|
SPORTSMEN'S INFORMATION NETWORK |
By: Allen "horntagger Morris
When the 3 ½" Chambers came out the shotgun industry was making a new path for us turkey hunters. The wild turkey never new what hit him when these guns could bring down a turkey at 40 yards plus with no trouble what so ever. Even though I believe most turkey hunters want that close encounter, some are still taking that long shot. Well let’s put the HEVI SHOT into the mix. It had limited availability in 2000, but now Remington Arms Company, Inc., has partnered with ENVIRONMetal, Inc. to produce Premier HEVI SHOT Magnum turkey Loads and Premier High Velocity HEVI SHOT Magnum Turkey Loads. With setting a New World record by placing 42 pellets inside a three-inch circle at 40 yards at the NWTF competition in 2001. It will be on every shelf of every sporting good store in the country. That is a good thing for use turkey hunters. It should make hunters shots more reliable, and that is what every good hunter wants, one shot - one kill. While you set up your gun to shoot these great new shells, and take some need target practice to pattern your gun. Be sure and check the killing range also for safety reasons. We don’t want to miss and have the shot travel farther than you think it would. SHOULD YOU DO THIS? That is the question, I would like every turkey hunter to ask yourself while hunting. I will be one of the first ones to buy a box of HEVI SHOT this year to try out. But, as a turkey hunter I love using my calls and getting that wild
turkey close enough to see the pinfeathers on his head. To me that is nothing
but a adrenaline rush to have a wild turkey that close and come out on
top as the true predator.
I hope for your safety and mine the answer will me NO. Remember just because you can do something doesn’t always mean that you should. Be sure and check this new product line, out before turkey season get here. www.remington.com Hope to see you in the woods this spring. Horntagger.
|
| FROM MESSAGE BOARDS ACROSS THE COUNTY.
(Question asked to the members from "horntagger",; a.k.a.. Allen Morris) (Deciding Order by "horntagger") |
|
1. SAFETY
; Always be sure of your target and what is beyond it.
2. HAVE FUN ;Don't
take it getting or losing a bird to serious, Remember this is recreation
not a job, never stop learning.
3. TAKE A KID HUNTING
; If your safe, having fun then you can share it with a very special
person a kid. They are the future
4. RESPECT THE ANIMAL AND
THE OUTDOORS ; Remember this is a living thing that
was smarter than you and the only one of its kind. You just got lucky.
Respect the outdoors it's the only one we have.
5. RESPECT YOU LANDOWNER
; Remember it's his land not yours. How would you feel if he walked into
your house without asking.
6. RESPECT THE OTHER HUNTERS
; If someone else is there already go somewhere else. Plenty of Birds.
7. DON'T MOVE BE PATIENCE
; He just out of sight, he knows what your thinking. Patience is
a virtue.
8. SCOUTING ;Know
the area you are hunting. Makes it safer, and establishes the first part
of luck. Being prepared.
9. PRACTICE ;If
it's the calls or shooting always practice. Never know you may have to
switch hands.
10. NO SET RULES ;Remember
the turkey makes all the rules. Your just in the game.
Contributors ; horntagger, Micah35, bigmeat, DIAMOND-K-OUTFITTERS, Richard Lyle, RL, TURKMASTER148, Gobblin Fool, Eight-Hooter, too many calls, hoosier, PA Longbeard, Turkey sniper, 007, McCloud, GobbleStpr, Frank,DGizzmo, WidowMaker, Gray Beard, Greenbriar, mossy_oak_boy, Tuff Luck Hunter,Ga.Boy, swamper, DUCKBOY, Wally Dog.;
NWTF Emphasizes
Safety in the Woods
By Jonathan Harling and James Powell
| Hunting the wild turkey is one of the safest
sports there is—much safer than riding your bike to the corner store or
playing a few sets of tennis. In fact, turkey hunting is four times safer
than playing Ping-Pong, and you are 50 times more likely to take a trip
to the emergency room if you play golf.
Why is turkey hunting so safe? One of the reasons is the National Wild Turkey Federation’s commitment to making hunter safety a top priority. In 1991, the NWTF initiated the National Turkey Hunting Safety Task Force to complement the hunter safety efforts of state agencies, the International Hunters Education Association, the National Rifle Association and the National Shooting Sports Foundation. The task force—composed of hunting and shooting safety experts from around the country—met in 1992 to develop a comprehensive hunter safety program, and has since produced and distributed over one million pieces of hunting safety information. The result? The number of turkey hunting accidents continues to decrease even as turkey hunters flock to the woods in increasing numbers. Spring turkey hunting accidents have decreased from a high of 8.1 per 100,000 in 1991 to a low of 2.95 per 100,000 last spring. The number of reported turkey hunting injuries has fallen by an impressive 50 percent since 1992. |
 |
· For every 100,000 people who played
basketball, 880 were seriously injured.
· 860 soccer players out of 100,000
left the field limping or worse.
· 800 out of 100,000 people were wounded
on the softball field.
· 410 bike riders out of 100,000 got
hurt.
· And for every 100,000 who played
tennis, 260 were treated for torn ligaments, damaged cartilage and more.
Even swimming—one of the safest sports to participate in—resulted in 70 injuries per 100,000 participants, making it significantly more dangerous than turkey hunting.
Fall Turkey Hunting Safety Tips—
Before the hunt
· Check with your doctor if you have
any medical concerns.
· Hunt within your physical limitations.
· Let your hunting partners know if
you have physical limitations.
· Let someone know where you are hunting
and when you expect to return.
