Tough season

[Guest clutepc]

Its probably just me but is anyone else hunting the WMA land around Nashville having trouble finding birds?

Normally I can find them everywhere but not this season.

[DaveS]

The WMA's here are wore out from what I've seen and heard. I don't hunt turkeys any more, but my property has tons of them. I really wish they would leave and run-a-way to a WMA! The Refuge I know real well has a dwindling population of birds. Very few left....plenty of trophy class hogs....very few turkeys and NO quail (that we can find)!

The problem we have is that feral hogs destroy the nest of ground nesting birds (ducks, quail, turkey and geese) and eat their eggs. Since we can't hunt hogs anymore, this problem is going to keep getting worse. Law makers are going to have to step up, change the hog regs, for no other reason than to protect our other wildlife species.

[R_Bert]

Not Nashville area, but Dad and I have seen 2 birds on NCWMA since opening day (inc. the one I killed). On private lands, I have seen 8 in the last week (inc. 4 today). Seems like I recall many more overall last year. Supposedly, Anderson & Campbell county have not seen many hogs so far.

Has anyone been seeing turkey on LBL this season ?

Edit to add -

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/apr/21/bob-hodge-talk-of-slow-turkey-season-doesnt-the/

(I hate it when statistics disagree with my observations....)

Edited April 21, 2012 by R_Bert

[DaveS]

Not Nashville area, but Dad and I have seen 2 birds on NCWMA since opening day (inc. the one I killed). On private lands, I have seen 8 in the last week (inc. 4 today). Seems like I recall many more overall last year. Supposedly, Anderson & Campbell county have not seen many hogs so far.

Has anyone been seeing turkey on LBL this season ?

Edit to add -

http://www.knoxnews....son-doesnt-the/

(I hate it when statistics disagree with my observations....)

Was fishing in the Neville's Bay and Gatlin Point area and heard birds gobble, didn't see them, just heard them.

[Guest clutepc]

maybe it's just the hunting pressure this season, normally I can always hear them at some point,

the last 5 times I've been out I haven't heard a thing, I'm seeing sign just no birds.

I heard one the first day, just before he was shot and then I called in a hen but that's been it.

Strange, maybe it'll change as it gets later in the season.

[whiskey]

I believe the season is a little out of wack with the early spring and green-up. My daughter took her youth hunt bird on a WMA and I have hunted it a couple times since. The birds I have heard are very call shy and have gone away when I got aggressive.

We hunted a private farm this morning and birds gobbled like mad, but were on the wrong side of the creek. Once the hens hit the ground the birds shut up and not another sound. Hens have been very quite this year. I have heard zero yelps and few clucks. I got one hen fired up opening day, but nothing since.

[ls-vtec]

I believe the season is a little out of wack with the early spring and green-up. My daughter took her youth hunt bird on a WMA and I have hunted it a couple times since. The birds I have heard are very call shy and have gone away when I got aggressive.

We hunted a private farm this morning and birds gobbled like mad, but were on the wrong side of the creek. Once the hens hit the ground the birds shut up and not another sound. Hens have been very quite this year. I have heard zero yelps and few clucks. I got one hen fired up opening day, but nothing since.

its the same way here they will leave if you call aggressively. me and my compadre doubled last weekend . the birds were 400 yards away when i saw them and called a little aggressive .they exited the field . i was tipped from a friend that calling every 15 minutes or so and just hanging in the one spot would work . i tried this and 2 hours to our surprise after the birds left they came out close to us and came to the same decoys they had left earlier. and shazam .