Calling in a mature gobbler generates excitement that makes spring turkey hunting special. It’s guaranteed to jack up your heartrate and make you come back for more. To participate in this spring tradition, you don’t have to be an expert caller, but you’ll need the right tools and learn how to use them.
Hunters use three basic calls to attract turkeys: yelps, cutts and purrs. Female turkeys, called hens, make all those sounds.
A yelp is a turkey’s way of saying: “I’m over here. Come on over.” You’ll hear many yelp variations, but the basic sound can coax your quarry into range.
A cutt is a loud, short call that expresses excitement. Use it with a series of yelps to fire up a turkey.
Turkeys purr while feeding, which makes this call a great way to coax in stubborn toms. Try scratching leaves while purring to complete the illusion.
You can use several calls to make these sounds. You don’t need to buy every call you find, but you should keep several handy for different situations. The box call, pot (slate) call, and diaphragm call are commercially made and commonly used by turkey hunters.
Watch this video for more on turkey calls and how to use them.
To pick up your own turkey calls, visit an archery shop. You can find one nearby here.
