In reading the Book- The Turkey Hunter's Guide/1962 by Leon Johenning- the Author explains that this call is given by Gobblers just before Dark to let other Gobblers know where he will be Roosted. In reading what he wrote- this is a Fall Turkey Hunting Situation.
The Gobbler " Wildcat" Call- The author describes as follows--. 2 or 3 lonesome-QUE-E-E-E--ICK. QUE-E-E-E--ICK High Pitched Whines.
On hearing this call- other Gobblers will quickly fly to the Gobbler making the call or have the Location so " spotted" that they will fly there at the crack of Dawn next morning.
Now not everyone here Hunts Fall Turkeys- but for those that do- what do you think that the Gobbler " Wildcat" call is? Or does it exist at all?
I can see it being an Adult version of the Kee- Kee-Run without that 1 Yelp at the end and possibly only 2 whistles as opposed to 3 that we hear in the Fall Turkey Woods.
It must be a call that is very seldom made except in the Fall + Winter when Gobblers are together. I have heard on 1 occasion in the Spring as,I was walking around this huge Boulder and a Tom Gobbled just as ,I appeared on the other side of the Boulder. The last part of the Gobble was replaced with a high pitched Whine or Scream. Obviously- both the Gobbler and ,I had no idea the other was very near. Up North- there are plenty of Boulders of all sizes knocking about in the Woods.
Your Thoughts on the Gobbler " Wildcat" Call-- Legend or very seldom heard call??
I dont know about the wild cat call per say. But there have been other authors talk about a unique/rarer to hear call that a gobbler does make. Cant remember what it is called. As to whether or not this is fall specific, ive know clue because i dont fall hunt. I have however, heard a very unique sound made by a gobbler twice in my life, once was while right before being attacked by an owl in a fresh clear cut in the late evening before the gobbler took off flying. I also heard a gobbler make this exact sound when i had to run one down one time....probably means nothing, but it was definelty not normal turkey vocabulary and ive only heard it those 2 times...im sure they can spit out gibberish just as we can under the right circumstances.
I have only heard this wildcat call once and yes it was in the fall.
It was one series of three, just like kee Kees, I called back with a gobbler cluck, then Jake yelps and finally gobbled back at him with no response to any of them.
An hour later I headed over to the screams and found 3 of the biggest piles of turkey poop I've ever seen, abnormally big, and all had the classic gobbler "jay" shape.
Broke them apart with a stick and they were just packed full of gizzard stones, my theory is the passing of these stones has to be somewhat painful and rare, which would explain people seldom hearing this particular call
Quote from: crow on July 06, 2022, 10:08:50 PM
I have only heard this wildcat call once and yes it was in the fall.
It was one series of three, just like kee Kees, I called back with a gobbler cluck, then Jake yelps and finally gobbled back at him with no response to any of them.
An hour later I headed over to the screams and found 3 of the biggest piles of turkey poop I've ever seen, abnormally big, and all had the classic gobbler "jay" shape.
Broke them apart with a stick and they were just packed full of gizzard stones, my theory is the passing of these stones has to be somewhat painful and rare, which would explain people seldom hearing this particular call
:TooFunny: :TooFunny: :TooFunny:
:TooFunny: You're being bad again
Crow good theory! I can relate to that and here I thought it was just when I ate Mexican. I might need a stick!
lol Crow. I am just 2 Fall seasons in, I have not heard it but will keep an ear out for it though. Seems somebody else would have written about it or it would have been caught with audio/video by now if it existed. Of course they have yet to find Bigfoot.
8 years of raising Easterns and we still hear new sounds every so often. The growl is very unique and is very seldom heard.
Quote from: ferocious calls on July 07, 2022, 06:04:59 AM
8 years of raising Easterns and we still hear new sounds every so often. The growl is very unique and is very seldom heard.
I've only ever heard it once. Last year I had two gobblers and three jakes coming in at once and I heard one of the gobbler's growl. Having never heard it before I was absolutely dumbfounded. You could tell it was a bird noise but it was certainly something unlike any sound I'd ever heard a turkey make before or since.
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I haven't heard the growl or the wildcat call but I heard the controversial GRONK call once.
I would guess it was a very tired gobbler yelp.
I think the problem for a lot of us might be that we don't know the sound that is being called the wildcat call. I have heard gobblers make noises that caught my attention in that I had never heard that sound before, but I have no clue about whether someone in the past has defined that sound as being the fabled "wildcat call".
I have heard odd sounds from turkeys on a few occasions, but not often enough to make the statement that they were something other than a random sound that came out of a turkey beak. Whether those random noises had any meaning,...or even if that turkey or another one could reproduce it "on demand",..is debatable.
On the other hand, on one specific occasion on a spring hunt while set up very closely to a flock of turkeys (gobblers, jakes, and hens) on an early morning roost, I definitely heard a repeated sound from multiple turkeys that I would best describe as some sort of modified, owl-sounding hoot. I only heard this sound coming from multiple places where I was also hearing gobbles, so I assumed it was being made by gobblers only. It was also repeated enough times, and from enough different places, where I am certain it was intentional.
