...so I must have called him in" position some people seem to have just doesn't hold water for me personally. ....And even if that is what actually happened in those cases, that is a pretty unappealing way to turkey hunt.
As some old statesman said long ago "Give me gobbling turkeys, or give me........fishing!" ;D :toothy12:
Many of the birds I've shot have snuck in silently, I would say about 50%. Enough that when a bird goes silent, I just assume he is on his way in.
I can remember 1. If you haven't experienced a blind call setup, where you all the sudden hear drumming, then you haven't experienced turkey hunting IMO. To me, that was the one time where a season full of knowledge of this tom all came to a strenuous ending.
This tom had eluded me all season and had likely cost me other birds throughout the season. He would roost in a bottom that was wide open almost daily, unless I was in there. It was like a chess match without any chessman. He would sound off 4-5 times on the roost, give a few courtesy gobbles on the ground, then radio silence. Different direction daily. I attempted blind setups a few times near his typical roost and watched him fly up several times, just for him to move trees during the night and be 50-100 yards further the next day.
It finally game to a close on the last evening. I hadn't been in a couple of days, but was giving myself one last chance. After calling every 15-20 minutes, I heard drumming. Like many know, drumming isn't a sound, but a feel. I couldn't pin point it, so I froze. For what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only moments, drum after drum deafened my all my being. With every blink of my eyes, I strained to make out a moving limb, a leave move, or an angry song bird. Like a ghost, he appeared 50 yards away, like a statue, para-scoping the bottom from a small mound. Frozen, sore, and shaking, I attempted to cool my nerves. With every closing step, my heart skipped. When he finally struck the "no fly zone" he made his final stand behind an old bull pine. There, I could only make out the outer edges of his fan on the occasional pop strut. Slowly, ever so slowly, I attempted to mimic an inch worm. Finally, the final step. One that he regretted for about a half second before I welcomed his mistake with a slight pull of my left index finger.
I can think of three but I imagine there have been more. The last one I remember is calling for my youngest son and took a mini nap between calls because there was nothing happening. The blast of my sons 20 Gauge woke me up instantly. The Bird came out of some very thick brush only 20 yards to the left of my son. He watched the Bird come right into the set up and put on a show. To this day he reminds me of the hunt. ;D
Quote from: Spurs on March 21, 2019, 08:25:07 AM
I can remember 1. If you haven't experienced a blind call setup, where you all the sudden hear drumming, then you haven't experienced turkey hunting IMO. To me, that was the one time where a season full of knowledge of this tom all came to a strenuous ending.
This tom had eluded me all season and had likely cost me other birds throughout the season. He would roost in a bottom that was wide open almost daily, unless I was in there. It was like a chess match without any chessman. He would sound off 4-5 times on the roost, give a few courtesy gobbles on the ground, then radio silence. Different direction daily. I attempted blind setups a few times near his typical roost and watched him fly up several times, just for him to move trees during the night and be 50-100 yards further the next day.
It finally game to a close on the last evening. I hadn't been in a couple of days, but was giving myself one last chance. After calling every 15-20 minutes, I heard drumming. Like many know, drumming isn't a sound, but a feel. I couldn't pin point it, so I froze. For what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only moments, drum after drum deafened my all my being. With every blink of my eyes, I strained to make out a moving limb, a leave move, or an angry song bird. Like a ghost, he appeared 50 yards away, like a statue, para-scoping the bottom from a small mound. Frozen, sore, and shaking, I attempted to cool my nerves. With every closing step, my heart skipped. When he finally struck the "no fly zone" he made his final stand behind an old bull pine. There, I could only make out the outer edges of his fan on the occasional pop strut. Slowly, ever so slowly, I attempted to mimic an inch worm. Finally, the final step. One that he regretted for about a half second before I welcomed his mistake with a slight pull of my left index finger.
