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Where to Shoot a Turkey? Shoot With a Bow or Rifle?

You would certainly think that hunting a turkey is a walk in the park considering the fact that turkey seems to be a better target than big game, such as bear, elk, or even a bison.

You may have underestimated the prowess of turkey, for despite the fact that the turkey may have a pea-sized head, it may be quite difficult to hunt it, especially if you are just tyro in the art of hunting. It will be easy if you are hunting a domesticated turkey; however, it will definitely be preposterous to hunt a domesticated turkey.

On the other hand, it will surely be a rough adventure if you are going to hunt wild turkeys. Wild male turkeys usually weigh around 6 to 11 kg, and is barely 125 cm in length. The female turkeys however are a bit smaller than the male with a weight that ranges from 2 to 5.4 kg. The habitats of wild turkeys include the hardwood and conifer forests, although sometimes, they inhabit the fields, orchards, marshes, and even the pastures.

The behavior of turkeys are quite predictable. Despite their heavy weight as compared to other birds, they are capable and agile fliers. They can even fly and perch at the canopy top, although they usually prefer to fly very near the ground, and they can fly for almost half a mile.

You will definitely sense the presence of wild turkeys by the different sounds they make. They usually produce many types of sounds, and there are several terms associated with turkey sounds such as those of clucks, gobbles, putts, yelps, cuts, cackles, kee-kees, and purrs. If you want to be a great hunter of turkey, you should be cognizant of these different sounds created by turkeys and of the usual behavior of turkeys.

Turkeys are usually foraging anywhere they would find food. They can climb small trees, and they eat various types of food such as nuts and acorns. Hence, you will surely encounter one or two of them in the wild. It is however good to know the different tips on how to hunt a turkey for you to be successful in your hunting spree.

These tips include the best season to hunt turkeys. Likewise, as a hunter, you should know the behavior of your target game, and should also be knowledgeable of the best tools and weapons you should use to hit your target. In the case of hunting turkey, you got to carry with you your best weapons and know your range of efficiency in hitting a turkey.

How to Attract your Turkey?

Plant food Plot

Just like in any hunting game, you need to draw out your target to a specific location where in you can have a good shot at it. To draw out turkeys, you need to plant lush http://wildlifeseeds.com/foodplots/turkey/“>food plot for the unsuspecting turkeys, for surely, turkeys want abundant forage.

Learn the Turkey Calling Sounds

Turkeys, as mentioned earlier, create different types of vocalizations. They usually use these vocalizations for different reasons such as attracting or calling their mates or simply informing their mates about their locations. Two of the most popular turkey vocalizations that you can make use of is the hen yelp and the simple cluck. If you master these two calling sounds, you may end up with a lot of killed turkeys when you go back home. You can also learn the turkeys’ slate call and the locator calls.

Wear the Best Camouflage while hunting

If you really want to be almost invisible to the gobbler’s eyes, it is imperative that you wear a total camouflage. Your camouflage should be appropriate to the specific season for hunting, and your camouflage should match the color of the place.

Your Best Weapon in Hunting Turkey

Where to Shoot a Turkey with a bow

It is of course quite difficult to hunt a turkey with a bow, for turkeys become easily aware of any imminent or actual danger. They immediately take flight at the first sense of danger. For this reason, it is very difficult to use a bow or even to take aim at the turkey using a bow. In fact, at the sight of a turkey, it would really be quite difficult for you to even come to a full draw without the turkey immediately sensing you. However, if you have properly set up your decoys, you can have enough time to take a good aim at the turkey. The best distance to hit a turkey is around 15 yards away, although you can still hit it from around 20 yards. You should also find the different of single https://www.dailyshooting.com/single–cam–vs–dual–cam–bows/“>cam vs dual cam bow, learn about advantage and disadvantage of them!

The bow that you should use for turkeys should have lighter drawing weight with a higher let off. The reason for this is that you need higher accuracy with turkey because you got a smaller target space with a turkey. You should also use highly specialized broadheads for turkey, because you want to immediately impart a fatal wound on a turkey target.