Over fifty-plus years of turkey hunting, that episode has been the ONLY time I have ever heard that sound. Was it the elusive "wildcat call"? I have no idea. Personally, I would never have defined that sound as anything resembling what I would expect to come from wildcat,...but WHOOOO knows for sure?... ;D :angel9:
Leon Johenning- must have heard this on a number of occasions for him to write about it in his Book that,I outlined above.
This topic comes up every few years. I've never heard it myself, but have a rough idea of how it sounds from this soundfile (of Leon Johenning calling) that silvestris put up a few years ago. Leon's example of a wildcat call starts are around 4:33. silvestris remarked at the time that he has heard something very similar.
https://soundcloud.com/user-788295847/leon-johenning (https://soundcloud.com/user-788295847/leon-johenning)
Quote from: Rapscallion Vermilion on July 07, 2022, 10:01:46 AM
This topic comes up every few years. I've never heard it myself, but have a rough idea of how it sounds from this soundfile (of Leon Johenning calling) that silvestris put up a few years ago. Leon's example of a wildcat call starts are around 4:33. silvestris remarked at the time that he has heard something very similar.
https://soundcloud.com/user-788295847/leon-johenning (https://soundcloud.com/user-788295847/leon-johenning)
Good info, Mike. That sound is close enough to what I heard as described in my post above that I would say that it was what those gobblers were doing. Maybe it was made in the Merriam's gobbler dialect such that I thought it sounded more like an owl hoot at the time.
Still not sure why the original "definer" would have described that sound as a "wildcat call", but I guess the first describer can name something whatever they want to. Kind of like people discovering a new species being able to give it whatever scientific name they choose, I suppose. I think I would have called it the "locomotive whistle call" myself... ;D :D
If I have heard that call in Leon Johenings audio while turkey hunting I most likely passed it if as a wood duck and may have on a couple occasions
No doubt turkeys have vocal communications. Some of these sounds we have probably heard but just didn't understand what exactly we were hearing. I also believe gobblers can communicate and shut themselves down from gobbling. In my opinion a lot of these vocal sounds are sounds they make to survive and bring the flocks back together. IMO ... Thanks for, sharing Leon's sound file.
Quote from: Rapscallion Vermilion on July 07, 2022, 10:01:46 AM
This topic comes up every few years. I've never heard it myself, but have a rough idea of how it sounds from this soundfile (of Leon Johenning calling) that silvestris put up a few years ago. Leon's example of a wildcat call starts are around 4:33. silvestris remarked at the time that he has heard something very similar.
https://soundcloud.com/user-788295847/leon-johenning (https://soundcloud.com/user-788295847/leon-johenning)
I've only heard a gobbler make that noise one time and he was choking in the corn pile. Buddies run over and flogged him with the Heimlich maneuver. Saved his life.
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I am glad a member uploaded Leon Johenning's-- Wildcat Cat Call soundtrack. I just practiced a good 10 times those 2 slow Weird sounding whistles on a Glass Pot about 2 inches out from the Rim with a carbon striker and came pretty close to the soundtrack.
We hear what I call the growl most often when a wild Tom mounts a hen in the yard near the turkey enclosure. The first time I heard it we had 23 toms in the pen when a wild Tom and 2 hens came and bred in front of the crew. It seemed as though all the toms were growling. Very interesting sound. Only heard it once while hunting and that Tom was alone. He was traveling the other way when I first saw him. He came back and passed below me. I waited to call, thinking he would look for me and that he knew where the call came from. He then passed above me and continued the way he was going when first spotted. I called again from the same spot. He came back on my level. When he got just about into range he let out the growl. I did not shoot when he arrived. I wanted to hear it again.
Unicorn! It may exist, but not worth the time and effort for me as far as turkey hunting goes.
If a cluck, purr, or yelp, want kill one he probably don't want to die, and anything else is not going to change his mind.
I've only fall hunted for turkeys a few times, but I've been in the woods deer hunting in proximity to the turkeys plenty. I've heard fly up cackles and some tree talk before dark, but never that sound. In the mornings the roosted turkeys make every kind of noise known to have been made by turkeys, and some other calls that I've never heard. It's amazing!!
So for me personally, I would not use that call since I've never heard it. Doesn't sound like it's a major part of the turkeys vocabulary. But that's just me.
What I would use, if there was such a thing, is a thunder call. Man the turkeys where I live go crazy when a thunderstorm is within hearing distance.
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Quote from: ol bob on July 08, 2022, 01:09:09 PM
If a cluck, purr, or yelp, want kill one he probably don't want to die, and anything else is not going to change his mind.
Quote from: guesswho on July 08, 2022, 11:48:44 AM
Unicorn! It may exist, but not worth the time and effort for me as far as turkey hunting goes.
I would tend to agree but it may give up the location of an unknown gobbler. I heard that this spring on one of them quiet mournings and as stated in my previous reply blew it off as a wood duck. I remember saying to myself " what the heck is a wood duck doing in here"? It may have been a wood duck. I see plenty in areas I hunt cruising through and landing in trees. After hearing the audio I'm not so sure.
