Wild Turkeys and Hunting

November and turkeys are as synonymous as apples and pie. This month the images of turkeys seem to be everywhere. In fact, in Maine the replenished wild turkey has become so well populated a hunting season has been put in place to hunt them. Hunting for turkeys in the spring has become a popular sport with local hunters. The abundance of wild turkeys is notably strong in several central Maine locations. In particular, the sighting of large flocks of wild turkeys in Oakland, Maine is becoming quite common.

Driving home on Fairfield Street this morning, there was a sighting of over 20 wild turkeys nibbling at some seeds and grass at the base of a tree, this was within a few feet of a house. This indication shows that many of the wild turkeys have become somewhat tame. This became especially apparent when I pulled my car over to the side of the road with the motor running. The turkeys gazed at me without any apparent interest as my car sat idling on the side of the road right next to them. After considering the fact that this would make a great photo shoot for this time of year, I snapped off several photos as I drove closer to this group of wild turkeys. After getting within a few yards of the group they began to realize that they were still wild turkeys and I was an outsider. The group leader started moving them toward the brush at the edge of the woods, where they could escape if need be. Although I am not a hunter, I can see the need to thin the groups of wild turkeys, if for no other reason than the fact that they would have a better chance of survival as a group with less turkeys competing for feed during the winter season.

Hunting wild turkeys in the spring and fall does require a permit from the State of Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. There are other considerations that anyone who wants to hunt turkey must understand as well. Landowner permission must be obtained and then you would need to know where to find the tagging stations in Maine. One source of information that could provide many of the answers to questions about turkey hunting can be found at the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife web-site. The link to the web-site is: http://www.maine.gov/ifw/hunting_trapping/hunting/wild_turkey.htm

On this site you will be able to find answers to questions about how to hunt wild turkeys, which locations can be hunted and what type of hunting methods can be used to hunt wild turkeys. There are also links to the laws associated with hunting wild turkeys. Hunting wild turkeys is similar to hunting other wildlife. There are laws, rules, weight limits, and standards that must be followed. For the turkey hunter there are specific times and methods that are in place to hunt wild turkey. The times that are allowed are a half hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset. Using archery to hunt wild turkeys in October is allowed in several Maine zones. Referencing these zones on the web-site will provide additional information to anyone interested in learning where they can hunt wild turkeys.

There are links that include interesting information from the National Wild Turkey Federation and Longbeard Society. This link provides information about the statistics of turkey hunting and a brief history of the relationship of the National Federation with the Gorham/Windham Rod and Gun Club. This link also specifies the standards that show how you can calculate your score if you think you have a turkey that might earn a trophy.

According to Rob Keck of the National Wild Turkey Federation, "turkey hunting has become one of the safest outdoor activities whether you're talking about team sports, other types of hunting, or outdoor hobbies such as mountain biking. The incident rate for turkey hunting has fallen to 2.95 injuries per 100,000 hunters, even though the number of turkey hunters has increased dramatically."

After I shot all of the photos that I wanted from that group of wild turkeys, I drove down the road, no more than 1500 feet, and to my surprise I saw another flock of turkeys. This flock of wild turkeys looked to be at least 60 in number. This large group of wild turkeys was eating seed from the hay field while they wandered all over the large field that abutted the river. This was the largest group of wild turkeys that I had ever seen in central Maine, not to mention here in Oakland. The proximity of the river and several hay fields appeared to be the main reason why there were so many wild turkeys located in this small rural section of Oakland. The thought of Thanksgiving being so close, along with the sightings of these large groups of wild turkeys, had me thinking about Thanksgiving dinner all day long.