· Work to have a basic understanding
of first aid.
During the hunt
· Set up against a tree that is greater
in diameter than the width of your shoulders and taller than your head
for maximum safety.
· Positively identify your target as
a legal bird and insist on a good shot. Hens and gobblers are legal game
in most states that have fall hunting seasons. Do not let the fact that
you don't have to differentiate between a hen and a gobbler interfere with
your responsibility to differentiate a wild turkey from a fellow hunter.
· Scattering a flock by running toward
the birds and yelling is a common fall tactic, but do not run with a loaded
gun. If you want to bust a flock by firing your gun, sneak as close as
you can to the birds and shoot into the air.
· From a seated position, identify
the clearest line of vision to your front. Establish a sight line that
allows you 100 yards of visibility.
· Use camoflauge properly—cover face
and hands, with no red, white or blue showing.
· Should you see other hunters (especially
close to your line of sight) call out to them in a loud, clear voice. Their
presence has already compromised your location, and a soft call may only
confuse them instead of alerting them to your presence.
· Never let peer pressure or the excitement
of the hunt cloud your judgement.
· Know the capabilities and limitations
of your gun or bow and use it safely.
· Obey and support all wildlife laws
and report all violations.
· Respect the land and the landowner
and always obtain permission before hunting.
· Value the hunting experience and
appreciate the beauty of the wild turkey.
· Share responsible turkey hunting
with others and work for wild turkey conservation.
Good work by hunter education volunteers, state and provincial agencies and the NWTF can make turkey hunting safer than ever.
For more information on turkey hunting safety, contact the NWTF at 1-800-THE-NWTF or check out their website for more wild turkey and turkey hunting information at www.nwtf.org.
Poachers shell out hefty fines
for turkey violations
A grant from the National Wild Turkey Federation helped conservation
agents catch game thieves in the
act.
JEFFERSON CITY -- Citizen involvement was the secret weapon that enabled
conservation agents to
catch dozens of poachers violating turkey hunting regulations before
and during this year's spring turkey
season. The net result was more than $16,000 in fines.
Hunters who were tired of having poachers steal wild turkeys by illegal
and unsporting means planted
the seed for the operation. Their complaints about rampant poaching
in a few Ozark counties
galvanized local conservation agents to take action. Then a second
group of citizens, the Missouri
Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF), stepped in to
turn that outrage into action.
With a $14,000 grant from the NWTF, the Missouri Department of Conservation
organized an operation
to educate ethical hunters about hunting regulations and to catch poachers
on public and private land.
The NWTF grant paid for specialized equipment and helped pay the costs
of hundreds of hours of
overtime spent catching poachers before turkey season opened and during
the three-week season.
The Conservation Department put poachers on notice in February with
news releases touting the
operation and even announcing that the effort would focus primarily
on the area south of the Missouri
River. Meanwhile, agents were laying the groundwork for an intensive
enforcement effort, gathering
intelligence through undercover operatives. As the season approached,
agents took to the air in
helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. They focused night-vision goggles
and infrared sensors on potential
trouble spots. They put out turkey decoys and staked out sites where
they knew poachers had put out
grain and other bait to attract turkeys. By the time spring turkey
season opened, they already had made
26 arrests.
When the season opened, agents again made their intent clear with high-profile
saturation patrols by
uniformed agents. On the second day of the season, they conducted road
checks to catch poachers
who hunted without permits or killed more than their limit of turkeys.
Arrests during the season totaled
58.
A few of the cases remain to be settled in court, but most have been
completed with fines and other
penalties. Fines and court costs ordered to date exceed $16,400. That's
not the end of the bad news for
poachers, however. In Howell County, Associate Circuit Court Judge
David Evans sentenced two men
each to 20 hours of community service and a year of supervised probation.
A Wright County man was caught killing a turkey on opening day of the
spring turkey season while his
hunting privileges were revoked. Wright County Prosecuting Attorney
Larry Tyrell sought stiff penalties in
the case, and Associate Circuit Court Judge Noble Leighton sentenced
the man to 48 hours in jail and
a $250 fine. Conservation Commission policy dictates that his hunting
privileges automatically will be
revoked for an extra year. That really hurts, because Missouri belongs
to the Interstate Wildlife Violator's
Compact. Under that agreement, hunters whose privileges are suspended
here can't buy a permit in
any of the other 16 member states.
The final day of the Spring 2002 turkey season signaled the end of a
highly effective education and
resource law enforcement effort in the Ozarks. The idea for the comprehensive
and innovative strategy
came when Ozark residents complained of violations on public and private
land during the spring
season and poaching outside the hunting season.
Conservation agents in the Ozark Protection Region brought these concerns
to a strategy session and
developed a plan to use all the resources at their disposal to achieve
two goals. One was encouraging
hunters to comply with regulations. The other was educating the public
about turkey hunting violations.
embers of the Missouri Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation
(NWTF) and the NWTF Regional
Supervisor Dave Murphy met with Protection personnel and pledged $14,000
for the effort.
Conservation Department Ozark Unit Protection Field Chief Terry Roberson
said the operation should
send a message to poachers and to law-abiding hunters.
"To those 99 percent of hunters who obey the law, we're saying that
we appreciate their support in
protecting this precious resource," said Roberson. "We know they are
doing it right, and we thank them
for supporting this special operation. To those who don't obey the
law, we're saying that their behavior
isn't acceptable. We don't accept it, and neither do ethical hunters.
And between the real hunters and
the Conservation Department, we're going to make it darned hard to
steal game and get away with it."
|
|
