While the winter of 2021 hasn’t been that bad — so far — we still have a few weeks to add to our snow totals but long-range forecasts seem to be leading toward proving the woodchuck wrong.

Either way, the first part of March always brings out the spring turkey hunters. Each year I receive email and messages from folks either beginning their journey as a spring turkey hunter or folkwho seem to just want to talk turkey.

The language of the wild turkey is one that has been studied for centuries — more than any other wild critters that walks the planet. Folks have been looking for the next vocalization that will make that longbeard come running to our ambush.

Hate to disappoint you all, but there isn’t just one call or thing that makes a mature longbeard gobble. It is a series of events, many of which we have no control over, and some of which we can control.

My first turkey hunt was with a good friend who was an avid turkey hunter, which was close to 40 years ago. That’s right, I’ve been chasing these pee-brain feather thunder chickens for almost four decades. It’s hard to believe that I am still learning something new just about every time I put on the camo and strike a call.

The hunt took place on a private piece of ground in Chautauqua County. Who would know the fire that would light inside of me would continue until today? The first morning, that first gobbler that sounded off on roost and the sight of a longbeard working his way toward us is something that I remember like it was yesterday.

For an old man that can’t remember birthdays, to remember that day with such clarity is a miracle. Some would say it’s the same as not being able to hear the voice of a female calling to me in another room, but still being able to pick up a gobbler sounding off several hundred yards away. I’m sure there is a scientific reason for this “selective” loss, but I prefer to think that I can remember and hear things that are important, at least to me.

The book that is still being written started on the spring morning. How good a wild turkey can hear, the importance of camo and, unless hunters sit still, you will not get to shoot a wild turkey. Also, I began to understand why turkey hunters hold their hunting ground close to their vest.

Many things about turkey hunting have changed since that morning many years ago, but the one thing that hasn’t, the sound of a mature bird sounding off at first light. Every spring, turkey hunters have one thing in common — we love the sound of the gobble.

Oftentimes, as I sit in the spring woods and listen to the world around me coming alive, I think about strange things. One thing that has crossed my mind and I have tried to figure out is why some turkeys gobble and other times they don’t, and why on certain mornings a gobbler will sound off and the next morning nothing is talking.

If you have done your homework and know that longbeards are in your hunting area, there are tracks, sights and droppings. And the morning before you heard birds talking at first light, but the very next morning you hear nothing. Why is this?

Over the years I have talked and have interviewed hundreds of turkey hunters. Always included in the conversations is the question of turkey gobbling. Why on some days do they talk and other days they just have lockjaw. Is it the weather, hunter pressure, barometric pressure, predator pressure or just their mood?

Through the years I have begun to piece together the beginning of an idea as to answering the questions about gobbling. Through years of first-hand experiences and picking the brains of those more knowledgeable than I, here are some insights that I have gained that may help you all this spring.

To start, the higher number of turkeys, particularly 2-year-olds, have the higher gobble count throughout the season. Two years later, when there are a large number of brood sightings, gobbling activity is high. More jakes translates to more gobbling the following season.

Overall turkey numbers, however, don’t seem to play a role in day-to-day gobbling activities. Even when populations are high, the birds simply don’t gobble much on certain days.

Gobbling activity was highest when winds are slight (direction doesn’t seem to matter) from 0 to 8 mph is the best. Activity tapered when winds begin to pick up and once the wind is 15 mph plus you can’t hear a gobbler sound off because they don’t gobble.

Wind direction did not factor into gobbling activity and neither did relative humidity. The average daily temperature plays a role in gobbling activity, as birds sounded off the most when the average daily temp is around 60 degrees. As the temperature increased much above the 70s, gobbling decreased.

The average barometric pressure affected gobbling activity, as well. It’s common knowledge that lower pressure, often associated with rain, meant less gobbling.

I have been keeping a daily log or BP for more than years and have found that birds were most active at 29.9 to 30.2 inches, and when the pressure fell below 29.7 inches, gobbling activity decreased dramatically.

Many people assume hunting pressure negatively impacts gobblers, but research and first-hand observations do not find a link between gobbling activity and hunting pressure. Heck, how many times have you shot a longbeard and, as soon as you shoot, you hear gobbling. Gobbling activity varies widely during a season, but hunted birds are still vocal.

Biologists have long assumed there were two peak gobbling periods, one during flock break-up and a second during the start of nesting. Several studies indicate just one peak, and it doesn’t always coincide with the peak of nest initiation, nor was it readily identifiable. Population dynamics and weather patterns can shift the peak gobbling activity by a week or more.

Habitat also caused variations in gobbling activity. Some will say that a considerably large percentage of gobbles near water compared to other areas, but that doesn’t mean toms near water gobble more. More likely, it means gobblers prefer to roost near water.

To sum all this up, there are no hard-and-fast rules in spring turkey hunting, but above are a few things to consider when heading to the field this spring. It’s hard to forecast when a turkey is going to gobble and when it’s not. There are things that help turkeys gobble, including barometric pressure, age class of males in a given flock and time of year. While for many of us this isn’t major news, these ideas have helped you understand why birds are talking and why they aren’t talking.

This reminds me of what Grandpa Robbins always said when it comes to hunting and fishing: “If you’re not in it, you’re not going to skin it, so get off your butt and get into the woods.”