Aim for the head, neck, heart, and spine, and liver

If you aim for the head or neck, you may fatally wound the turkey; however, hitting these areas is quite challenging and there is a strong likelihood that you would miss on these targets. Hence, it is also good to aim for the midrib; and obviously, with the midrib as your target, you may also hit the heart, lungs, spines, and even liver. It is definitely not good to aim for the legs for that is tantamount to driving the bird to become airborne.

Where to Shoot a Turkey with a shotgun

One of the best weapons to hunt turkey is with the use of a shotgun. A https://www.quora.com/What–are–the–pros–and–cons–of–a–semi–automatic–shotgun–vs–pump–action“>single-shot shotgun may be your best option because it is the less expensive among shotguns. You can use a single pellet that can readily hit the head and deliver a deadly blow. Likewise, you can also opt for the popular Mossber 835 or Remington 870. Moreover, you can also use semi-automatic shotguns if you want a follow-up shot with minimal recoil.

When using a shotgun, it is good to aim for the neck with a single pellet shot. However, if you want a more decisive hit, you can swarm your target for a more efficient hit.

Where to Shoot a Turkey with a Rifle

https://www.dailyshooting.com/unlimited–guide–rifle–scope–need–know/“>Choosing a rifle is somewhat a personal choice, as long as you are comfortable with your rifle. There are plenty of turkey rifles to choose from depending on the budget that you have. The .22 Hornet, for example, is a good rifle for beginners.

Just like when using bows and single-shot shotguns, you should also aim at the neck or the head of the turkey to deliver a fatal shot on it when using a rifle. However, the head and neck is quite difficult targets to hit using a rifle. Hence, you can also opt to hit the turkey on its spine and heart; but surely you wouldn’t want to leave a gaping wound on the chest of the bird.

Conclusion:

Hunting turkey is one of the most exhilarating and exciting hunting games you can engage in in the wild. As long as you have the right weapon and know the habitat of wild turkeys, you will always be amply rewarded with many hits in the end.

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Lastly, as long as you are cognizant of the usual behavior of turkey, you can always draw out the turkey to your target location and effectively and efficiently take an aim at it. Hope you find the best place to shoot a turkey.

The Best Ways to Hunt and How to Kill a Bear

The more elusive and ferocious the big game is, the more exciting and invigorating the hunting process will be. This is definitely true for those who are engaged in big game hunting, especially, those who hunt bears whether these bears be Grizzly or brown bears. Bear hunting has already been one of the favorite sports of hunters since time immemorial.

In modern times, however, bears have been one of the favorite big games by hunters because of their ferocity and size. Game hunters, for example, experience more excitement in hunting black bears than the common white-tailed buck for the following reasons:

First, it is heftier and bigger than the white-tailed buck.
Second, it is heavily boned, and therefore, it is more difficult to hit the internal organs of bears than those of other big games.
Third, it is ferocious and huge, and can kill you easily if you don’t hit it fatally.
Moreover, bears have smaller heads, and it would be quite difficult to hit their heads than other big games.
Furthermore, bears are covered with thick and long hair, and hence it is quite difficult to specifically target a particular part of the bears’ body.

Best Weapons to Hunt Bears

There are many weapons that you can use to hunt bears, and of course, the best weapons would be those of bows and rifles. Both these weapons can inflict a fatal wound on bears as long as you know exactly where to fatally hit the bears. If you are going to use a bow, the ideal shot that you should use would be an arrow that can readily pierce through the lungs of the bear. It is likewise advisable to hit both lungs because bears can definitely run a distance even with only one lung functioning. A precise shot at the lungs of the bear with an arrow can surely drop dead a fierce bear. Furthermore, you can use any type of bow that can pierce through the lungs of the bear, whether the bow be single cam or dual cam.

Similarly, if you are using a rifle, the best shot would be through its lungs. It is critical that you are cognizant of the anatomy of the bear so that you can rightly aim at the parts of the bear that are vulnerable enough to cause it a sudden and abrupt death. The lungs of bears are located slightly farther back while their shoulders are a bit angled forward. Always remember that any hunter should aim at the quickest death of his or her prey as a general ethos of hunters. If you are using a rifle, you should carefully choose the right rifle for bear hunting. Your choice should depend on your ways of hunting, maneuverability and accuracy, versatile optics, and iron sights.