Great story, Spurs. "No fly zone",...I love it! I adopting that one into my turkey hunting vernacular. ;D
I have killed several over the years, but they were subdominant birds that came in while I was working the dominant bird. I believe they were thinking they were gonna sneak in on the action. Some gave themselves away by drumming within 30 yards before showing themselves. Others just came in cautiously looking for the hen and I heard the foot falls in the leaves or caught movement. Small bands of jakes 2-3 birds seem to do this a lot where I hunt.
How ever many showed up, I'm not prejudice!
Lot of public land birds slip in quiet, if they cam to my calls or just happened to walk by I couldn't care less!!!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I can only think of 3 that came in silent and two of them came in while I was calling to a more distant bird. Drumming isn't silent, but the third one never gobbled and only drummed. My guess is that they were subdominant birds that feared to gobble so the boss wouldn't know they were making a move on a hen. None of those 3 were exceptionally large birds either.
I have also had silent gobblers show up a couple of minutes after I shot one bird and go to thumping the downed bird, though I don't know if the second bird was coming to my calls or just following the other bird.
Jim
In afternoon hunting, silent birds are the rule, not the exception. It's totally different, more akin to deer hunting. I can see where it wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea. You don't carry on many conversations.
Quote from: Turkeytider on March 21, 2019, 09:33:04 AM
In afternoon hunting, silent birds are the rule, not the exception. It's totally different, more akin to deer hunting. I can see where it wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea. You don't carry on many conversations.
This probably varies depending on where you're hunting. While I do typically hear less gobbling in the afternoon, the Rios and Merriams I've hunted are more than willing to gobble, and when you strike one, they can get on you in a hurry.
Some of where I hunt have what I call swamp turkeys. They like to sneak in with out saying a word.
Some.... I scout a fair amount and talk to the farmers and landowners. I get a feel for the birds daily agenda,strut zones etc.Did they come in to my calling? I like to think so, but I really don't care. When they show up unannounced just getting the bead on em can be quite nerve racking and challenging
A few, Could be that I fell asleep and woke up to them being there :TooFunny:
But as far as they haven't gobbled at all, I have had birds show up strutting and heard that when they were coming in. I have also called hens in that were talking and a silent tom following/displaying.
MK M GOBL
How many birds have you killed that came in silent?
A lot... I don't know were all these gobble all the way to the gun turkeys are but most Gobblers go silent before they come in, sometimes for 30 minutes or more. It is a rare occasion when you start to work a Gobbler and he continues to gobble all the way into sight.
If your talking about just setting up blind calling then the percentage of silent arrivals will be near 100% most of which will be subdominant Gobblers sneaking in to steal a hen. You hear nothing and then there standing there slicked down and looking red head no strutting or drumming the "walk on" Gobbler Tom Kelley wrote about.
I have killed 4 than came in without making a peep. 2 came in without strutting or anything, just showed up looking for the hen. The other 2 were fanning and stopped in a open spot or 2 strutting on the way in. 2 of the birds were 2 year olds and 2 were 3 year olds.
Quote from: GobbleNut on March 21, 2019, 08:30:26 AM
Quote from: Spurs on March 21, 2019, 08:25:07 AM
I can remember 1. If you haven't experienced a blind call setup, where you all the sudden hear drumming, then you haven't experienced turkey hunting IMO. To me, that was the one time where a season full of knowledge of this tom all came to a strenuous ending.
This tom had eluded me all season and had likely cost me other birds throughout the season. He would roost in a bottom that was wide open almost daily, unless I was in there. It was like a chess match without any chessman. He would sound off 4-5 times on the roost, give a few courtesy gobbles on the ground, then radio silence. Different direction daily. I attempted blind setups a few times near his typical roost and watched him fly up several times, just for him to move trees during the night and be 50-100 yards further the next day.
