Spring gobblers lose their mind and caution when they see another tom enter their space. While hunting in South Dakota, I’ve seen strutting toms lower their tail feathers and run at a gobbler decoy as fast as they can, sometimes from 200 yards. Gobblers are highly aggressive toward rivals, and toms often go bonkers when they see a rival’s fan.
Slow and Easy
Box callers are among the easiest to use in turkey season, and the best kind offers a hen call on one side and a gobbler on the other. Whereas a hen yelp is a high-pitched, rapid “yelp, yelp, yelp,” the gobbler call is a much slower and deeper, “yulp, yulp, yulp.” Toms don’t yelp as much in the spring and are much less vocal than hens, except for their gobbles.
A Great Back-Up Caller
Using a gobbler fan or gobbler decoy can be very effective, yet is dangerous, especially on public land where a glimpse of these gobbler images can prompt an errant shot. Using a gobbler call can prompt the same dominance urge in a gobbler without the dangerous visual stimulus. The following video shows how this sound is made and offers tips on when to use it. Best of luck.