The Best Body Parts to Hit in order to instantly Kill a Bear

If you are engaged in bear hunting, you need to know where to hit the bear to instantly kill it. Moreover, it is also crucial that you get some of the helpful tips on how to fatally hit your prey.

1. Arrow or Bullet placement

Whether you are using an arrow or a rifle, it is important to know where you want to lodge the arrow or bullet on the body of the bear. Given the fact that you already got the best bow and arrow and rifle at hand, you still need to know where to aim the arrow or bullet on your target. This process is called bullet or arrow placement, and if you are seasoned hunter, you definitely know what part of the anatomy of the bear is the most vulnerable and can inflict immediate death when hit by an arrow or bullet. Hitting the bear in the heart or lungs can surely bring immediate death to the bear. Canadian bear hunters, for example, suggest that you should aim at the “middle of the middle” or at a point where front and hind legs intersect with back and the belly of the bear.

2. Develop marksmanship

Bears are ferocious animals, especially if it is enraged. For this reason, if you hit it, you should hit it fatally, otherwise, it will get back at you with more ferocity. Hence, you should know your most comfortable distance in hitting a bear. You should likewise know at what distance you are capable of hitting the specific area where you want to hit your target. In the case of bear hunting, you should know at what distance you can hit the lungs or heart of the bear efficiently and effectively. It is not a matter of knowing what furthest distance you can hit a target efficiently, but it is a matter of knowing at what distance you are most effective in hitting your bear

Using best shooting sicks to focus on your target is the best idea.

3. Fatal Lung shots

The most appropriate shot that you can engage in is the lung shots. If you hit a bear on its lungs, it is almost certain that the bear will drop dead, especially if you hit both lungs of the bear. It will seldom move or travel beyond 100 yards when you hit it on its lungs. Moreover, the lungs are bigger targets aside from being a deadly zone to hit. You also have very little margin of error when you aim for the lungs. On the one hand, if you shoot a bit low, you may hit the heart, and if you shoot a bit high, you will surely hit the shoulder which will also be quite debilitating to the bear. Likewise, if you miss the lungs by an inch, you will surely hit one of the vital organs of the bear such as the liver or any internal organ.

4. The Heart shots

Some hunters may deliberately aim for the heart of the bear, but it is too obvious that the heart is a more difficult target than the lungs. Likewise, the heart can be covered or hidden from sight by the upper legs of the bear. However, if you aim for heart, you definitely would hit one of the vital organs of the bear if you miss the heart by an inch. Hence, it is also a good target to aim at. You should bear in mind, however, that a bear shot in the heart usually travels farther than that of a bear shot in the lungs.

Other shots like neck and head shots and shoulder shots can also inflict major wounds on the bear. Moreover, these shots can also be fatal to the bear. However, in many instances, these shots do not bring immediate death to the bear, and for these reasons, bear hunters prefer to take aim at the lungs and the heart instead of aiming for the head, shoulders, and neck shots.

10 Things You Need to Know When Hunting with a Bow

Basing on experience, it is easy to say that bow hunting is more exciting than rifle hunting. Hence, if you have recently decided to give up on rifle hunting and give bow hunting a try, you definitely made a good decision. Bow hunting is exciting and would surely give you a novel experience. Despite the fact that there is a great discrepancy in the range of effectiveness between the rifle and the bow—the rifle hunter’s range of effectiveness being 200 yards or more, while the bow’s range of effectiveness is restricted to 2.3 yards to 42 yards—yet the experience of pulling off a great hit using a bow is far more rewarding than that of hitting your prey using a rifle.

10 Things You Need to Know When Hunting with Bow

Bow hunting is not an easy hobby, for there are definitely certain things that you should learn if you want to engage in it. Moreover, you should be cognizant of certain tips that may help you increase your effectiveness as a bow hunter, and here are ten valuable tips that you can learn by heart to ensure that you will be an effective and efficient bow hunter.

