PA 2nd Turkey Tag

[snapper]

Yep...and I predict in about 3-4 years all the turkey hunters who want and use this "bonus" tag will be complaining about seeing any turkey.

Sorry...just not for me!
I look at it as...if the PGC feels there are enough birds in the PA flock to harvest more than one spring gobbler...why should we pay for this "extra" tag? Isn't it all about the health of the animals? If the game comm. was truely all about the animals...then a second bird wouldn't cost $21.

No offense TURK4RF...use your extra tag if you like...I'll stick with the one I get with my lic.

[Hoyt03]

Just like the doe tags, they are all about the $ right now and not about the resource. Like snapper i will not be sending away for a 2nd tag either. Heck around here they dont even have a fall season due to lack of birds but then they are saying go kill two toms in the spring.

[buckbuster11]

I wont be getting one either. After seeing whats happening to the deer herd I wont be aiding the PGC in doing the same to the turkey flock. Plus, chasing down one is exhausting enough.

[Strut10]

I sent for one. I'm not sure, yet, if I sent for it to use it or to burn it.

Can somebody tell me why the PGC is telling us it's fine to do to the turkeys (over-harvest the males) exactly what they told us was a sin to do to the deer??

Can somebody tell me why we have umpteen WMU's in place, but there's nowhere on the application for the 2nd tag to put where you'll be hunting?? I mean, there's some WMU's in PA that have become overrun with turkeys. There's others where turkeys are about an endangered species. But there's absolutely no biology in use to determine where the birds get killed (even though everything is in place to do it the right way). Just throw a bunch of $21 licenses out there and let the birds fall where they may.

It's a money grabbing ploy.....no question.

Small game has been a thing of the past in PA for years and years. The deer program is turning out to be an abortion (who'da thunk?? ). And now the only remaining thing the PGC hadn't screwed up is on the chopping block.

[LifeNRA]

[ QUOTE ]
I don't think that is going to happen with the turkeys.

[/ QUOTE ]

WHAT!?!?!?! You seen first hand what it has done to our deer herd! But you dont think it will have any effect on turkeys????? Turkeys must have some kind of super genetics that will keep them from being shot off! I DONT THINK SO!!! Think again, you have that right to buy and use the second tag! I will NOT be buying the second tag!

The PGC knows darn well they need the money, and now there after it any way they can! The only way to change this money grabbing ideas is to hit them right in the wallet! I burned my doe tag last year because of not seeing any doe's! Why dont you just burn your turkey tag now! Because in few years if this tag takes off, the hunters will be complainning just like the deer hunters!!!

ITS ALL ABOUT GREED!!!!!

[M00N]

I have a hard enough time shooting one turkey. Let alone two in PA. I don't like to take things in excess so I have no intentions of sending in for this second Turkey tag. I don't want to see what happened to the deer happen to the turkeys. I could see if these tags had hunting zones that they were only legal to be used in, but they don't therefore hunters can just go shoot two turkeys anywhere in the state open to turkey hunting. Quick way to kill off a good turkey flock because these hunters with second tags that hunt public hunting areas aren't going to factor in on their own the fact that there's other hunters who can hunt this same flock and taking two may mean taking just that one too many to ruin the good flocks. I've been hunting the same 3 flocks for 2 years now in the one public hunting area in PA. It will really annoy me if these bonus tags lead to the flocks that I'm hunting being wiped out this year leaving me with even less a chance at harvesting my first bird ever in future years as I can't afford private hunting land in this state nor know anyone with land I can hunt on.

[buddy ahart]

IMO i dont think you realy need 2 turkey tags theres many people out there who dont even get a turkey. Not to offend anyone i mean its your choice. On the game lands that i hunt in the past few years im seeing and hearing less and less Gobblers lots of hens just no gobblers. Soon pa will be giving out bonus buck tags and bonus bear tags. Thats just my 2cents sorry if it gets u mad.

[M00N]

My feelings on this is if they aren't doing these bonus tags out of greed of money then they should have took the time to plan out turkey hunting zones based on serious studies and assign so many tags per zone according on the population in that zone. The turkey populations are not booming all over the state. Some areas have a good population others have such a horrible population to start with. A lot of the flocks in the good areas even have a horrible hen to tom ratio where the hens almost triple or quadruple the amount of toms in the flock. The lack of doing it the zone way suggests to me the welfare of the turkey flocks comes second to the greed of wanting more money. I wouldn't wish to take part in the downfall of our good turkey hunting, so I am opting to not purchase these additional tags. It's bad enough the deer herd is ruined from the DMAP program, ever increasing additional doe tags, and the extended doe seasons. I don't want to see the same thing happen to the turkey, too. I can be just as happy with one nice Tom a year.

[Strut10]

[ QUOTE ]
There are alot of states that have less turkeys then PA and have a multi-bird limits and the population is still thriving in those states.

[/ QUOTE ]

But, along the same line of thought......... Pennsylvania has more turkey hunters than most of these states have hunters.

[snapper]

[ QUOTE ]
If you remember there were bonus tags available in the past when it was only a 3 day season. The herd was fine then!

[/ QUOTE ]

Your right...bonus tags were around when we had a 3 day doe only season. But those were areas that needed thinned and tags weren't easy to get. Alot of hunters complained about not getting a reg. doe tag and others were getting both...PGC allocated alot more tags and gave the hunters more chances to hunt.
It seems to me that we are heading down the same road with the turkey's.
Every year there are folks who kill more than one gobbler/bird any ways. Right or wrong...it happens sometimes with one shot. Now the Game comm. is giving them the chance to do it twice!

[Master_Chief]

One can only hope that the same demise does not come upon the turkey flock that came upon the deer herd.