121553, the first bird i ever called in was a bearded hen. i had a beautiful setup, i could look to on side of me out into a field, large boulder at my back. in the front, just past my feet was a log about 3 foot high, which covered any movement i might make. there was a path to my left from the field to the woods, the only way a bird could easily see or walk by me. that bird walked ten feet away from me after having been called in. ithought it looked like a hen, but when i decided to play with it by calling( it was on the other side of the log, having walked in from the field), she dropped her wings like a tom and commenced to strutting! i mean wing dragging, tail fanning strutting! so i put the binos on her at about 20 yards, nothing. we kept playing this game, with me second guessing myself, until she turned into the morning sun, chest puffed out, as was her beard. that was all it took, near the end of the season, 1/2 mile from the truck, 45 minutes playing with one bird. i still wasn't actually certain which sex it was until i met another hunter. she was the hardest bird i have ever killed, i think she is probably the most prized one. the lenght of her beard was only but an inch and a half, but i have never had to work so hard as i did for her. yes, it is regretable to have killed a female during the spring, but look upon her as the trophy that she is.
Pat