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The turkey woods is a
magical place in spring.
The sweet, fresh aroma of budding hardwoods. The rhythmic cadence of a gurgling
spring creek. The air-piercing cry of a wily tom.
For many hunters, the spring turkey hunting season is their favorite time afield
each year. It’s one of my favorite seasons, too. But as the spring turkey
hunting season unfolds across the United States, wildlife officials are reminding
hunters about one facet of the hunt that sometimes gets lost in the hoopla
of the new season: safety.
It’s true that sport hunting is one of the safest outdoor recreational
activities we have. Hunter education programs, taught by conservation groups
and state and federal wildlife agencies, among others, have markedly reduced
the incidents of shooting-related fatalities in the field.
That’s the good news.
The bad news is that we still have too many accidents and fatalities -- tragedies
that sometimes tarnish our collective image as conscientious outdoorsmen and
women. We can do better.
“Regardless of the quarry you’re pursing, safety should be the first
thing a hunter thinks about before going afield,” said Tom Hughes, hunter
safety liaison for the National Wild Turkey Federation in Edgefield, SC. “ Even
though hunting incidences are down, particularly for turkey hunters, one death
is too many. We can do better.”
Hughes says that turkey hunting is a sport that poses unique dangers. Hunters
are dressed in full camouflage and use calls to mimic the very sounds of their
quarry. Sometimes hunters’ calls are mistaken for the real thing. That
can lead to accidents, he said.
According to Hughes, turkey hunting accounts for about 10 percent of the total
shooting-related hunting accidents nationwide each year. The vast majority
of incidents -- roughly 80 percent -- come as a result of hunters misidentifying
their targets. That despite all states requiring a turkey to have a “visible” beard
to be a legal “target” in the spring.
“Not identifying the target is by far the most common reason for shooting-related
incidents made in turkey hunting,” Hughes said. “It’s somebody
being stupid at the wrong time.”
Hunter safety professionals such as Hughes call the process that leads up to
the misidentification as “premature closure.” Loosely translated,
turkey hunters trick themselves into seeing and hearing turkeys that aren’t
actually there.
“Hunters are so focused on identifying a turkey that they actually convince
themselves that they’re seeing one that doesn’t really exist,” Hughes
said. “Investigations after the fact show that this problem happens to
novices and the most experience turkey hunters among us. No one seems to be immune.”
To address that problem and others, Hughes said NWTF chapters offer education
classes that put turkey hunters through various scenarios that they’re
likely to encounter in the field. He stresses two overall safety themes.
“A safety-conscious hunter is a defensive hunter,” Hughes said. “ That’s
what we teach. Second, we tell turkey hunters to develop a skeptical attitude.
Always assume that the sounds you hear are coming from someone else, not a turkey.”
That advice appears to be paying off, even though there are more turkey hunters
in the field (roughly 2.5 million) each spring than anytime in recorded history.
The most-recent statistics show that of the 65 nationwide two-party fatalities
(one hunter shooting another hunter) in 2000, just one came as a result of
turkey hunting. Deer hunting had the highest number -- 38 fatalities. “Keep
in mind that’s only one year of data,” Hughes said. “ But
that’s a good sign, and hopefully a trend that continues.”
The following are a laundry list of safety tips that Hughes recommends that
all turkey hunters memorize before hitting the field this spring. I encourage
you to study them all. Remember, one turkey hunting accident is one turkey
hunting accident too many.
To wit:
• Hunt defensively. Never assume other hunters are acting responsibly.
• Never stalk a turkey. The chances of getting close enough for a shot
are slim, but the chances of becoming involved in an accident are increased.
• If you want to locate a tom, use an owl, crow or other locator call instead.
• Eliminate red, white and blue colors from your turkey hunting outfit.
• When turkey hunting, assume every sound you hear is made by another hunter.
Once you pull the trigger, you can’t take the shot back.
• Hunting should not be treated as a competitive sport. Peer pressure to
bag a bird leads to poor judgment.
• Discuss hunting safety techniques with your hunting companions. Many
accidents are caused by people in the same hunting party. When party hunting,
be sure of everyone’s location.
• Never assume you’re alone in the woods, even on private property.
• Always keep your gun pointed in a safe direction.
• Use a flashlight when walking in the dark.
• Make sure your headnet doesn’t obscure your vision.
• Be aware of what’s beyond your target before you shoot.
• Keep your gun unloaded until you are set up in the field. Keep your finger
off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
• Respect
property rights and secure permission before
hunting.
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