Is it a legend or a very seldom heard call? I can't say for sure as I never heard it. I must say after listening to the audio I'm not so sure what I heard, but I do what to thank Mike for the info.
I have other issues!
Okay I learned to cluck, putt, purr, cut, cackle, yelp, the kee-kee, and the fighting purr. Oh, and I also learned how to gobble. I am very proficient with the use of an owl or crow locating call as well.
Now after 50 years of hunting I find I need to learn the "Growl" or the "Wild Cat Call" and let's not forget the controversial "GRONK call", whatever that is!
OMG is there no end!
I have to say that some family members, friends, and some of you in here are going to suffer and are now off my Christmas list. I'm sorry, but I now have to spend a few hundred dollars on new turkey calls. It's just the way it is, ya never have enough!
Additionally, I must say I have a problem with the term the "Wild Cat Call". Each time I hear the mention of the Wild Cat Call my mind automatically goes to big cats, mountain lions, tigers etc. certainly not anything to do with turkey hunting!
Can we call it or name it something else? Maybe "The Growler" or since it is a very mysterious call and few people have ever heard it, maybe we call it the Midnight Growler! Anything but the Wild Cat Call.
Any ideas?
No Gobblenut, I'm sorry "locomotive whistle call" is not in the running!
Quote from: Turkeybutt on July 08, 2022, 04:14:40 PM
Is it a legend or a very seldom heard call? I can't say for sure as I never heard it. I must say after listening to the audio I'm not so sure what I heard, but I do what to thank Mike for the info.
I have other issues!
Okay I learned to cluck, putt, purr, cut, cackle, yelp, the kee-kee, and the fighting purr. Oh, and I also learned how to gobble. I am very proficient with the use of an owl or crow locating call as well.
Now after 50 years of hunting I find I need to learn the "Growl" or the "Wild Cat Call" and let's not forget the controversial "GRONK call", whatever that is!
OMG is there no end!
I have to say that some family members, friends, and some of you in here are going to suffer and are now off my Christmas list. I'm sorry, but I now have to spend a few hundred dollars on new turkey calls. It's just the way it is, ya never have enough!
Additionally, I must say I have a problem with the term the "Wild Cat Call". Each time I hear the mention of the Wild Cat Call my mind automatically goes to big cats, mountain lions, tigers etc. certainly not anything to do with turkey hunting!
Can we call it or name it something else? Maybe "The Growler" or since it is a very mysterious call and few people have ever heard it, maybe we call it the Midnight Growler! Anything but the Wild Cat Call.
Any ideas?
No Gobblenut, I'm sorry "locomotive whistle call" is not in the running!
Why don't we just call him a Constipated Gobbler Growler in pain... LOL...
Constipated Gobbler Growler in pain just doesn't roll off the tongue.
Quote from: Turkeybutt on July 08, 2022, 04:14:40 PM
No Gobblenut, I'm sorry "locomotive whistle call" is not in the running!
Oh, c'mon now, Turkeybutt! "Locomotive whistle call" does just roll off the tongue. Just try saying it three times fast and see for yourself! It's also much more imaginative than that plain ol' "wildcat call". Whoever made that up had no imagination whatsoever! ;D
...Now, "constipated gobbler growler"? That's a different story altogether! :newmascot:
Gobblenut right now it's between you and G.Massey as to who wins the new name contest. Remember the winner receives a 6 month supply of Shamwows, the Chia Pet Turkey Collection, a used George Forman Grill, not 1 but 2 Pocket Fishermen and a six pack of Flex Seal products.
All yours if you are named the winner and $39.95 for shipping.
As a parting gift the runner up will get a used, one of a kind Flextone Thunder Gobble Turkey call autographed my me. If the runner up acts fast I'll send him or her a second Thunder Gobble Turkey call for $29.95.
Let's stay with Wildcat Call in honor of Leon Johenning. Y'All should really read his small 72 page Book. I bought mine from Canada's Site.
I feel that some of these Old Masters- long gone now who lived for the Fall Turkey Hunting had a rare knowledge that not everyone possessed.
I agree that Gobblers may communicate with each other in seldom heard ways.
Those pocket fisherman with a weighted treble hook sometimes come in handy for those pesky gobblers that flop back over the boundary line.
I heard that call this spring. I was hunting a point that the turkeys were
roosting on a lot, sometimes there was a gobbler roosted there with hens,
and a couple of times there was a jake there roosted by himself.
One morning over to my left about 30 yards I heard that call. I can only describe it as similar to a whine, but much louder. At first I was like what
the heck was that, but right after that call I heard what I thought was the
jake yelping and cutting, as I had heard him on that ridge twice before.
The woods were too open for me to turn my head toward him and he walked about 15 yards behind me. After he got past me and was walking away from me I started easing my head to the right. I got my eyes on him when he was about 30 yards away from me. I couldn't see his beard and
I'm still not 100% sure it was the jake. It could have been the gobbler,
but the yelping and cutting sounded exactly like the jake as I had heard
and seen him yelping and cutting there twice previously.
Johenning does a good imitation, but he's not as loud as the bird I heard.
The bird I heard sounded more like a scream.
First time I've heard it in 44 spring seasons, and about 10 fall seasons.