Turkey decoy motion, do it or don’t it?
Start talkin’ turkey and the topic of turkey decoy motion will come up. Lets think about what we see turkeys doing when they are in front of us. A relaxed group of turkeys is constantly on the move. Scratching, eating, jumping around and just moving along in general. Most of the time when you see turkeys standing still it’s for only a couple reason. One is fear. When a group of birds senses fear, they all stand still with their heads in the air trying to assess the danger. Invariably the putting starts next and the group is gone gone gone. The only other time birds really stand still is when they are strutting or in process thereof. Toms and jakes can stand statue still for quite awhile when they are in the act of strutting. A jake decoy in partial strut needs no movement to be effective, and is a huge selling point of our bestturkeydecoy.
When should you add turkey decoy motion?
Turkey decoy motion makes the most sense with hens, or any decoys that are not in the act of strut or partial strut. It’s not a natural for a hen or upright jake to just stand there in an alert position, and natural and relaxed is how we want or turkey decoy set perceived. If your gobbler assesses this scenario for too long, he will become nervous as well. Turkey decoy motion works well with hens and upright or feeding birds.
Turkey decoy motion for wide open sets
Turkey decoy motion can be a huge plus in wide open areas. Approaching toms can see your decoys from so far away, you almost have to have some kind of motion to make your set look real. Birds in the thick woods are constantly losing sight of your turkey decoys, so motion is not as important, but wide open sets call for some motion to make a better sell. The best device I have found is called the decoy sled. They have a gobbler model coming out this year that should be awesome for bigger bodied and heavier decoys. Darrell tells me you can rotate the decoy as well as move it in a line. Check it out at the decoy sled website.