The days are getting warmer and the birds are flying back north in droves. The cardinals flit from tree to tree, and the geese pierce the highest wispy clouds with their signature V’s. Even the ducks have been seen stopping in little ponds to test the open waters for a springtime snack as they return from warmer wanderings nearer the equator. I was fortunate to see a few chasing each other in the holding pond above the old Joel Hill Sawmill, playing in the near 70-degree weather.

Yes, the birds are in motion, much to the dismay of all the folks paying attention to HPAI right now. But that’s a subject for another time. As for me, I have enough to stress about, so why not pick something fun to focus on? 

My answer for that distraction, it turned out, was on the same commute. As I rounded the bend below the sawmill after picking up my boys, I came across a flock of wild turkeys crossing the road. Toms, jakes and hens alike were all grouped up in anticipation of spring, strutting for one another with such attention that I could have bested the boys with nothing more than my hands if needed. 

That being said, I was compelled to double-check how many days lay between me and the start of turkey-hunting season. Sadly, still a month away. But as I continue to see more longbeards dotting the fields around the farm and elsewhere, my appetite has certainly been stoked and my anticipation mounted for April. 

I have all the more reason to hunt this spring, given the large flocks venturing into the barnyard and getting into the silage bags. Do I like seeing turkeys on the farm? Yes. Is it necessarily healthy for the cows and other livestock to eat food that has been traipsed through by wild poultry? No. So in line with my passions and in light of my responsibilities for animal management on the farm, the turkeys need to be hunted. 

Every year we see certain wildlife contributing more than others to the lack of balance in the ecosystem. Last year, the main culprit seemed to be foxes. There were so many that they were coming out with mange in higher numbers. 

Turkeys are natural prey to foxes and coyotes. The fact that there are so many birds this spring means that the predator population is in better control than it has been for the last few years. Balance is a constant game though, and it will vary for every valley and mountain. While we may be seeing fewer coyotes and foxes and more turkeys, two ridgelines over might see the opposite depending on local hunting, roadkill and other factors, such as food supply and how harsh the winter was for all these animals. 

To that point, we are seeing a higher concentration of raptors around our farm than elsewhere. This is due to things like the farm compost pile, the presence of abundant small game throughout the fields and additional small game in our domestic supply on the farm. It’s all part of the balance. 

Happily wandering below the circles of vultures and eagles, though, are the fat and fanned turkeys I’ve become so fixated on. Perhaps they like to commune with their skybound kin around the compost pile, or perhaps it’s just a quiet part of the farm for all the wild critters to frequent. In any case, the lot of them make their travels with some regularity over the back hill, like a royal procession in black, trimmed in rural bronze and brown. 

The way out here we look forward to turkey season as the last hurrah of each overall hunting year. It’s the final season of the collective fall/spring license period. In terms of a calendar year, it kicks off the year as the first of all the rest, quickly followed by fishing seasons throughout the summer before all the major fall seasons. For my father and me, it’s an athletic hunt, filled with miles of hiking, tactical patience and artful calling. There are many factors that bring beauty to turkey hunting, but the first is always the beauty of the birds themselves.