# What can turkey track tell you?



## ramsey (Feb 8, 2006)

Looking today at Jody Hawk's post of turkey track.What can an experienced turkey hunter learn from tracks from an individual bird. (other than they went thatta way) Size-weight orTom-Hen?


----------



## Jody Hawk (Feb 8, 2006)

Not much except which way he was going.  I think you can tell if it was a gobbler or a hen.


----------



## goodoleboy1012000 (Feb 8, 2006)

*Track*

If the center toe is longer it is a gobbler and the bigger the track most of the time the bigger the bird.... If there is lines on either side of the track he was strutting and you may have found a "Strutt" zone and during the spring thats the type areas that you want to key in on. Once more thing is in areas with dry and dusty earth they may be found in an area that is bowled out this is also a great spot to hunt because they will use the same dusting ares on a regular basis.

- Jason


----------



## IdRatherBHunting (Feb 8, 2006)

arhunter1 said:
			
		

> If the center toe is longer it is a gobbler and the bigger the track most of the time the bigger the bird.... If there is lines on either side of the track he was strutting and you may have found a "Strutt" zone and during the spring thats the type areas that you want to key in on. Once more thing is in areas with dry and dusty earth the may be in an area this bowled out this is also a great spot to hunt because they will use the same dusting ares on a regular basis.
> 
> - Jason




YEAH WHAT HE SAID   DITTO


----------



## hawglips (Feb 8, 2006)

ramsey said:
			
		

> Looking today at Jody Hawk's post of turkey track.What can an experienced turkey hunter learn from tracks from an individual bird. (other than they went thatta way) Size-weight orTom-Hen?



On my hand, I can lay my middle finger in a turkey track and tell if it was tom or hen.  I put the pad below my middle finger on the pad of the turkey track, and if the middle toe is as long as my middle finger - its a tom.  If its shorter, hen.

Hal


----------



## Nga. (Feb 8, 2006)

Draw an circle around touching the 2 outside toes and a Gobblers middle toe will stick out past the circle.


----------



## Huntinfool (Feb 9, 2006)

I sat in on a seminar one time (can't remember the name of the guy).  But one thing this guy said stuck with me.  Turkeys get old just like us.  So there is a tell-tale way to tell if a track is from a very mature gobbler.  Obviously the size of the track makes a difference.  But this guy was saying that turkey basically get "arthritis" just like we do when we get old and their knuckles start to swell.  So if you find a large track with a definitive swollen first knuckle...odds are you're looking at an old Tom track.  It sounds logical to me.  Not sure if it's scientific or not.  But I keep an eye out for that swollen knuckle all the time.


----------



## Covehnter (Feb 9, 2006)

The middle toe on a gobbler will be 3 inches or longer while a hens are not, thats what i've read somewhere.


----------



## Paul White (Feb 9, 2006)

I can tell which tree he's sleeping in.


----------



## Son (Feb 9, 2006)

*what can I tell from a turkey track?*

Everything a turkey hunter needs to know. Remember, even jakes have big feet. Now droppings are another thing, hens leave a pile that looks like a brown wad of bubblegum. Gobblers leave a "J" shape thing about the diameter size of a pencil. Then you can identify gobbler and hen feathers. Breast feathers of a gobbler are tipped in black, hen's will be buff brown. Wing feathers of gobblers and hens will have a big difference in size. Gobbler primaries will show the tips to be worn from strutting. Remember Georgia rules say it must be a bearded gobbler to be a legal bird.


----------



## gsubo (Feb 9, 2006)

Yea..Its kinda hard to tell whether a track is from a big tom or a jake down .  A big gobbler will usually weigh between 14 and 17 lbs where i hunt, it sounds small but i killed a bird with a  10 1/2 inch beard and sharp spurs that weighed 14.5 lbs 2 years ago . ive watched jakes walk in front of me that had huge tracks..then watched big toms with beards draggin the ground with smaller tracks than that.  So i think you can definately tell whether it was a male turkey or a hen by the size..but as far as tellin a jake from a big ol' tom..I aint figured that one out yet.


----------



## alex30808 (Feb 9, 2006)

As far as the droppins go...from what I have heard a hen does drop a "pile" and Jakes drop a "J" But I have also heard and seen gobbler droppins that are shaped like a club with the "white" on the club's larger end...This past CHRISTmas we made cookies on CHRISTmas Eve...here I'll show ya..LOL..






The CHRISTmas tree with all the "Stuff" on it was a "roostin tree" that Trace made....LOL...

But to the track question....I knew that the longer/larger track was typicaly a male bird with the short/smaller track being the hen...I will be lookin and watching my birds behind the house here soon and will take some photos of tracks for all to see aswell as photos of the birds.


----------



## ramsey (Feb 9, 2006)

I hope everyone gets to see those cookies- thats dedication or obesession. I bet ya'll had a ball baking them


----------



## gsubo (Feb 9, 2006)

Lol, alex,  thats a pretty good illustration.  Im sure those Christmas cookies were good..but id still feel funny about eating turkey droppings


----------



## JBird227 (Feb 9, 2006)

Those cookies......


----------

