I believe hunting wild turkey in the various seasons of the year makes you a better, more knowledgeable, well-rounded turkey hunter because you gain intimate knowledge of the bird’s behavior.
There are many positives for hunting North America’s largest upland game bird this time of year.
A turkey hunter may be able to get access to private lands that have not been available in the fall because of other hunters pursuing game. There is virtually nobody else hunting wild turkeys in December or January. That could be because of the sometimes brutal cold and snowy weather, or because hunters have yet to discover this opportunity. The birds are also much easier to spot and hear from a distance due to a lack of foliage and the snow blanketing the ground.
In addition, the turkeys tend to lower their guard to danger in winter and become predictable.
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Wild turkeys are habitual in winter. They typically roost in the same woodlands, follow the same travel paths and use the same food sources around the same time each day. Variable weather conditions normally have little impact on their routine. Finding roost sites, fresh tracks, feathers or droppings offer great clues to these locations.
Regarding habitat, feeding and thermal roosting cover are important components for turkeys in winter. Turkeys seek harvested, untilled crop fields adjacent to mature woodlands with a somewhat open understory, providing good roosts and adequate protection from inclement weather and predators. Expanses of old-growth woods containing mast-producing species like oaks situated next to harvested, untilled cornfields or soybean fields are great places to start looking for signs of turkeys during the winter.
Wild turkeys in December and January can be highly vocal. Hunters will hear a fair amount of tree yelps, fly-down cackles, clucks, yelps and feeding purrs. Once on the ground, however, usually few calls are made.
Regarding decoys, load up the bag. Imitate a flock and put out your gobbler decoys, too. Or, at a minimum, utilize a decoy that resembles a real hen. Set it out to represent a lost turkey looking for a flock, if need be. Hunting without decoys can work, too.
Portable, camouflaged ground blinds are wonderful to use for winter turkey hunting. These blinds offer mobility, concealment of movement, easy use of shooting sticks, protection from the elements and comfort with chairs and a propane heater. Plus, the blinds don’t seem to bother wild turkeys.
Don’t forget that youth turkey hunting permits are just $8. Pass on the tradition of hunting wild turkeys and enter our Take ’Em Hunting challenge at .
Greg Wagner is a public information officer in the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s Communications Division. Contact him at greg.wagner@nebraska.gov. Read his blog, In the Wild, at .
