You make the Call !

[Adrian J Hare]

If you shot a Gobbler with a very small beard (1/2)inch long. Would you still call it a 1/2 inch beard ? Now I need to know this (opinions please)...BT

[RayC]

Ain't gonna ask why you'd need to know that , but why don't you measure it in MM and make it sound better?

[Carpmaster]

Yes it is still a beard, but I would just refer to the bird as a jake, I mean tom, gobbler, longbeard, and other mature bird nicknames or references don't apply, it is simply a Jake and it had a beard, even if it is very short.

[Aught Six]

Sure, I'd called it a ½" beard. Like CM said, I'd refer to it as a jake.

[Strut&Rut]

Wouldn't be too quick to call it a jake. Jake's are immature---as indicated by their fan shapes, nothing to do with the size of their beard...

I guess as long as it could be measured, I would just measure it to the longest strand.

I would be a little worried though if there was a warden around and the regs stated "a bearded bird"...

1/2 inch is pretty hard to see at 30+ yards

[Carpmaster]

The Jake I killed last week had a full "circular" shaped fan of a tom but had a 3.5" beard and knobs for spurs. I agree that a 1/2 " beard is also very small and in reality it would be impossible to see, which here in michigan the bird would not be legal, but nontheless it is still a beard.

I also agree that sometimes beard length has nothing to do with maturity. I called in and harvested what I thought was a Nice tom, it really was although it had a 5" beard. Its spurs were just over an inch, and had a full fan, but it's beard was barely longer than that of a jake. The beard was unusual, the strands came out normal but right at the end they were a reddish hue and kinky and brittle as if it was burned.

[Buckeye Mike]

Since the law in Ohio is that you can only shood a bearded turkey you are dang sure I would say it had a beard not matter how long is was.

[dog1]

AJ,
Depends on the body (weight), etc. , spurs and other physical features of the bird. I've killed 20 lb birds with beards worn off, for what ever reason.
Example: Is a bird with a 1/2 in. beard, weighs 19 lbs, 1 1/2 in. spurs a jake, I doubt it, wouldn't you agree?

dog1

[Strut&Rut]

Carp,

Then by definition you killed a Tom with short spurs & beard . The bird was probably an early hatch and was just going on 2 years old...but nonetheless, if his fan was full he was a tom...

I killed a tom a few years ago with a 11.5 inch beard and 9/16 spurs... Diversely, one of my brother's coworkers back in NY shot a jake with an 8 inch beard...

Because of the variability of beard growth and spur length, the fan is used to decipher between "jake" and "tom"...once a tom has a full fan, he does not regress into the jake fan shape.

Sounds like you may have a bit of brittle beard or ice-snap frozen beards. You're in MI...I would see that occassionally in NY.

Talk to BT, I'm sure he sees quite a few broken beards up there in Canuck land...

[jepcho]

I would say it is a beard but I dont think I'd be able to see it before I got to it. Therefore I probably wouldn't shoot since here in Iowa the law states "visible beard"