"We've done studies of turkey movement during hunting seasons, and nine out of 10 times toms don't move (out of an area) because of hunting pressure as much as they just go quiet," said Burk. "We've had radio transmitters on birds and followed them, and about the only thing that will move them long distances is if they get wounded by a hunter. Then they may take off and really move. But most of the time they stayed in the same area as long as hens were around to keep them interested. They just moved around to stay away from hunters."

All three of our veteran turkey hunters agreed that adaptability and constant awareness of changes in turkey behavior brought on by hunting pressure, weather and/or the progression of breeding season combine to help them keep tabs on the birds until spring hunting ends.

As both a researcher and a hunter, Burk has seen gobblers subjected to hunting pressure drastically alter vocal behavior. "We tracked a few old gobblers during breeding season that quit gobbling and actually moved away from a real hen that was calling," he said. "They either had been shot at or caught some lead, and had learned that a hen call was a bad deal for them. If you get into that sort of situation, your only hope is to figure out where they roost, where they feed, and where hens hang out, and then set up and ambush those quiet gobblers traveling to or from those spots."

Burk has also noticed that toms are more patient later in the spring. He scouts continually while hunting, carefully monitoring changes in behavior and movement related to the progression of the breeding season. Gobblers that would have scrambled to chase down a lonesome hen during the early phases of breeding season are inclined to let the hens come to them after the "new has worn off."

"There is truth to the idea that toms will move to strutting areas, and that the hens will go to those areas to be with the toms," he said. "Those are some of the nuances about how turkey behavior changes during the breeding season. What works during the first week or so may not work so well during the last weeks, because their attitudes and behaviors change."

Behaviors change not only over the course of breeding season, but almost daily, according to Burk, Jansen and Schmidt. All three hunters have lost some of their enthusiasm for crack-of-dawn turkey hunting trips because they've enjoyed equal or better success on mid- or late-day hunting trips. "If the law allows all-day turkey hunting in your area, 9 a.m. isn't a bad time to start hunting," said Schmidt. "We have multiple spring seasons in our state, and I call the last two seasons the 'Breakfast Seasons' because those are good times to get up, go eat a nice, leisurely breakfast, and then hit the woods around midmorning.

"In the past few years, I've killed more birds after 9 a.m. than before 9 a.m. I think there are a couple of things that make it work that way. Other hunters banging around in the woods are certainly a factor that makes the birds a little more edgy. But the big thing is that toms are with hens first thing in the morning and really hard to work with a call. But once those hens are serviced, toms are more inclined to check out any lonesome hens they hear calling. I've had real good luck working gobblers right up until the end of hunting hours."

That's where pre-season scouting of habitats and terrain, coupled with constant awareness of behavior changes during hunting seasons, helps Schmidt set up and maximize his chances of luring toms within gun or bow range after other hunters have gone home for the day.