NO TURKEY SHOOT : THEY'RE HARD TO HIT.

Byline: Brett Pauly Daily News Staff Writer

At one point in American history, the turkey was a candidate for the national bird. The lofty honor went to the bald eagle, and the poor gobbler was relegated to the Thanksgiving table.

But the original notion of our forefathers wasn't for the birds - wild turkeys are beautiful fowl, with keen senses of vision and hearing that have been honed as an evolutionary adaptation against predation. That's why they are considered so challenging to hunt.

``Turkeys are the most elusive game bird there is. They are more difficult to hunt than many species of big game,'' said Kevin Brennan, a Department of Fish and Game wildlife biologist whose district includes southwest San Bernardino County and western Riverside County. ``They are very flighty and real alert animals. If turkeys could smell, nobody would ever get one hunting.''

Spring wild turkey season opens Saturday and runs through May 5, and the DFG offers the following tips to make the hunt a little less daunting for newcomers:

What birds are legal: Only turkeys with beards can be taken - gobblers or toms (dominant males), jakes (subordinate, non-gobbling males) and hens (12 percent of female turkeys are bearded).

Regulations: Hunters must have a license and an upland game stamp. One turkey can be in possession and two can be shot per season. No shooting is permitted after 4 p.m.

Scouting: It's important to scout the canyons and draws where you anticipate hunting.

``The birds are really shy,'' Brennan said. ``They may not always be in the same area from week to week or month to month. Unless you are out ahead of time, you may be in a place they haven't been all year long.''

What to look for: Early morning and dusk are when gobblers do the most vocalizing. Hearing or seeing a turkey on a scouting trip is obviously the best sign, but also look for turkey tracks (like a giant crow's track, about four inches long), feathers and droppings.

On the hunt: Because there are so many intricacies involved, beginners should go with an experienced turkey hunter their first time out. Also, think access. Consider a guided hunt or an unguided hunt on private land.

Camouflage: Turkeys have great eyesight, so camo is a must. Camo socks, camo underwear, camo makeup . . . even camo your gun - with a gun sock.The best colors are browns, greens and grays.

Dress carefully: Don't be caught dead in red, white or blue. They may be patriotic but they are also the colors of a gobbler's beard, at which other hunters will be aiming.

``A square inch of white can cause you a problem,'' said John Massie, senior wildlife biologist for the DFG's southern units. ``You don't want to sit down and have your shirt ride up your back and show white. It'll get you killed. Even white hair needs to be protected by a camo hood.''

Calls: Turkey hunting is an art of calling the bird. Researchers have cataloged 23 to 27 different calls turkeys make, but the yelp is the basic hunting call. It imitates a hen that is likely in heat.

In nature, the gobbler calls the hens to him; the hunter tries to accomplish the opposite, with an enticing yelp to get the gobbler to leave his other hens.

The easiest call is a box call - a box with paddle that moves back and forth across one end to produce sound.

Shooting range: To reduce the risk of having a bird escape injured, turkeys should be shot at from a range of 30 yards or fewer.

``The fun of calling is getting the bird all the way to you,'' Massie said. ``Let him come all the way in. That is the time when it is the most thrilling - the last 15 yards. It also assures that it has a beard.''

Guns and ammo: The shotgun standard is a 12-gauge, though some hunters prefer a 10-gauge. Shot cannot be T-size steel or larger than No. 2.

Where to hunt: Though turkeys can be taken on private property, the Southland's national forests provide the majority of opportunities for gobbler hunters:

Los Padres National Forest (Santa Barbara County), [phone]. Hot spots: Santa Maria, Colon Canyon and Pine Canyon areas.

San Bernardino National Forest (San Bernardino County), [phone]. Hot spots: Mojave River drainage, Willow Creek drainage, Bacon Flats, Rouse Meadows, Crab Flats, Deer Mountain, Shay Mountain, Deep Creek draining where Coxey Creek and Holcomb Creek meet and Santa Ana River drainage from Seven Oaks Dam to Onyx Summit, especially around Sugarloaf Mountain, Sugarloaf Meadows and Staircase Canyon.

Cleveland National Forest (San Diego County), [phone]. Hot spots: Pine Valley and Boulder Creek in the Descanso District; Barker Valley and Love Valley in the Palomar District; and Black Mountain area.

Transporting game: After cleaning the bird, the beard must still be attached to prove it's legal.

Measuring success: ``Most people are lucky to even call a bird in close enough to see it. That's kind of a bragging right,'' Brennan said. ``Successful hunting is never measured by whether or not you get the game, because most hunters come home without it.''

More information: Call your local DFG office or sporting goods store. The DFG's Region 5 headquarters are in Long Beach at [phone].

In the name of research: If you do shoot a turkey, DFG biologists want to know what forest and district it was taken from.

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Photo

Photo: (color) Spring wild turkey season opens Saturday and runs through May 5. The birds have adapted well to the wild and are very challenging to hunt.

Mark Kayser / Special to the Daily News