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Old 02-10-2012 | 03:30 AM
  #3  
UncleNorby
Nontypical Buck
 
Joined: Mar 2004
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I'm no expert, but your bird looks like a 2 yr old to me. The spurs look like they are about 1".

A Jake is a 1 yr old bird, they have beards that may be hard to see, or up to 3-4 inches or so. Their spurs are generally .5" or less around here. A Jake's fan will be longer in the center, with the outer tail feathers about 1 - 1.5" shorter than the center.

A 3 yr old bird will have spurs around 1.25" or so. Beards can vary, but a 3 yr old will generally have a thicker beard.

A lot of times you'll see 2 toms come in. One will be looking for the hen and the other will be strutting. The strutter is the dominant bird, but not always the bigger of the two.

IMO, any bird 2 yrs and older is a "good turkey". I don't shoot Jakes any more, but I did shoot a few when I was starting out.
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