Practice makes perfect:

You should practice your craft all summer so that when the hunting season comes in, you are well-prepared for hunting. Great hunters are not created instantaneously, and just like what the old adage would usually remind you that practice makes perfect, you should also hone your bow hunting skills even before you face the real hunting process. Remember that nothing is achieved without sacrifice. Hence, you should sacrifice some of your time and effort beforehand, perfecting the use of bow and arrow to ensure that you will never come out empty-handed during the hunting season. Practices will definitely allow you to figure out your weak points in your bow hunting skill. Hence, prior practices will allow you to correct whatever is erroneous and defective in your hunting style.

Get the Best Hunting Tools and Accessories:

You should likewise ensure that you got the best hunting tools and accessories. If you want to feel good about your new outdoor hobby, you got to buy one of the best hunting bows at hand. However, whatever bow you choose, you should ensure that it is reliable and can be adjusted to fit your specific shooting needs. Moreover, aside from the right bow, you should also have the needed accessories for bow hunting. You may be needing tools such as knife and other tools that may be useful during your bow-hunting spree. You may also need a bow stand or a ladder if you are hunting on areas where there are many pine trees. Shooting sticks is the best hunting tool for hold a bow.

Know the Place where you are going to hunt:

It is imperative that you scout the place where you are going to hunt prior to your hunting. Just like what every good hunter does, you need to know the terrain and the movement of your potential targets. This means that you should spend much time in the open field to familiarize yourself with the outside conditions. The more you engage in scouting, the more you become a better bow hunter. You need to know top best place for deer hunting if you wanna hunt a deer with bow

Know your Effective Range:

You should also understand and know your effective kill range or EKR. This range is definitely the range wherein you can effectively hit your target. It is also the range where you can aim at your 9-inch circle. Many bow hunters place their EKR at around 40 yards. At this range, they are very effective in hitting their target. Others however place their EKR lower than that. EKR is definitely relative to your ability, and it depends on you to discover your effective kill range. Now once you have figured out your EKR, it behooves you to limit yourself within that range to ensure that you are within your effective range. However, if you want to increase your EKR, you can surely work on it by honing your skills further.

Wind and Temperature: Hone Your Senses

The wind plays a big factor in your hit and miss. If you are quick to figure out the movement of the wind, you can definitely improve on your targeting skills. The wind readily shifts from one direction to another; hence, you should make the wind work in your favor, otherwise, you would be prone to missing your target.

Be diligent in hunting:

Hence, you should condition your senses and body for the hunting process. Bow hunting is not for the weak of body and stamina. Hence, you should work out your body to improve your stamina and strength. Great hunters are patient. They sometimes sit and wait in one corner, waiting for their prey. For this reason, if you want to be successful in hunting, you need to be up to the rigor and challenge of bow hunting.

Attract your target:

Deer are often attracted to scents, and if you know how to play with scents, you can easily draw your target closer to you. Scent control is necessary if you want to get closer to your target. Moreover, you can immediately drive away your target if your target smells your scent. You should therefor use scentless soap when showering before going for a hunt.

Ask the Expert:

When you are not sure about what you are doing, you should ask someone who is more knowledgeable and more experienced in the field of bow hunting.

Moreover, you should also do your research on bow hunting to ensure that you are well-equipped good ideas on how to effectively hunt.

The Value of Good Vantage Point:

Always bear in mind that your success as a bow hunter is determined more often by your correct stand or position. For this reason, you should set yourself in strategic position that allows you to get a closer look at your target.

Know the behavior of your target:

Make sure that you read more about your target preys and learn their daily habits and behavior. With this knowledge at hand, you can definitely predict their behavior, and you will get good hits along the way.

The Best Place to Shoot a Deer

When hunting deer, responsible hunters will put in the time and effort necessary to learn how to ‘drop it where it stands.’ Opinions vary on where to shoot in order to make this happen.

Here, we will look at different options for a one shot kill and analyze why they are effective and what the problems may be. A big factor is how far away the shooter is. The last thing any hunter wants is a wounded deer causing a ruckus and scaring other deer, preventing the chance of additional targets and potentially ruining the chance to bag your hit.

