Turkeys not Gobbling

[Eagle]

Turkeys always gobble at least once. It may be very soft compared to a young bird lighting up a tall pine on a hilltop, but they always gobble. If you're not hearing a gobble either you got no bird or you were too far away.

This is not true. They may gobble on the roost, but birds are often silent on the ground for a number of reasons (non dominant/henned up, etc.)

Aside from deer hunting/spot and stalking, you don’t have many options. If you can hear drumming well, still hunting can work as even silent birds will often drum. Pinpointing the location of the drumming bird can be difficult in the mountains, but pretty easy in most other terrain. Some birds you can hear drum from 100+ yards, others have to be within 30ish. So if you can hear one drumming, you are probably in his bubble and very light calling might bring him in quick!

 

[deerhunt1988]

Turkeys always gobble at least once. It may be very soft compared to a young bird lighting up a tall pine on a hilltop, but they always gobble. If you're not hearing a gobble either you got no bird or you were too far away.

yes, everyone needs to believe this. Especially in the southeast.

 

[Gman12]

Turkeys always gobble at least once. It may be very soft compared to a young bird lighting up a tall pine on a hilltop, but they always gobble. If you're not hearing a gobble either you got no bird or you were too far away.

Are you saying that every gobbler gobbles on the roost at least once every single morning? If so, this is 100% incorrect. I can take you to my farm and, if the weather is clear with little or no wind, you will typically hear 5-7 different birds. Go back the next day with heavy overcast and wind and you will be lucky to hear a single gobble anywhere. It is very weather dependent.

 

[juju]

Are you saying that every gobbler gobbles on the roost at least once every single morning? If so, this is 100% incorrect. I can take you to my farm and, if the weather is clear with little or no wind, you will typically hear 5-7 different birds. Go back the next day with heavy overcast and wind and you will be lucky to hear a single gobble anywhere. It is very weather dependent.

I offered experience outside your own. That you think it false and decry the fact does not make it false. It just shows your dedication to ignorance. You're not wrong about weather affecting gobbling. You're assuming, if I understand your post correctly, that the bird didn't gobble because you didn't hear it. You're making assumptions based on lack of specific experience.

I learned something today myself. I've been fortunate enough kill a bird every time I get a certain quota permit for years. Some years, I've let birds walk on that place so my season didn't end early. I have planned on it as part of the yearly limit. Today I learned the success rate is 3%. That is nuts. What am I even doing with my life bothering to hunt a place with a 3% success rate? It just shows how a person can get up in their head when turkeys are involved. Craziness.

 

[juju]

...This is not true. They may gobble on the roost, but ...

So gobbling on the roost is not gobbling? What? It seems like you're saying they gobble but they don't gobble, which would be nonsense.

 

[LongWayAround]

It seems strange to assume that every bird gobbles everyday.

I don't have any evidence to prove one way or another, but my experience suggests otherwise.

For example, this weekend, I was watching seven toms in one field. They definitely were not all gobbling on the ground. I also don't believe the subdominant birds were gobbling from the tree in the evening, nor in the morning.

Good hunters kill birds regardless.

 

[Gman12]

I offered experience outside your own. That you think it false and decry the fact does not make it false. It just shows your dedication to ignorance. You're not wrong about weather affecting gobbling. You're assuming, if I understand your post correctly, that the bird didn't gobble because you didn't hear it. You're making assumptions based on lack of specific experience.

I learned something today myself. I've been fortunate enough kill a bird every time I get a certain quota permit for years. Some years, I've let birds walk on that place so my season didn't end early. I have planned on it as part of the yearly limit. Today I learned the success rate is 3%. That is nuts. What am I even doing with my life bothering to hunt a place with a 3% success rate? It just shows how a person can get up in their head when turkeys are involved. Craziness.

Dedication to ignorance. What does that even mean? Doesn't sound too complimentary to me.

I simply said that not every turkey gobbles on the roost every morning. I have watched gobblers on the roost from a distance who never said a peep before or after flying down. I guess they could have whispered a gobble under their breath or something but I wasn't too far away and they were silent. You might want to change the word "always" to "usually".

 

[Eagle]

So gobbling on the roost is not gobbling? What? It seems like you're saying they gobble but they don't gobble, which would be nonsense.

Reading comprehension friend. Key in on the word “may”. Birds are often completely silent all day. They do not always gobble at least once.

Your success on the piece of public you quota hunt is impressive, so I’m sure you’re a great woodsmen. But your assumption that all birds gobble at least once a day is absolutely false.

 

[juju]

Actually heard a podcast the other day with a couple turkey biologists who had put voice recorders on birds to capture gobbling activity. They were saying that based in their research not every bird gobbles every day, and that hunting pressure 100% reduces gobbling activity.