It finally game to a close on the last evening. I hadn't been in a couple of days, but was giving myself one last chance. After calling every 15-20 minutes, I heard drumming. Like many know, drumming isn't a sound, but a feel. I couldn't pin point it, so I froze. For what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only moments, drum after drum deafened my all my being. With every blink of my eyes, I strained to make out a moving limb, a leave move, or an angry song bird. Like a ghost, he appeared 50 yards away, like a statue, para-scoping the bottom from a small mound. Frozen, sore, and shaking, I attempted to cool my nerves. With every closing step, my heart skipped. When he finally struck the "no fly zone" he made his final stand behind an old bull pine. There, I could only make out the outer edges of his fan on the occasional pop strut. Slowly, ever so slowly, I attempted to mimic an inch worm. Finally, the final step. One that he regretted for about a half second before I welcomed his mistake with a slight pull of my left index finger.
Great story, Spurs. "No fly zone",...I love it! I adopting that one into my turkey hunting vernacular. ;D
:TooFunny:
Just about all of the late fall season gobblers that I have harvested have came in silent, with the exception of 2 or 3, they made only two or three clucks. My experience with (mature) late season gobblers has been such that they do very very little vocalizations other than a cluck now and then. I use one or two loud slow deep coarse yelps and maybe a loud deep hollow sounding cluck very very sparingly. I hunt them where the deer hunting has been super pressured. The razzle dazzle of Spring ,ain't gonna happen, with mature pressured winter gobblers. Not in the areas I hunt . Practice moving like a rock or stump. In other words , they are a whole different game.
The two kills this season have both been silent. Mine showed up about an hour after daylight, and my dad's was about an hour after we got set up. My 3 from last year were the same. So to make a long story short- too many to count!
alot. in ms you can hunt daylight to dark. i don't think i have ever had one gobble after 1 or 2 pm or if they did that late in the afternoon it was one time?
I killed 2 in Nebraska a few years ago that came in gobbling their heads off. That said, in Virginia I'd say half have been noisy and the other half have have just slipped into where the hen was. One minute they were not there and the next minute they were strutting and drumming. Guess 50 50 for me. The fun ones are the one's that come in gobbling their heads off.
If your talking I never heard them make a gobble only a couple. If you mean I heard a gobble setup and then they came in silent, then thats more common.
I've killed several that came in silent, in fact killed one yesterday morning that never made a sound.
A heap pile of them. Probably 50-75 that I've been in on. Most subordinate toms coming in strutting with no gobbling while working other birds.
Quote from: limbhanger777 on March 21, 2019, 08:12:14 AM
Many of the birds I've shot have snuck in silently, I would say about 50%. Enough that when a bird goes silent, I just assume he is on his way in.
I agree. Some never gobbled and those that did usually didn't gobble as they neared shotgun range. Saying that if they didn't gobble then you didn't call them is absurd. They don't just leave hens, cross fences, wade through thick cover, break away from flocks, or climb to the tops of ridges for nothing and I just always happen to be at the right place at the right time. They don't walk around strutting everywhere they go and just accidentally walk straight into my setup. I am guessing there are a whole lot of turkeys that see hunters before the hunters see turkeys.
I've killed quite a few that came in silent.
We called one in on Saturday that my buddy shot and he never gobbled. It was a late morning hunt and we actually heard him drumming before we ever saw him.
Every Tom except one.... They seemed to always be quiet once they hit the ground on my old land. Would sure give you a show though! Last year on the new land, well, they aren't quiet!
A few but not enough
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Going to say prob 30-35. They came after I had worked them, then they went quiet. Love it when they have not gobbled for an hour, and you see a fan coming up through the woods. I hate the pricks that come walking in and never let you know they were coming..
All this adds up to two things: 1. STAY STILL and 2. STAY A WHILE . These are truisms regardless of the time of day. The old vets will say that patience will kill more turkeys that everything else combined.
My brother's pa in law told him he killed a pile of turkeys by calling to them right off the roost. Those that did not come in but had gobbled to him in answer, he would sit for hours and said that often enough they would show back up late morning looking for the hen they heard earlier. He said a good percent of them came in quiet. He also beeped his truck horn and roost time to figure where they were. He hunted in the 60s-80s.
I had one that gobbled his head off, but would come no closer than about 75 yards. Walked away gobbling. It was a small piece of property and no other birds had sounded off, so I just sat and waited. Sure enough, he came in quiet about 90 minutes later, strutting to the shot. Definitely same bird as he had a weird kink to his beard.
