A recent video that was apparently posted to Snapchat then circulated around other social media platforms illustrates exactly what a lot of traditional turkey hunters have felt for a long time — reaping or fanning turkeys isn’t fair-chase hunting.
In the video, a hunter crouches behind a reaping decoy while his buddy films from the woodline. A longbeard charges into frame at point-blank range. Before the hunter can shoot, the tom circles the decoy while the hunter stands up in disbelief. For about two seconds the hunter is standing feet away from the tom, which is still fully focused on the decoy. The hunter shoots the tom and then turns to his hunting partner and says, “I was like, ‘what the fuck do we do?’”
There are a bunch of reaping videos similar to this one on social media showing super-close-range kills with toms. But usually when the hunter stands or kneels to shoot, the tom realizes he’s in danger and flees. That doesn’t happen here, and to me, that’s what makes this hunt disturbing compared to the others. If a hunter can stand, unhiding, three feet from his quarry and be totally ignored, it’s pretty futile to argue that the hunt was a fair-chase scenario.
A lot of folks have said for years that a reaping or strutter decoy can trigger an overpowering response in a dominant tom, essentially making it blind to any danger beyond its rival. I will say here that I’ve used a fan on probably a half-dozen turkey hunts over the years and have had success with it. But most of my shots have been at 20 to 40 yards with the tom acting more cautious than reckless. I’ve mostly used a fan when it was the only option for getting within range of a dominant, henned-up field gobbler. Sometimes the tactic has worked for me, sometimes it hasn’t. In recent years, I’ve found myself leaving the fan at home, even when it was the “only option.”
And while watching this video, under the assumption that the bird harvested in it was a truly wild turkey, I find myself siding wholeheartedly with the reaping critics. If a tactic can elicit this kind of response from a game animal making it all but defenseless in a hunting scenario, then in the name of fair-chase hunting we should simply avoid using that tactic.
The video was republished by the Copper Plated Sixes account on Instagram, where it received plenty of criticism.
“Do fans and gobbler decoys work 100 percent of the time? No. Do they offer a previously non-ubiquitous form of harvesting mature birds and are they contributing to increased harvest numbers by hunters who would probably otherwise be unsuccessful? Absolutely.”
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A Season of Reckoning for Our Turkey Hunting Culture
With the long decline of turkey populations and more restrictive turkey hunting seasons around much of the country, there’s been an ongoing discussion about implementing more restrictive turkey hunting regulations, too. I know there’s a contingent of traditional turkey hunters who would flat-out ban turkey reaping, turkey decoys in general, pop-up blinds, and TSS. For these folks the only real kind of turkey hunting is to sit with your back to a tree and to call a tom into close range.
One of the commenters on the Copper Plated Sixes video wrote: “I cried when I killed my first turkey. Took me five years of countless attempts, hundreds of miles driven, and lots of hours of missed sleep. Call me a baby for crying all you want, I do not care. I have so much respect and appreciation for these wild animals. For people to treat [turkey hunting] as a fun game is horrific. I used no decoy, no fan, and I was on public land, yet I found a way to get one in a way that was humane and safe.”
I can relate to turkey hunters who have this perspective. Wild turkeys are a special critter, and they deserve our reverence. I also think that hunters who “do it the right way” on public lands in tough states deserve credit for their skill and dedication.
But it’s also true that sometimes turkeys are just turkeys. I’ve hunted on plenty of farmland in the Upper Midwest where harvesting a turkey just isn’t that big of a deal. After all, there are dozens of them out there in the back field every morning. And if one of those locals saw you crying over a turkey you’d killed, they’d assume you had lost your damn mind.
So I think it’s a bit unrealistic for the turkey hunting purists to expect everyone, especially those who have flocks of turkeys living large on their property, to develop some kind of higher appreciation for them. And if the farmer’s kid wants to go shoot a couple toms out of a pop-up blind, over decoys, well, I think it would be absurd to criticize that in any way.
So how do we come to any sort of agreement over hunting ethics when the bird and the experience mean vastly different things to different people? Let’s start with the easiest solutions first.
So how do we come to any sort of agreement over hunting ethics when the bird and the experience mean vastly different things to different people?
Let’s start with the easiest solutions first. In areas where turkey populations are struggling and hunter harvest is a potential factor, I think it’s wise for state agencies to introduce stricter regulations. I think banning fanning, reaping, and tom/jake decoys on all public lands is a reasonable measure as well. At least five states fully prohibit fanning or reaping, and I think it’s probably a good idea for more states to follow suit. In places where turkey numbers are booming, agencies should allow for more hunting opportunity, and hunters should appreciate the glory days while they have them — but that doesn’t mean throwing aside fair-chase standards.
Realistically, banning reaping isn’t going to solve turkey population troubles. I do think, however, that it would steer the turkey hunting culture toward more restrained, ethical, and fair-chase principles that better match the moment we’re in. It acknowledges that there’s an issue with turkey numbers and that the birds are going to require our help in order to bounce back.
As is the case with any wildlife decline the experts say that habitat conservation and improvement are the real solution. There’s also evidence that targeted predator trapping can help nesting success when done in conjunction with habitat efforts. And for those large-scale habitat improvements, we’re going to need everyone — casual turkey hunters and diehards, young guns and old timers.
Simply criticizing other hunters online isn’t going to do it. So if we’re going to shift our turkey hunting community toward a more restrictive (and ethical) position, we’ll also need to be more positive and solution-oriented.
While this reaping video was disturbing, I was equally unsettled by the negative comments on a recent video posted by The Hunting Public about Mississippi’s turkey stamp program.
Mississippi Turkey Stamp Update
The video simply acknowledged the turkey stamp program and how it was meant to fund turkey habitat in the state. Unfortunately, so many of the commenters criticized the program, saying that it was nothing more than a money grab by the state. This is despite the fact that Mississippi has published details about what the program will do with its funding on public lands:
- Midstory mulching on Black Prairie WMA to enhance wild turkey habitat by opening a timber stand which has become overgrown with undesirable midstory.
- Enhancing wildlife openings and roadsides on Okatibbee WMA to create habitat diversity for wild turkeys by expanding wildlife openings and daylighting roadsides.
- Establishing clover plots on Choctaw, Leaf River, Bienville, Caney Creek, and Tallahala WMAs to enhance turkey brooding areas.
- Understory mulching on Old River WMA to increase turkey habitat by removing undesirable mid-story vegetation.
- Establishing fire lanes and critical infrastructure at Marion County WMA on new property additions.
- Timber stand improvement on Pascagoula and Tuscumbia WMAs to increase nesting habitat for wild turkeys.
- Establishing clover and chufa plots on Chickasawhay WMA to benefit turkey brooding areas and food resources.
- Reestablishing wildlife openings at Canemount WMA to provide valuable diversity for wild turkeys.
Oh, and the stamp only costs $10. If turkey hunters are not willing to fund turkey-hunting habitat through conservation stamps or higher license fees, then we have much larger problems than reaping.
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My final point is that if we’re going to see the wild turkey bounce back, all turkey hunters should be a part of the effort. We should all sacrifice in some way. That could mean stomaching higher license fees, more limited seasons and fewer tags, more restrictive regulations, and more habitat work. So be it. For those of us who love wild turkey, now is the time to prove it.
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