For different circumstances, there are varying best places to shoot a deer.

It is important to practice shooting in the offseason and know where your target shot is going to take place depending on where you post yourself up. Ideally, your deer will be calm and still when you take your shot, but this does not always happen. Knowing how to aim in different circumstances will increase your odds of bagging a deer no matter the distance.

Best place to shoot a deer from short range (50-60 yards)

Brain: By shooting the deer in the brain, the animal will become incapacitated and die almost instantly. When calm, this is the best place to shoot a deer. Aim just above the eyes, by drawing a line from tear duct to tear duct and rising up about 2.5 inches, centered. If shooting from the side, aim for the same point on the head and shoot the brain. The result will be the same. If shooting from behind, hunters will want to aim for the back of the skull. Shooting from short range like this is the easiest way to knock a deer out with one bullet and minimal impact on the animal or its meat. This is best place to shoot a deer in 50-60 yards

The downside of this tactic is that the likelihood of missing the deer entirely is high. The brain is a small target. The hunter may also hit the animal in the nose or jaw, which will likely not kill it instantly and will cause the deer to run off. A blood trail in this circumstance can be harder to follow than that of a misplaced ‘boiler room shot.’ Also, the head is the most active part of a deer’s body, meaning that it is the most likely to make a sudden turn or adjustment just as you take your shot. Aiming for the head often is not a good idea if the deer is not calm and still.

Best place to shoot a deer from mid-range (up to 500 yards) and longer ranges (500+ yards)

best place to kill a deer from mid-range

The ‘boiler room shot’: The ‘boiler room shot’ is commonly referred to as the best place to shoot a deer, period.

This means shooting the deer in the area surrounding the heart and lungs. This can be done by aiming directly above and just back from the front legs when shooting from the side. If shooting from the front of the deer, this shot will not be nearly as effective. But when using this technique, even being an inch or two off will still hit vital organs and potentially kill the animal instantly.

The bullet may bounce off a rib or bone and not kill. If the animal doesn’t go down, the hunter should follow the blood trail and will likely have to shoot again.

If possible, go for the brain shot listed above when shooting from the front, if you are a master marksman or have scopes that can make this possible. Also, shooting the deer just below the ear can be a very effective shot.

If you are unsure of your ability to make a one-shot-kill take happen when in front of the deer, aim for just above the heart. Even if the shot does not drop the deer, it will ensure a short chase and your eventual bagging of the animal.

Double shoulder shot: An effective technique for shots in the 200-500 yard range is the double shoulder shot. This can often be the best place to shoot a deer. Use a .308 round and shoot through one shoulder from the side, causing the bullet to rocket through the body and into the opposite shoulder blade. When done correctly, this will cause the deer’s body to tense up and will snap the spine, incapacitating the deer

Neck: A well-placed neck shot will cause immediate spinal damage and incapacitate the animal. For situations where the neck is straight and in plain view, this is the best place to shoot a deer. There is also little risk of damaging desirable meat with a neck shot, making it an attractive approach for situations where the hunter is not confident in the ability to hit the brain or vital organs. The downside here is that the target kill area on the neck is small and hard to hit from some angles. Additionally, the shot (even if well placed) may not kill the deer and a second shot or slitting of the throat will be required upon approaching the animal.

High shoulder: Broken ribs, broken down nervous system, and broken spine are all possibilities with a well-placed shot to the high shoulder. This target area is easier for longer range shots than direct brain shots or others with a high chance of missing the deer. It is one of the easier targets and is popular among novice hunters, even if they aren’t directly aiming for that area. The problem is that a large amount of meat can be damaged this way, which depending on your reason for hunting can ruin the entire point of being out there. It is also easy to miss high when shooting for the shoulder and spook this deer and any in the immediate area away as it may take off running. This is best place to shoot a deer in 500+ yards. This is a far distant, using shooting sticks for hunting will help you find the best target.

Conclusion

What I may advice for is concentration, discipline and perseverance in the course of deer hunting; it’s no mean task after all. Hope you can find the information to know best place to shoot a deer, it’s important factor help you kill a deer quickly.