I have not killed a ton of birds, but I would say the quiet ones (meaning the ones that never gobbled to my call and then went quiet) are not more than a few.
Quote from: JMalin on March 20, 2019, 11:59:19 PM
Quote from: GobbleNut on March 20, 2019, 11:02:51 PM
I have killed a few birds that did not gobble or otherwise carry on a conversation with me. Every single one of them was the result of me knowing where gobblers were likely to show up whether I called to them or not. Yes, I did call some, but I have no clue as to whether those birds came to my calling or if I was just where they wanted to go. The only thing I really know when that happens is that my calling did not scare them off.
We have a standing joke about birds like that. If a bird shows up without acknowledging our calling, we always tell the shooter right before he pulls the trigger,..."Yelp at him before you shoot so you can say you called him in". In the meantime, if anybody hunts where the birds do not answer their calls and believe, when a gobbler shows up, that it was because of their calling, good for them. I just happen to believe that to say you actually called a turkey in, the conversation has to be two-sided. If it isn't, you are just speculating.
I mean, if he comes in strutting and drumming, I'd say your calling likely had something to do with it. But every bird that I've killed that has come in strutting and drumming has also gobbled at least once in response to my calling. I'm guessing it comes with different approaches on how one hunts their spring birds. I'm not one to sit for long periods unless conditions are terrible or I'm taking a break from hiking.
Come to think of it, there are a couple of occasions I think back to when I had gotten a hen talking to me and coming in that had a gobbler in tow. One of those occasions I know for sure that the Tom never did gobble. Spitting and drumming though and with a live group of hens feeding out in front of me, no reason to call.Thats a good point.Scouting, knowing where they want to be, is very important. Also, getting good with a slate call, is very important. Then, knowing how to use terain,to stay out of sight.I don't think I've ever gotten one that came in silent.That being said, sometimes they don't make noice, because they are suspicious, it's very important to stay still, and out of sight.They can see 3-4 of a mile!! Great eye sight!@
Quote from: High plains drifter on March 23, 2019, 09:51:53 PM
I mean, if he comes in strutting and drumming, I'd say your calling likely had something to do with it. But every bird that I've killed that has come in strutting and drumming has also gobbled at least once in response to my calling. I'm guessing it comes with different approaches on how one hunts their spring birds.
Bingo! This is exactly what I have found to be the case in the places I have hunted. People tend to pigeon-hole themselves into thinking that the turkeys they hunt are always going to behave a certain way and develop the tendency to only hunt one way. That works both ways, however. If you always hunt passively, you will never know if there is a gobbler out there that is looking for that aggressive hen. ...And on the other hand, if you hunt aggressively all the time, you will eventually find yourself in a situation where the only solution is to hunt more passively.
...But here's the rub: If you are convinced that the only way you are going to kill a gobbler where you hunt is to hunt passively,...and you never try aggressive tactics,...you will never know if and how a gobbler will respond to aggressive tactics. On the other hand, a guy that hunts aggressively can always change his tactics to passive hunting when the need arises.
By aggressive, I don't mean yammering away on a call incessantly and constantly. But occasional cutt/yelp sequences in your calling, rather than a total, soft yelp/cluck/purr approach will many times pull a gobble out of a bird that would otherwise be quiet. Personally, it is a lot more fun for me when a gobbler lets me know he is around and might be on his way.
...Just a suggestion for those facing the "they always come in silently" dilemma... :icon_thumright:
Most recently was last season before him I can only remember 3 total. Coincidentally they all were afternoon kills. :newmascot:
Quite a few, if they sneak in that's their fault.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I'm still fairly new to this, I've got five birds so far and none of them have come in gobbling like they do in TV. They've come in sneaking and looking.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Definitely not as many as I spooked. I did get one last season, he never made a peep. He came in from behind me less then 10 yards, walked right by me. I was lucky to be still that long. Magic Ghillie suit power is better the the Heck's suit :funnyturkey:
A few. 3 or more.