I base my decision off of how many hens and jakes im seeing.

The limit is still 5 in those 6 counties just like the rest of the State. So, what is the biological reason for the Fall season. Speaking of deer, alot of people on here say that shooting pregnant does doesn't affect anything verses shooting one in early season. What's the biological reason between that and shooting one in the summer?

Chit just got real.

Dr. B

Let me write it real slow for ya... Fall seasons are based on the biology that after the breeding season is over and there is an abundance of young-of-the-year in wildlife populations, it is biologically sound to harvest some of the crop... It is the same biological justification for deer, doves, quail, rabbits, squirrel, ...... Do turkeys somehow operate on a different biological plane than other wildlife? If so, I missed that in my years schooling and practicing! What is the biological justification for a spring season?

The question should always be, if we want to change or loosen the rules, is there a biological reason NOT to, if it won't damage the population of the wildlife species... if there is no biological harm, then it should be ok to do! If we want to restrict or tighten the rules, the question should be is there a biological justification for it - will the wildlife species benefit from it. If not, then don't do it!

While deer are different, there is no difference between shooting pregnant does or non-pregnant does, early season does or late season does. I'll be shooting a few pregnant does in the next couple weeks - shouldn't be a problem there either!

>>>Spring season is only a function of hunter pleasure - they would rather kill one gobbling than in the fall - NO biological reason for it!<<<

Now wait a minute! I know better than to argue turkey biology with you, so this is probably just a question of semantics, but someone might not understand. Or maybe I am wrong; see if you disagree with this:

The spring gobbler is an excess bird in the flock. Seasons are set so that nearly all of the hens will be bred before the season even comes in. I've got to watch 2 being bred this spring, and that's the first time I've ever seen it more than once. Maybe the cold winter slowed them down a little?

At any rate, the gobblers job is pretty much done when the season starts. There won't be any more or less poults whether he lives or dies. If he dies, there will be plenty of other gobblers to take over for him next year. So from the standpoint of biology, this bird is the one to kill.

Doesn't that present a biological argument for a Spring season with a generous limit?

Write it anyway you want to. Why has only 6 counties had the Fall season? On your logic, we should have deer season in the summer months, since the breeding season is in the Fall? What is the biological justification for not having a Spring turkey season?

Theoretically, there were more of these "excess" gobblers in the fall, since the passage of time from October to April can ONLY result in lower turkey numbers. So, again theoretically, from a biological standpoint it would be wiser to harvest the appropriate number of "excess" gobblers the day after the last poult was hatched for the year (the day when the highest turkey numbers of the year is recorded). This would maximize turkey harvest.

Your timing scenario has a "little" merit However, I would not say the gobblers job is done by Mar 15. I don't have any data to back me up but I would say that the majority of hens are bred in April that result in nests. Certainly some earlier but also a lot bred later, even into summer. Yea, the population does not need all those gobblers and many are excess, but some are needed all summer for potential "fill in" breeding for those hens who got broke up late!

When the spring seasons were originally set, I doubt they were considering whether breeding was done by Mar 20. I think they were more concerned with whether they were gobbling good yet



There are some excellent Basic Biology texts available that I can recommend for you. I know this concept is hard for you to understand but it does not matter when a critter screws, it matters when they are done raising their young to juvenile stage - fall. I'll try it one more time... Deer, Turkeys, Quail, squirrels, rabbits, doves, ducks, geese, snipe, woodcock, bears, mice, weasels, fox, coyotes, beavers, otters, even fish and bugs for cripes sakes, (you get the point) all reach their highest population in the fall after the young are raised to juveniles. This is the time traditionally set for game harvest for the majority of wildlife species. I believe, this was the time set for turkey harvest when the first game laws were enacted in Alabama and ALL counties with a turkey season had FALL turkey season. It was not just 6 counties, I remember when most counties had fall season, they have whittled it down to 6 remaining.

How can you twist my logic to having deer season when does are pregnant, that would be like having a hen season in March and April - how do you get that I think that? And why do you want to know what the "biological justification for not having a Spring turkey season" is. Are you simply trying to be an ass?

You make my point on why a daily limit does far more to protect gobblers than a season limit. If you could kill more than one a day you would have, and so would a whole lot of others. There would be a lot fewer gobblers out there for people to hunt. As it stands now, the season limit has had zero effect on you, and it won't affect most others either. But the daily limit has kept you from killing a gobbler. Would you have really been any happier that day if you had killed 2?

People do double up in GA; I've done it myself a few times. Some even triple up. And then they go out the next day and try to do it again, because the season limit is an honor system and lots of them don't have much of that. A guy I hunt with in GA told me about a guy he knows that killed over 30 one season.

