Untitled
]The art of hunting wild turkeys
Sculptor David Wirth enjoys the challenge, as well as the sights and sounds, of spring turkey hunting in Florida
By Steve Waters, Sun Sentinel
April 5, 2013
David Wirth's introduction to spring turkey hunting could not have been more enjoyable. And he didn't even shoot a turkey.
Wirth did have a couple of close calls with birds that came in gobbling and strutting and drumming. Had either one of them taken 10 more steps, that bird would have given Wirth an unobstructed shot with his bow and arrow.
Instead, perhaps sensing that they were headed for trouble, the gobblers turned and melted into the woods, never to be seen again.
As if the heart-pounding excitement of having a gobbling wild turkey coming to you wasn't enough, Wirth also got to see countless white-tailed deer, some of them coming almost close enough for him to touch; a 400-pound Florida black bear, which thankfully showed no interest in us; and two full-grown coyotes, each of whom heard our turkey calls, saw our turkey decoys and began a stalk that ended when the coyotes picked up our scent.
"It's almost like a fishing trip where you're targeting one species and you catch 10 other ones," said Wirth, a wildlife artist, of all he experienced during two days of turkey hunting at Green Glades West, an outdoors paradise in Hendry County owned by Commissioner Ron Bergeron of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Bergeron, of Weston, who is the FWC's point man on all Everglades issues and one of the staunchest defenders of what he calls one of the 10 natural wonders of the world, takes great pride in taking great care of his property.
The several thousand acres of cypress strands, oak hammocks, pines and prairies that he owns probably don't look much different from what they looked like several thousand years ago.
Besides deer, turkeys, bears and coyotes, his land also is home to Florida panthers, alligators, wild hogs, bobcats and a variety of birds. The reason is the habitat and abundance of food.
Wirth, who has hunted from Canada, Hawaii and Argentina to California, Texas and Kansas, had a keen appreciation for Bergeron's efforts.
The Tavernier resident hand-carves sculptures of fish, such as wahoo, marlin and dolphin, from pieces of wood that were destined for landfills or fireplaces. Wirth restores the wood's natural beauty and gives it new life.
Although Bergeron's land receives little hunting pressure, the wild turkeys are incredibly hard to hunt because they're extremely wary. The reason, as an old turkey hunter once told me, is because everything likes to eat wild turkeys.
Raccoons, skunks, snakes and opossums eat turkey eggs. Owls and hawks eat baby turkeys. Coyotes, bobcats and panthers eat turkeys of all sizes.
If wild turkeys see a hunter swat a mosquito or hear one cough, they are not sticking around to find out what moved or made the sound. They'll simply start "running like Forrest Gump," Wirth said.
"It's not as dumb of a bird as people think," Wirth said. "They're scared smart.
"If I was living in the wild, I can only hope to be that stupid."
So Wirth was not disappointed about not getting a shot at a turkey and enjoying fried turkey breast fingers for dinner. He appreciated the challenge, as well as all the other sights he got to see.
"You're trying to get the most scared, paranoid animal in the woods to come to your front door," Wirth said.
And Wirth can't wait to try to do it again.
Sculptor David Wirth enjoys the challenge, as well as the sights and sounds, of spring turkey hunting in Florida
By Steve Waters, Sun Sentinel
April 5, 2013
David Wirth's introduction to spring turkey hunting could not have been more enjoyable. And he didn't even shoot a turkey.
Wirth did have a couple of close calls with birds that came in gobbling and strutting and drumming. Had either one of them taken 10 more steps, that bird would have given Wirth an unobstructed shot with his bow and arrow.
Instead, perhaps sensing that they were headed for trouble, the gobblers turned and melted into the woods, never to be seen again.
As if the heart-pounding excitement of having a gobbling wild turkey coming to you wasn't enough, Wirth also got to see countless white-tailed deer, some of them coming almost close enough for him to touch; a 400-pound Florida black bear, which thankfully showed no interest in us; and two full-grown coyotes, each of whom heard our turkey calls, saw our turkey decoys and began a stalk that ended when the coyotes picked up our scent.
"It's almost like a fishing trip where you're targeting one species and you catch 10 other ones," said Wirth, a wildlife artist, of all he experienced during two days of turkey hunting at Green Glades West, an outdoors paradise in Hendry County owned by Commissioner Ron Bergeron of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Bergeron, of Weston, who is the FWC's point man on all Everglades issues and one of the staunchest defenders of what he calls one of the 10 natural wonders of the world, takes great pride in taking great care of his property.
The several thousand acres of cypress strands, oak hammocks, pines and prairies that he owns probably don't look much different from what they looked like several thousand years ago.
Besides deer, turkeys, bears and coyotes, his land also is home to Florida panthers, alligators, wild hogs, bobcats and a variety of birds. The reason is the habitat and abundance of food.
Wirth, who has hunted from Canada, Hawaii and Argentina to California, Texas and Kansas, had a keen appreciation for Bergeron's efforts.
The Tavernier resident hand-carves sculptures of fish, such as wahoo, marlin and dolphin, from pieces of wood that were destined for landfills or fireplaces. Wirth restores the wood's natural beauty and gives it new life.
Although Bergeron's land receives little hunting pressure, the wild turkeys are incredibly hard to hunt because they're extremely wary. The reason, as an old turkey hunter once told me, is because everything likes to eat wild turkeys.
Raccoons, skunks, snakes and opossums eat turkey eggs. Owls and hawks eat baby turkeys. Coyotes, bobcats and panthers eat turkeys of all sizes.
If wild turkeys see a hunter swat a mosquito or hear one cough, they are not sticking around to find out what moved or made the sound. They'll simply start "running like Forrest Gump," Wirth said.
"It's not as dumb of a bird as people think," Wirth said. "They're scared smart.
"If I was living in the wild, I can only hope to be that stupid."
So Wirth was not disappointed about not getting a shot at a turkey and enjoying fried turkey breast fingers for dinner. He appreciated the challenge, as well as all the other sights he got to see.
"You're trying to get the most scared, paranoid animal in the woods to come to your front door," Wirth said.
And Wirth can't wait to try to do it again.
