How to Score Your Wild Turkey - Easterns, Rios, Merriams and Osceolas

How to Score Your Wild Turkey You can calculate the score of your turkey with our scoring calculator. Before you begin to score your turkey, be sure to note that all measurements are taken in 1/16-inch increments and converted to decimal form. A current NWTF member or another licensed hunter from the state where the bird was harvested must verify all measurements. A conversion chart for measurements is located at the bottom of this page.

Step 1: Weigh your bird in pounds and ounces and convert ounces to decimal form.

Step 2: Measure each spur. Spurs must be measured along the outside center, from the point at which the spur protrudes from the scaled leg skin to the tip of the spur. Add both spur measurements and multiply the combined length of the spurs by 10. This is the number of points you receive for the turkey’s spurs.

Step 3: Measure the beard length (a beard must be measured from the center point of the protrusion of the skin to the tip) and convert it to decimal form.Next, multiply the beard length figure by 2; this is the number of points you receive for the beard length. If you have an atypical bird (multiple beards), measure each beard, convert them to a decimal number, then add those figures together and multiply by two. This is the number of points you receive for your turkey’s beards.

Step 4: Measure the beard length (a beard must be measured from the center point of the protrusion of the skin to the tip) and convert it to decimal form.Next, multiply the beard length figure by 2; this is the number of points you receive for the beard length. If you have an atypical bird (multiple beards), measure each beard, convert them to a decimal number, then add those figures together and multiply by two. This is the number of points you receive for your turkey’s beards.

Conversion Chart

1/8 Measurements 1/8 = .1250 2/8 = .2500 3/8 = .3750 4/8 = .5000 5/8 = .6250 6/8 = .7500 7/8 = .8750

1/16 Measurements 1/16 = .0625 2/16 = .1250 3/16 = .1875 4/16 = .2500 5/16 = .3125 6/16 = .3750 7/16 = .4375 8/16 = .5000 9/16 = .5625 10/16 = .6250 11/16 = .6875 12/16 = .7500 13/16 = .8125 14/16 = .8750 15/16 = .9375

Weight 1 OZ. = .0625 2 OZ. = .1250 3 OZ. = .1875 4 OZ. = .2500 5 OZ. = .3125 6 OZ. = .3750 7 OZ. = .4375 8 OZ. = .5000 9 OZ. = .5625 10 OZ. = .6250 11 OZ. = .6875 12 OZ. = .7500 13 OZ. = .8125 14 OZ. = .8750 15 OZ. = .9375

Merriam's Turkey Hunting - Simply The Best!

"Some of the Best turkey hunting I have had in my life. I saw over 30 turkeys a day and we harvested our 4 tom turkeys in 20 hours. Turkey hunting unlike anywhere in the United States."

Wallace Fennell Camillus Knifes - Rock hill, North Carolina

"The mixture of rolling hills, wide open terrain and dense cover of central Nebraska, provides a truly unique Turkey hunting experience. If your in search of the Turkey hunting experience of a lifetime, your search has ended. I highly recommend Scott Croner and his associates at the Nebraska Hunting Company.

Rob Swords - Plant Manager Worthington Steel - Columbus, Ohio

Spring Turkey Season Only Two Weeks Away - April 16,2011

Merriam's Spring Turkey Hunt

3 days / 3 nights per hunter: $ 1295.00 Archery / Shotgun Package includes: * 2 Tom Turkeys (third turkey $300.00) * Lodging and meals * Transportation once your arrive at NHC, Inc. Lodge in Brewster, NE

Spring Turkey Season Only Two Weeks Away - April 16,2011

Merriam's Spring Turkey Hunt 3 days / 3 nights per hunter: $ 1295.00 Archery / Shotgun Package includes: * 2 Tom Turkeys (third turkey $300.00) * Lodging and meals * Transportation once your arrive at NHC, Inc. Lodge in Brewster, NE

Merriam's Spring Shotgun Season Starts April 16, 2011 - Checklist

Equipment:
Shotgun
Turkey loads
Turkey choke tube
Patterning targets
Camo blind — where legal
Seat, cushioned stool
Shotgun sling
Turkey decoys
Camera Lo Boy
Lite Chair
Monopod gun rest
ThermaCELL
Compass Maps
Knife
Ratchet cutters
Insect repellent
Flashlight
Trail ribbon
Binoculars
Camo tape
Cooler
Water bottle
First aid kit

Clothes:
Camo gloves
Camo facenet
Camo paint
Camo make-up
Camo shirt
Camo pants
Camo jacket
Camo turkey vest or pack
Camo cap
Camo socks
Camo undershirts
Rain suit
Calls:
Box call
Diaphragm calls
Slate or glass pot & peg call
Glass call
Gobble call
Tube call
Push-pin call
Turpin/wingbone call
Crow/locator call
Owl hooter call locator calls

