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Turkeys ability to smell
#2208878
03/28/11 02:57 AM
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Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,200
GPS
OP
Pro Tracker
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OP
Pro Tracker
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,200 |
I am sure that this sounds dumb, one of the guy's on our lease said that turkey have a very strong sense smell. They can smell hunters just like a deer.
Is that true?
Greg
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: GPS]
#2208889
03/28/11 03:02 AM
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Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 17,104
Closed Traverse
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 17,104 |
their sense of smell is not very good....but their eyesight is really really good....
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: Closed Traverse]
#2208924
03/28/11 03:24 AM
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Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,200
GPS
OP
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OP
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Posts: 1,200 |
I knew their eye sight was off the charts. Not sure about their sense of smell
Greg
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: GPS]
#2209005
03/28/11 04:10 AM
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Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 557
Littledog
Tracker
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Tracker
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 557 |
Great eye sight. Great hearing. Poor sense of smell . . Thank the good lord !! If they could smell we might never kill one!!
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: Littledog]
#2209027
03/28/11 04:39 AM
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Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 17,104
Closed Traverse
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 17,104 |
Great eye sight. Great hearing. Poor sense of smell . . Thank the good lord !! If they could smell we might never kill one!! we could, but would probably have to hunt them a lil different...
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: Reality Outdoors]
#2209331
03/28/11 02:04 PM
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 3,427
cannon88
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 3,427 |
Bad sense of smell. Good thing too, otherwise they might be close to unhuntable.
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: cannon88]
#2211466
03/29/11 12:05 PM
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 103
freezerfiller77
Woodsman
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Woodsman
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 103 |
I have shot several and hunted them for the last 15 years. Never had one wind me!!! I always thought they couldnt smell at all.....but they can find Waldo in a heartbeat.
"Remember, If you dont reach higher ground this year, youll be one year older when you do." -Warren Miller
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: GPS]
#6669609
02/10/17 06:43 PM
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Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 2
Jennifer Walls
Green Horn
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Green Horn
Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 2 |
"Turkeys can't smell that well, so what you need to take care of during a turkey hunt is to avoid being seen or heard." Get the details here.
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: GPS]
#6669657
02/10/17 07:48 PM
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Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 2,451
Dalroo
Veteran Tracker
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Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 2,451 |
I was checking a feeder several years ago, and started hearing turkeys moving my way. I stood bone still for a few minutes, and then found myself surrounded by turkeys. My BO didn't seem to bother them a bit, and they pecked around until i BARELY moved my foot. At that slight movement they flushed. So, I guess my experience tells me they won't scent you, and even if they can see you, if there is no movement they don't perceive a danger. But even minor movement immediately gets them flustered. And remember, in a group, it is not one set of eyes on alert, but many.
Dalroo Deep in the Heart of Texas How about that Brandon!
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: Jennifer Walls]
#6670172
02/11/17 02:57 AM
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Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 9,273
blackcoal
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 9,273 |
"Turkeys can't smell that well, so what you need to take care of during a turkey hunt is to avoid being seen or heard." Get the details here.
The Greatest Enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.--Stephen Hawking
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: GPS]
#6670310
02/11/17 04:11 AM
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Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 32,442
kmon11
junior
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junior
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 32,442 |
Turkeys are dumb, but paranoid as all get out. Why wouldn't they be after all every predator likes a turkey dinner. I do not know how many times I have heard someone say a particular turkey is smart, come on they will walk back and forth along a fence for 3 hours then remember they can fly over.
Eyesight and hearing are fantastic for a turkey though. One can answer a call from over half a mile away and come in to your location you called from and look you in the face, when they do that it is fun to wink at them and watch them hit 30mph running away or take to the air.
Hint, if a gobbler comes in to your calling with the waddles the light blue almost white he is on edge and you cannot get away with any movement or noise or they will be in get the hell out of there mode. If the waddles are bright red you can get away with lots more movement and noise. If the waddles are blood red and they are strutting within range just wait until his head is blocked by the fan so he cannot see you move the gun into position then yell or talk to him something like saying "hey you" to get him out of strut with the head and neck stretched out for the shot, they will come out of strut and look around as if looking around to see if you are talking to them or who is talking to them.
lf the saying "Liar, Liar your pants on fire" were true Mainstream news might be fun to watch
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: blackcoal]
#6670433
02/11/17 06:43 AM
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Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 2
Jennifer Walls
Green Horn
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Green Horn
Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 2 |
"Turkeys can't smell that well, so what you need to take care of during a turkey hunt is to avoid being seen or heard." Get the details here.
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: kmon11]
#6670609
02/11/17 03:02 PM
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Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,236
Gamblinman
Pro Tracker
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Pro Tracker
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,236 |
Turkeys are dumb, but paranoid as all get out. Why wouldn't they be after all every predator likes a turkey dinner. I do not know how many times I have heard someone say a particular turkey is smart, come on they will walk back and forth along a fence for 3 hours then remember they can fly over.
Eyesight and hearing are fantastic for a turkey though. One can answer a call from over half a mile away and come in to your location you called from and look you in the face, when they do that it is fun to wink at them and watch them hit 30mph running away or take to the air.
Hint, if a gobbler comes in to your calling with the waddles the light blue almost white he is on edge and you cannot get away with any movement or noise or they will be in get the hell out of there mode. If the waddles are bright red you can get away with lots more movement and noise. If the waddles are blood red and they are strutting within range just wait until his head is blocked by the fan so he cannot see you move the gun into position then yell or talk to him something like saying "hey you" to get him out of strut with the head and neck stretched out for the shot, they will come out of strut and look around as if looking around to see if you are talking to them or who is talking to them.
Had a big tom last year that was locked on my hen decoy. He was having one hell of a time trying to mount that plastic hen decoy. I called and yelled at him, but he was in a trance..that is until that load of 7's met his skull.
" I don't hunt turkeys because I want to, I hunt turkeys because I have to."
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: GPS]
#6672690
02/13/17 12:32 PM
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Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 215
Tophers
Woodsman
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Woodsman
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 215 |
Never saw a turkey follow his nose but can hear you and see you from a mile away
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Re: Turkeys ability to smell
[Re: kmon11]
#6674112
02/14/17 05:45 AM
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Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 388
foodieguy
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 388 |
Hint, if a gobbler comes in to your calling with the waddles the light blue almost white he is on edge and you cannot get away with any movement or noise or they will be in get the hell out of there mode. If the waddles are bright red you can get away with lots more movement and noise. If the waddles are blood red and they are strutting within range just wait until his head is blocked by the fan so he cannot see you move the gun into position then yell or talk to him something like saying "hey you" to get him out of strut with the head and neck stretched out for the shot, they will come out of strut and look around as if looking around to see if you are talking to them or who is talking to them.
Thanks for the info on the coloration, have been hunting these birds 3 seasons now and still need to connect...
Adult late onset hunter. Why did I wait so long to get started?
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