Breeding Cycle of Hens with the NWTF’s Bob Eriksen
Bob Eriksen has been a wildlife biologist with the NWTF for the past 13 years. Bob has participated in many studies on wild turkeys over those years, and he has gained a tremendous amount of knowledge of the bird that he now spends his days studying.
In part 1 of Episode 020, Bob helps us understand the breeding cycle of hens so we can learn more about the Spring habits of the wild turkey. Here are some of the things you’ll learn when you tune in to this episode of The Turkey Hunter Podcast:
1. How many eggs the average hen lays each day and each season.
2. How much the peak season varies from north to south.
3. What factor gets hens in the mood to mate.
4. Why jakes tend to group up with other jakes at the end of the season.
5. How much more likely a mature hen is to nest successfully than a juvenile.
6. Ideal nesting habitat.
7. When hens will start sitting on nests full time.
8. Why a hen only needs to be bred once to lay a clutch of 10 – 12 eggs.
9. How long it takes a hen to start laying eggs after she is bred.
10. What a “determinate nester” is.
Be sure to tune in to part 2 of Episode 020 next week when Bob will share more great information about the breeding cycle of wild turkey hens with us.