The 5 bird season limit in AL is unenforceable, and the GA limit is too. In AL, it has become a goal more than a limit. Your argument seems based on the assumption that you are gonna kill your 5 turkeys, so what difference does it make when you kill them. The fact is that most are not gonna kill 5, but lots of folks would shoot into a flock of gobblers and kill several if they could. That doesn't seem like a wise use of the resource to me.

I have often wondered how many in AL actually killed a limit. That info should be easily available from the Hunter Survey, but they don't publish it. I've written the study leader before and asked, but never got a reply. I've always thought that the number of hunters that kill 5 and then quit shooting them is probably less than 100. It would be interesting to find out.

Well, maybe I'm wrong then. But you were the one who told me a single gobbler could breed 20 hens in a day.

I've read about the timing other states use for setting seasons and their goal was to not start it until most of the hens were bred. I may have jumped to the same conclusion that some others have in this thread - that AL actually considers the science involved in setting seasons and limits.

I like preacher's one a day limit. I never could figure out why somebody would want to shoot two turkeys out of the same bunch at the same time instead of being able to go back and hunt them again next time.

Since I tend to agree with you on the season and daily limits, and the fact that you probably cant kill all your gobblers off a property within the law (may have to beef up the baiting and roost shooting laws), the point is moot. They decided that turkey hunting in spring was fun and found no negative biological consequences from it so it is and I am glad for it!!

BTW, that 20 hen gobbler - he would smile if he didn't have a beak

I like preacher's one a day limit. I never could figure out why somebody would want to shoot two turkeys out of the same bunch at the same time instead of being able to go back and hunt them again next time.

I agree shooting one at a time is no big deal, its almost like getting to work a bird and come close to killing him, having the same adrenaline rush and yet you don't kill him and get to experience his greatness all over again. Almost everytime I kill a turkey or watch one die, I want to breath life back into him so I can hunt him again, but then I have fried turkey breast for dinner and I'm happy I killed his arrogant self

Yes it did...

if you fail to kill a turkey for the next 10 years (using legal methods) you will know why.

Maybe you should hang onto those biology books. It's not hard for me to understand at all. Thanks for your concern, though. My original post was what was the biological reason for a Fall season? You turned it around into why should it not be. I ask you the same thing about the Spring season and you ask if I'm being an ass. I didn't say it matters when an animal screws. You said hunters wanted to hunt a gobbling turkey, during the breeding season. I didn't bring up other species, first. 5 gobblers are 5 gobblers, regardless when they are killed. My question was simply what difference does it make if they are taken in the Spring? It's still a reduction of numbers.

I don't come anywhere close to my limit, as most hunters do not, except some of the exceptional ones on here. Heck, I'm doing good to get one. Just saying that this year I might have come the closest ever at 3 birds if I could shoot two on the same day. If it's an honor system issue or ethical system issue, the increase in the daily limit won't change me into a nonethical hunter or a nonethical hunter into an ethical one. You either abide by the laws, or you do not.

If I, by some miracle, were to ever kill 5 gobblers in a year, 5 die regardless of whether it's 5 different days or 4 days. So I'm not seeing how there would be fewer gobblers out there for people to hunt by doing it one day at a time.

Again, as for shooting into a flock, people will do that to get a shot at ONE bird! It goes back to you are either an ethical hunter or you are not. I don't see the daily limit changing that. I, for instance, would only take those two birds if it was a scenario like I had earlier this year. I called in two gobblers that were side by side, I could have easily killed both. No other turkeys were around to injure. Instead, I had to wait and get a clean shot on just one. I was tickled as it was to get just one, but a double just seems like a cool thing to be able to do.

The "5 bird limit" is still just an honor system this year like others I'm seeing less and less honor. Our season up here in north bama is 8 days old and I personal know more than a few that have limited and exceeded the limit. I killed my 4Th Sunday and havent been back yet jus to strech my season. Prolly gonna take my bow and try my luck.

>>>You either abide by the laws, or you do not. <<<

AU Trout bum, I didn't mean to imply in any way that you might not abide by the law. Its just that if someone unethical had been in your position and they killed them both, they at least knew there was a chance the GW might catch them. GWs have caught plenty of folks killing over the daily limit; I know some personally. Even related to one.

But from all I can tell, there has never been anyone prosecuted for exceeding the turkey season limit in AL. A law that's been on the books for decades and never once been enforced is pretty useless as far as I'm concerned.

If we need to reduce the harvest, shorten the season. That would actually have an effect. Reducing the limit from 5 to 3 would accomplish nothing.

So you're one of "those guys" huh?

You're new here, so I'll just assume you're ignorance is what makes you come off as a f*kin moron.

Watch out fellas, Big Mouth Billy Badass Turkey Killer has spoken!

Did you make him walk to the front on Sunday morning?