Thread: Turkey Strut
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Old 04-07-2012, 09:16 AM   #16
MikeF-NH
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I disagree with the comments on the quality of the meat. Wild game is more lean than domestic so this needs to be accounted for when cooking. Low and slow is the way to go and don't over cook. Many people think wild game is full of unclean things compared to farm raised and cook the heck out of it. Stewing makes anything tender but also takes away from it's natural flavor. You can roast a wild turkey and it will be just fine. Breast meat is "white-ish"...not quite as white as farm raised but white meat non-the-less. People that like thigh meat because it's got a richer flavor will like wild turkey.

As to ease of hunting them. It sure seems easy when they are in your backyard (or in my case waiting in my office entrance way) but both places are illegal to hunt them (too close to buildings...probably wouldn't make neighbors happy). Also baiting them (shooting them coming into food you have set out) is not good form and I believe illegal. If you enter their environment (get away from homes), they are surprisingly alert and tuned into their environment with excellent eye sight and instincts (how else could a 20 pound bird survive a winter of hungry coyotes?). I've taken a few but never had an "easy hunt". This year with the early thaw and warm weather, mating activity seems to be kicking in early. Its that mating activity that allows hunters to lure them in with the promise of 'love'. I think that by May (the season), these birds will be growing tired of their natural drives and very hard to hunt.

...and yes they are an amazing come back story. An animal that has adapted well to rural and suburban (even urban) environments. Won't be long now that people begin considering them in the same category as geese as far as nuisance. A few neighborhood car accidents involving them changes perception quickly.
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