What do you think ...

[Old Gobbler]

I stand corrected...493 +/- turkeys total ...checked out.. statewide ...in Florida on type 1 wildlife management areas 2021 spring . A few years it was over 700 ...either thier record keeping is not accurate or the numbers are going down

[Old Gobbler]

Mississippi has a 6 inch ... I think it would be best for me to consult them as a group whole to see how it has been working..or not

a loophole for exempt hunters youth... disabled..retired military...etc..would be appropriate

[Hobbes]

I always thought the "no jakes" rule sounded like a good one, but I've not hunted MS to know how well it's followed.  I can't say that I get terribly bent out of shape over someone killing a Jake.  I better not, I shot one myself in Florida last year on private.  For a Jake, he had a pretty good beard, and it was better than a lot of Merriam's that I've killed.  I knew he was probably a Jake, but he brought up the rear, was a touch bigger, and I didn't hesitate when he quickly turned to go.  I wouldn't have taken the chance if there was a no Jake rule in effect. 

What is the end goal of a "no jakes" rule?  More gobbling turkeys the following season?  More adult birds to breed hens?  Is there a biological benefit?

It'd be tough to implement in Western states because Merriam's have such terrible beards on average. 

While not entirely relevant, Montana does have restrictions on elk.  The majority of districts are "brow tined bull" only in rifle season.  A brow tined bull has at least a 4" brow time.  Most folks don't shoot a bull unless they are damn sure it's over 4".  If they can do that, seems like folks could do alright on turkey beard length.

[Stoeger_bird]

Mississippi has a 6 inch ... I think it would be best for me to consult them as a group whole to see how it has been working..or not

a loophole for exempt hunters youth... disabled..retired military...etc..would be appropriate

6 inch or full fan in MS is pretty easy to follow. I can't think of maybe 1 or 2 birds I've ever seen that it really hard to tell of they made it or not. Problem people run into is when a bird that has a full gobble pops his head over the ridge and people role the dice.

[wchadw]

Mississippi has a 6 inch ... I think it would be best for me to consult them as a group whole to see how it has been working..or not

a loophole for exempt hunters youth... disabled..retired military...etc..would be appropriate

6 inch or full fan in MS is pretty easy to follow. I can't think of maybe 1 or 2 birds I've ever seen that it really hard to tell of they made it or not. Problem people run into is a bird that has a full gobble they see a head pop over the ridge. Some just role the dice and lose.

It's pretty easy to tell if it's a Jake


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[jshark14]

According to NWTF article "No biological reason exists on whether or not hunters should kill a jake. If a jake is taken legally, no biological backlash comes from harvesting that bird, other than reducing the potential of 2 year olds that could be in the area the following year (which can be a lot of fun to hunt)."

Take that for what it's worth...I don't have any data to back that up. I know the guys at UGA do a good bit of turkey research but not certain if they've addressed this topic specifically. One thing is for sure, I couldn't judge beard/spur length of a tom in the heat of moment...not accurately anyway.


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[Stoeger_bird]

"Rolling the dice" says it all.  How many perfectly edible birds are left to rot because someone made a bad estimate on beard length?  These same hunters that walk away from a dead short beard in all likelihood continue to hunt for that elusive 6 incher and if killed now have two down but only one claimed.  Total waste of a resource and unnecessary.

Yea true but the same person who would leave a bird to rot in the woods is the same person that will shoot over the limit or poach. The 6 inch rule isn't keeping them from breaking the law.

[Old Gobbler]

I think any rule changes should follow solid proven  biology methods

The fact remains about 500 birds on public in Florida is a dismal figure...we are cruzing at 21 million residents and land is disappearing daily...imo all suitable non state owned habitat will end up being developed as we are projected to hit a population of 40 plus million by the year 2050

[Pluffmud]

I'm pretty sure there is a lot of evidence that shows that sour length and beard length are not at all good representations of a birds age, so yeah.

[Mallard1897]

Coming from a state that allows both jake and bearded hen harvest in the spring season along with excessively liberal bag limits I never had much problem with harvest of jakes regardless of hunter experience level.

Like many, I have a self-imposed rule to not shoot jakes. Though I don't fault those who do.

There's so many factors affecting turkey population health, some within our control and some not, but things like a self-imposed reduction in bag limit and/or shooting adult gobblers only are. It's a common line you hear, that we are conservationists first and hunters second. However I recognize everyone's situation is different, especially in states with a 1 or 2 bird limit.

On another note, I am all for regulation to ban harvest of bearded hens in the spring.

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[WV Flopper]

 Total feel good, BS law.

I am not opposed to letting Jake's walk, but a BS rule for multiple reasons.

[Clif Owen]

I think it should be a hunter's choice.
A few years back, a friend of mine and I let several jakes walk one season..best guess was 9 or 10 between a couple of areas. We really expected to have some fun the next spring. BUT..one several trips to listen; we did not hear the first bird and didn't see but a couple of tracks in the clearcut they were near. What happened?? I didn't hear of any outbreaks of disease but did hear rumors of the WLF guys trapping birds to restock somewhere else...Who knows?

[Hwd silvestris]

Jakes should be for youth only in my opinion.  My 10 yr old last year let a spitting/drumming/gobbling super Jake walk.  By his choice not mine.  I told him he should to shoot him.  He thought about for a bit and decided not to.   We did have some fun with him tho. He has killed 1 Jake in his early career when he was 6 yr old.  At that time he had killed 9 longbeards. Although some of these bull jakes are harder to call in than a mature experienced gobbler.  They can be finicky lil boogers.
A grown man killing a Jake is kinda like a grown man shooting a spike deer.  I mean come on! 
I feel like most poachers around my parts don't shoot jakes.  They just kill entirely way too many longbeards.  Some just deer hunt them over corn. 
These lowlifes absolutely discuss me!


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[briton]

I say limit the jakes to youth season. Give the birds a chance to reach maturity and breed more.

[King Cobra]

I agree with the six-inch rule but feel there could be exceptions for first time hunters, youth, and people with special needs. We need to give turkeys every opportunity to survive and strive.