I noticed something last fall while bow hunting that I've never noticed before, and I don't know what the answer is. A couple of time last fall while bowhunting 100 yards away from some friends, we had a huge flock of turkeys work past us. Some of these birds were gobbling, but despite only being 100 yards away, my friends couldn't hear the gobbling, and likewise, when they worked past my friends gobbling, I couldn't hear them. Now, this occured on several occassions, and without leaves on the trees, and with little to no wind. I know in the spring I can hear a bird gobbling for 3 to 4 times that distance, but just couldn't hear them in the fall. What is the reason for this? Does it have anything to do with the orange/yellow spongy stuff in the gobblers chest in the spring? Are gobblers more vocal all year long than we give them credit for simply because we can't hear them from as great a distance? Could the lack of gobbling in late spring simply be that they don't gobble as loud late in the season??

Thanks!

Slice

I don't know anything about the seasonal qualities of their gobbles, but I've killed a couple birds (easterns) that seemed to have very quiet gobbles. I've wondered how common this is...

Hal

That is odd. I've been on stand in archery season and heard them as well... booming out just like spring. Maybe that particular group had cought a cold? Or maybe they were stealth gobbling... yeah, that's it. They knew you were there, somewhere in their neighborhood and were trying to be sneaky. LOL. No really though... that is strange.

haven't had that problem in south al.they'll shake the ground

I have noticed that many subordinate toms will gobble quiter than the boss. This is because they have been whipped and don't want another beating. Hens yelp at different volumes, and gobblers sound off at different ones as well. Other reasons for the gobbler being quiter can be terrain or just which way the gobbler is facing. If they were walking towards your friends and away from you...the gobble would be louder to them and vise versa. I am no biologist but this is my opinion. I just don't think a gobbler has no control of his voice so to speak...he gobbles as loud or as soft as he wants.