How old is this turkey???
 

I think it's a great grandpa! haha

If you guys want to look at some great deer pics, go to the forum on "deer hunting".

wow, now thats a beard.......

The beard is not an age indicator at all. 2 year olds can have some giant beards. The best way to field judge a bird's age is the spurs.

LMAO @ great grandpa!!! Haha Now THAT was funny!!! I'd like to get a look at that guy's hooks...

Kim :)

Look at the neck!! Turkey Arthritis???????

nope just bobben his head looks like to me.. and he has a long but thin beard... I agree with TG I'd love to see his hook's before I throw a age out their

Well he is over 2 years for sure - we can all agree on that!

JW

He's old enough to send a load of hevi shot his way.

Awesome pic. I agree hes over 2 yrs old. Id love to see his spurs.

I don't normally shoot my own birds, but I travel to different states to hunt turkey. I guess Grandpa is going to live a long life! haha

Just curious, but how do y'all know it is over 2 years old by that photo?

SJA
A 1 yr old turkey does not have a beard that length at all. The best beard a 1 yr old (aka Jake) may have might be 7 inches. On most Jakes (1yr olds) the beard can be from 1" a little button to 4 inches is what I commonly see at least here in WI.

That beard on the photo is well over 11 inches easy.

he should get a free pass just for making it this long .

JW, I think SJ knows what a jake is. He was asking how do you know the turkey is not a 2 year old. It could be a 2 year old with an unusually long beard. It's probably older, but nobody can be sure unless a good picture of his spurs is taken or someone lays him down.

Oh - I get it now ~ My comment was we cans say he IS at Least a 2 yr old - could be older.

You are correct we need to see the spurs ~ no argument there at all.

JW

I don't know how old he is now but I know he won't get any older if he exsposes himself during the season like he did in that picture.BANG! Smoked Turkey!

You got that right:rock:

Haha!!! Right on!

Kim :)

Yes, over two years. Spurs are the best way to get approx age.

Around here a 1 year old jake will have nubs for spurs and a beard that is less than 5". They usually weigh in the 12-15 pound range. A 2 year old can have up to an 11" beard and the spurs are about an inch long. Those birds usually weigh 18 to 21 pounds. Anything beyond 1" spurs are 3 year old and beyond birds. The beards can be anywhere from 6" to 12" and they weigh well over 20 pounds. Most of the birds I have killed are 2 or 3 year old turkeys. I can't say I have gotten anything older than 3 years old and I have shot several dozen birds. They just don't make it that long around here between the hard winters and hunting/ predator pressure

That gobbler's beard is over 11" long...Probably over a foot...

In my turkey hunting experience of over 40 years and after seeing many gobblers from different states and one Canadian province, I would say that it is HIGHLY LIKELY that that gobbler is 3 years old or older..

Of course, spurs are the best indicator of age...Generally a two year old will have 3/4" to 7/8" spurs...A 3 year old will have 1" to 1 1/8 " spurs.. Anything over 1 1/8" is probably 3 years old or older...

However, most 2 year old gobblers have beards from 8" to 9 3/4 " long... Of hundreds of gobblers I have examined, I never remember seeing a 2 year old bird with a beard much longer than 10".... Without seeing the spurs, I would be willing to bet next week's paycheck that the gobbler in the picture is at least 3 years old..