Bearded Hens...

[stinkpickle]

Rumor is that the same genetic traits that cause beards in hens can cause multiple beard in gobblers.  I'm not sure if that's true, but I always let them walk.

[ridgerunner]

I've seen a couple, my buddy I used to hunt with killed a couple of them...in fact, he shot one this year..myself I'm not interested in putting my tag on a hen, but to each his, or her, own.

[Bowguy]

I hunt a couple dif states. Sometimes it's legal, sometimes not. I saw one a few weeks ago that had an impressive beard for a hen but I'd just plain never shoot one. Gotta save seed for the future.,

[snapper1982]

Yeah snapper1982 that's where I'm hunting around Lake Perry. My buddy said the same thing that he's noticed more of them in the last 5 to 10 years here. As for the poll, I'm not trying to start a debate or anything like that. It was just me being curious about others here that had a similar situation  . May have been a different story for me if I needed to fill my tag and it was the last day of the season.

Linn and Bourbon counties was where I hunted.

[WV TURKEY THUG]

about 3 or 4 years ago i was walking up this old logging road out of nowhere this smoke phased bearded hen comes up on it 5 inch beard or so. i had the bead on her head but  decided not to shoot her thinking she would have some smoke phased poult for next year. there was only a few days left of season . the next day some guy comes walking out with her over his shoulder he shot her with a 223 blew a nice hole through her he hit the wingbone and it just tore it up. i kick my self everytime i think about. rifles are legal here btw. he let me snap a few pictures of her.and to make matters worse the flash drive i think thats what its called i downloaded it to decided to quit working one day it had alot of my trail cam pics on it also. i was mad. now i have 4 of them just incase one stops working. and i print all the really good photos out and put them in album now. alot of lessons learned. the next one i see if i ever see another one im gonna drop it and not think twice

[darn2ten]

I've seen quite a few of them, and never felt the urge to even raise my gun. It's a hen, and I don't believe you should ever kill one for any reason period.

[WV TURKEY THUG]

i believe its all part of management you got to take some hens to even out the flock where i hunt there is way to many hens and not enough jakes toms. now we all dont see killing a doe during deer season bad so why should it be bad to kill a hen.

[dswmsn]

Hens make poults, which may not have the good fortune of becoming jakes & jennies. I do not think it is biologically sound to shoot hens in the Spring, like you would doe deer in the fall. Turkeys do not overpopulate due to the high mortality rate of young birds.

[WV TURKEY THUG]

i didnt mean shoot them in the spring i meant in the fall like we do deer.lol

[MDSTRUTNRUT]

Many bearded hens in my area of the Eastern Shore of MD but never pulled the trigger even tho had opportunities.  Probably because turkeys only reintroduced since mid 1980's.   Perfectly legal just not my preference but to each his own.

[WV TURKEY THUG]

those are 3 nice gobblers