Call Accessories:
Box call chalk
Sandpaper
Call lanyard
Box call holster

Archery gear:
Bow (camouflaged)
Broadheads
3-D Camo clothes
3-D targets

To Do:
Get license/turkey tags
Pattern shotgun

Merriam's Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo merriami)

Complete your "Grand Slam" with a Merriam's Turkey Hunt, Contact Scott Croner at 402-304-1192

Physical Description
Although approximately the same size as the Eastern, the Merriam has different coloration. It is black with blue, purple and bronze reflections. White feathers on the lower back and tail feather margins distinguish the Merriam from other subspecies of turkey. The margins have a dull white appearance. Merriam’s appear to have a white rump due to pinkish buff, or whitish tail coverts and tips. The tail feathers are very conspicuous when the gobbler struts against a dark background. Toms have black-tipped breast feathers, while the hens exhibit buff tips. Hens have a more extensive white area on the wings giving a whiter appearance when the wings are folded.


Average Weight Range
Mature Merriam wild turkeys weigh from eight to over 20 pounds.

Reproduction
Breeding occurs during the spring and summer months (May through August). The increase of daylight hours in spring triggers hormonal changes. Gobbling is used to attract receptive females for mating in late February to early March. Males exhibit both gobbling and strutting to attract females. Gobbling attracts the hen to the male, who then courts the female by strutting. If the gobbler is successful, the female will crouch to signal the male to begin copulation. The first peak time for gobbling occurs at the beginning of breeding season when gobblers are searching for hens. The second peak begins a few weeks later, when most hens begin incubation. Gobblers mate with several hens, and it is generally the adult males who do most of the mating. Hens lay anywhere from 8 to 12 eggs per clutch, averaging about 28 days for incubation.

Food Usage/Selection
Wild turkeys are omnivores, eating a variety of plant and animal matter wherever and whenever available. Poults, or young turkey, eat large quantities of insects and other animal matter to get needed protein for development. As turkeys age, plant matter becomes the primary food source with about 90 percent of the mature turkey’s diet including the green foliage of grasses, vines, forbs, acorns, buds, seeds and various fruits.

Range
The Merriam is found in the ponderosa pine forests of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and the rest of the Rocky Mountain range, and has been transplanted to Nebraska, Washington, California, Oregon, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Manitoba.

Habitat
Merriam’s wild turkeys inhabit ponderosa pine forests, western mountainous regions of the United States and the woodland prairies. Merriam’s tend to live in regions that receive annual rainfall of 15 to 23 inches.

Common Hunting Methods
The shotgun, bow and arrow, and black powder are all used to hunt turkey. To attract turkey, hunters use a wide range of calls to lure them or to induce gobblers to a fight. Calling has become so popular that contests are held each year so experts and novices alike can fine-tune their skills.

Hunting Challenges/Values
With their excellent eyesight and well-developed sense of hearing, the turkey can sometimes outsmart decoys used by hunters as they become more and more sensitized to their presence. Wild turkeys are very good to eat and can be smoked, fried or baked. Many hunters proudly display their colorful capes, beards or full-bodied mounts.

Interesting Tidbits
Turkeys will answer thunder from an approaching storm with calls of their own.
Turkey hunting is one of the most popular forms of hunting.
Hens produce droppings in shapes like a mound, and the gobbler’s droppings are in a straight line or resemble the letter “J.”

Named for C. Hart Merriam, who was the first chief of the U. S. Biological Survey.

Nebraska Merriam's Mania With Scott Croner and The Nebraska Hunting Company By Brandon, Wikman

Realtree: Community: Nebraska Merriam's Mania: "Nebraska Merriam's Mania

By Brandon Wikman, Bass Pro NGX Team

The rumors tucked away in the Sand Hills of central Nebraska hold more truth than told. Deep in this picturesque valley of cedars, sand and lofty hills, is a sought after secret of the mystical Merriam’s turkey.

Plenty of the country hunted was open, but the birds have a propensity to find and use available cover to their advantage.
The time-crazy world hasn't changed the background of the old ranch town I stayed at. As I passed through the hundred yard main street strip of not-a-whole-lot, I soon became familiarized of what the little town was known for from the camouflage jackets and cowboy hats worn by the locals. I marveled at cattle ranchers stringing barbed-wire fence by hand for miles, while others admired their massive prairie burns. I felt as if I were taken back to the cowboy days and imagined the covered wagons trekking across the desolate land. Sod houses from the 1800's still stood amongst the canyons and withheld their enduring beauty throughout years of erosion.
THE GRAND QUEST
Although, the scenery and generalization of the Sand Hills inspired my historic inner-feelings, I was there to conquer the last species of turkey for my Grand Slam quest and face the secrets head-to-head with Nebraska Hunting Company, a nationally acclaimed outfitter from the heart of Nebraska."

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