July 17, 2008 11:34 pm
—
by James Bryant
The Old Prairie Field Gobbler is still living. When the season closed he left me with a frustrated mind and an aching body. The closest I came to bagging him was on the morning of April 30th.
It was 8:30 a.m. and he was without a hen. This had never happened before. He was sounding anxious and was within 100 yards of me when ….. those dang dogs.
At first I was angry and disappointed. Then I started thinking “Do I really want this turkey to die suddenly in an unrepentant state, being full of pride and arrogance? Probably not.”
I think that I can derive more pleasure from this bird by live-trapping him next season, binding him, then taking a photograph of my foot on his neck, then beating the devil out of him with a switch, then turning him loose and posting copies of the photos in his home range. Ah yes, this sounds like a great plan.
I didn’t bag the Thunder-throated Gobbler (Tallahala Wildlife Management Area) either. I came close. If he would have moved a few feet closer to my left…….Instead he poked his head up through the brush for a quick, last look. His eyeball appeared to be at least one foot in diameter, and it pierced my being like a laser beam, Then, that head went down like a snake going into a hole. Next, nothing. Now I am left with that last look image in my brain for the rest of my life.
A bigger issue is this. How did that turkey come by my hunting partner, located 30 feet to my right, without being seen? Can this turkey appear and disappear at will? Does he cast a spell whereby he cannot be seen at all by some?
The closing of last season has left me with an unsettling thought…..”Will I be too old to turkey hunt by the time I learn how to turkey hunt?
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Photos
Mature gobblers are often easily spotted in fall and winter. But calling them during the spring hunting season
sometimes is a fruitless endeavor.