Hunting pressure affects the gobbler, but being trapped and recorded doesn't? Did they account for how turkeys respond to having voice recorders hung on them? How sensitive were these recorders? This sounds like the worst experiment ever. I mean, 6mm bad.

Surely they didn't say hunting pressure shuts a gobbler down 100%, but maybe. It's believable they said 100% when you consider the other kinds of nonsense biologists have been touting on podcasts in recent years.

<coughs in dominant gobbler theory>

Hunting pressure will affect a gobbler. It's the main reason I rarely hoot in the morning. Instead I rely on knowing where he is. Which is why I know about the quiet gobbles.

 

[juju]

...whispered a gobble under their breath or something but I wasn't too far away and they were silent. ..

You got it. It's pretty much that.

 

[juju]

Reading comprehension friend. Key in on the word “may”. Birds are often completely silent all day. They do not always gobble at least once.

Your success on the piece of public you quota hunt is impressive, so I’m sure you’re a great woodsmen. But your assumption that all birds gobble at least once a day is absolutely false.

There's a difference between comprehending what is written and guessing what you meant. Maybe it's like the difference between a 2yo roosted high on a clear morning and a deposed limbhanger slipping in behind you to gobble quietly within it's chest because it doesn't want the pair of 3yos you're talking to, to charge in and flog it again.

 

[Macintosh]

@juju Im sure you know better than the biologists, why dont you contact them and set them straight yourself? The biologists I know are very open to legitimate feedback on their methodology.

Fwiw the biologist in question was Michael Chamberlin, here is a link to the podcast I referred to. I found it interesting, although they didnt get so far into the weeds on what they controlled for etc. Interestingly, when asked what they really were interested in studying his reply was that he was particularly interested in studying birds that never gobbled. But listen for yourself, maybe I misunderstood what he said.

#315 - Wild Turkey Research in 2025 w/Mike Chamberlain and Patrick Wightman

Podcast Episode · The Hunting Public · 04/17/2025 · 57m

podcasts.apple.com

Something from wild turkey lab (also connected to same bio). No gobble on 3/23 in the graph? https://wildturkeylab.com/gobbling-activity-variation-day-to-day/

 

[dr.mooseknuckles]

Lol at this dude. Box calls run birds off because they sound bad and ALL birds gobble at least once daily.

 

[Macintosh]

I actually emailed Dr Chamberlain to ask the specific question and make sure I understood correctly. This was the response I just got a few moments ago:

"Yes, we are actually approaching toms early in the morning and getting close enough to easily hear them before and after they fly down (we have GPS units on them). We’re doing this to verify that the audio loggers also installed on the units are functioning, and in so doing, are finding clear evidence that some birds are not gobbling at all on the roost or immediately after they fly down. Whether they start gobbling later in the day is unclear at this point, but some are not gobbling early. In fact, we’ve repeatedly sampled one bird that has yet to gobble at all on the days when we’ve done the sampling."

 

[Fowl Play]

Easterns are different than the Western subspecies and many will NOT gobble after morning. Even loud cuts will not drive it out of them. Walking and calling/cutting every so often I use midday on Western birds. At least from my experience, you have to sit for Easterns after the morning. After fly down, the gobblers will follow the hens to feed. Most of the time it is close to their roost (within say 500 yards). Sometimes not, knowledge of the property helps. But my late morning strategy is to get close to where they were in the morning near known feed or strutting areas. Lay down hen + Jake decoy. Start sitting at 9am, stay till 11 (my most productive time) or 2-4. Calling every 10-15 min. Around 9am the gobbler will start looking for more hens, this is their most vulnerable time. If he was answering your call in the morning he may come looking for you around 9-10am. But that is a long sit…

And gobblers do not call every morning, not sure how anyone could make that claim. I can tell you from experience a hard rain, cold snap etc will shut the gobbling down. If anything is to be taken from that talk it’s that every morning they are not “hammering”. Sometimes you may only be able to hear soft gobbles sub 100 yards.

 

[Honyock]

Set up where you’ve seen birds or sign and call. Opening day it was Gobble City from the roost and then nothing. That afternoon we set up in an area where we regularly see birds and started calling. Call and wait twenty minutes and then repeat. Had three good toms come to the call that never gobbled. My son and I doubled up with a 10 inch beard and an 11 inch beard.

 

[Esteban]

Every gobbie I heard this morning was gobbling. Didn't notice any with a gps attached. I presume the ones I didn't hear gobbling that actually were gobbling or maybe were silent had the GPS.

 

[dtrkyman]

Both my Missouri birds came in silent this year, first one never heard a gobble anywhere, he showed up at 8:15 ish. Second one gobbled on the roost but never on the ground, showed up after 9am.

Silent gobblers kinda suck, but I get a sweet satisfaction when I kill one!

 

[Davyalabama]

If they gobble every day, I need more than just pro ears with advanced sound. I need supped up hearing aids.

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

You folks would lose your minds if you ever hunted oscellated.