Top 12 Best Place For Deer Hunting

The arrival of fall means whitetail deer hunting season in North America. As hunting deer has increased in popularity, to increase odds of bagging a prize deer many hunters have increased their hunting preparation and begun looking for better places to hunt.

Research should be done on the deer population of the areas being considered for the hunt.

Being willing to spend more weekends in the bush and longer periods of time in the stand will greatly increase your overall odds of getting that prize deer to take home, but it is also important to have good equipment and work on marksmanship. Once you have these things down, it is time to determine the best hunting location. More and more hunters are travelling to different areas to hunt each year.

best-place-to-shoot-a-deer

Each state or province has different fees to pull a deer tag. More popular places like Iowa have high fees, while Kentucky and other southern states, as well as places that don’t see much tourism related to deer hunting, may have fees under $100. Exact prices and info on applying can be found in a simple internet search. Here are the best places for whitetail hunting in North America.

1. Iowa (US)

Iowa is legendary among whitetail hunters, ranking as the top state for hunting from 1830 until 2001. In order to draw a tag, hunters must have an accumulation of preference points. Do some research, and Iowa could prove to be the best place to hunt deer.

2. Saskatchewan (Canada)

American citizens can hunt in the forest country of Saskatchewan, but for the most part not in the southern farmlands. However, Saskatchewan is large and has an ample deer population with record-setting numbers of B&C bucks. Overall, this is one of the best places to hunt deer in North America.

3. Texas (US)

The old saying goes- ‘Everything is bigger in Texas.’ In the hunting world, this is applied as ‘more land means more deer.’

Texas has seen over 600,000 deer bagged annually in recent years, and the sheer volume of open land in the state makes it a fertile ground for repopulation and hunting.

4. Alberta (Canada)

The eastern and southern farmlands of Alberta are long-time favorite areas for local deer hunters. Like Texas, Alberta has a large amount of open space and Canada is typically a hunter-friendly environment. In Canada, not all hunting lands are accessible to American citizens- do research on where you want to go and how easy it is to pull a deer tag in that area.

5. Colorado (US)

The Rocky Mountain state has mule and whitetail deer galore and a strong infrastructure for hunting. Drawing deer tags in Colorado is relatively easy with proper planning, and the large plains on the eastern part of the state are prime for whitetail. Southern Colorado has many good hunting hot spots- get a gazetteer or hunter’s guide to the state and poke around at the maps.

6. Maine (US)

Maine is on the list because of its cheap deer tag license fee for out of state hunters. It is off the beaten path and therefore has less competition than western states while offering easier access to those on the eastern side of the country.

7. Montana (US)

Recent disease outbreaks decimated the deer population but it is on the rebound. Stick to the three forks areas and the southern part of the state at this point, where the populations are strong and healthy. Luckily, there is plenty of land in Montana.

8. Ontario (Canada)

The benefit of Canada is a large amount of land compared to the human population. This is clearly seen in Ontario, where the deer population booms annually and north of the human population that sits by the border, there are places like Eagle Lake where getting out and spending time in the stand is easy.

9. Mississippi (US)

Mississippi is loose with its bagging permits and has a large deer population. While record class bucks are hard to find, smaller deer are ample and the prize deer are there for the best (or luckiest) of hunters.

10. Minnesota (US)

This state is popular for hunting because of the high number of record book bucks in relation to the overall deer population. The vast amount of lakes and the areas surrounding them see a lot of wildlife, but the lakes popular with Minnesotans obviously aren’t hunt-able. Find areas less trafficked and bagging a prize deer is more than doable.

11. North-East Wyoming (US)

We honed in on the north-east corner of the state because that is where most of the deer are. The deer are of prime wall hanging material, despite the fact that much of the land is private and the overall deer population is lower than in many top deer hunting states.

12. Kentucky (US)

Kentucky has produced more than 200 B&C Bucks in the past five years, which has increased the number of hunters. However, the deer population is strong and the state has a large amount of land available for hunting. Non-resident licenses are in excess of $250, so apply early for the best chance.

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