Thurston County Boss Tom Down!

[jackelope]

There's some merriams birds running around a little east of issaquah too. That's definitely a merriams. A great bird regardless of where it was killed. Congrats and thanks for sharing!!

[Jester052]

So I sent Wacent a PM, I'm looking forward to what he has to say.
I know that this bird isn't a full Eastern but he's got to be a hybrid. His fan is whiter then any Merriam I've got in the NE corner. I mean I've gotten a bird 20min drive to both Canada and Idaho that looks like a Rio it's so tan. But his wing feathers that are zebra striped are very very black, not brown like my others. Also his chest was black more than brown and he was tall like an eastern. But I worked so hard for this bird, It was a3 year process. I started by taking a week reading this forums past posts for 30min- 2hrs per day until I got through every post I could find referencing Easterns. (There's hundreds) I have a notebook with every place someone mentioned and I stared with the places that got the most mentions and worked my was down the list. I've scouted my butt off. I've put in over 1000 miles driving and I'm guessing 100 miles beatin feet. The most I've seen was A SINGLE track until I found this place and heard a far off gobble. I figured what the heck, this is where I'm starting. I went there last year and not a thing, so I made my way to the NE. Well I went back this year and within an hour I had 2 different birds sounding off. I soft yelped over a ridge and he was coming in. After 2 hours and 3 gobbles he was, I'm guessing, within 30 yrds (his gobble was loud). I got so jacked I tried to move so I could see him and the next thing you know, silence. It was like a funeral. The rest of the day I got another far off gobble but that was it. So I was back in the same spot by 0430 yesterday and not a sound. Around 9 I let off some soft calls and out of no where (phantoms for sure) two hens show up and walk,feed,purr 5yrds  away. They looked lighter like Merriams but I've NEVER seen an eastern before so I thought the hens just looked like that. 5 hours pass with nothing so I start moving to another spot and 10 min down the trail I heard a loud BLOW and two hollow sounding thumps, I swing and take a couple steps back to see a black bear staring at me no more than 20yds away. I start to move away from the bear and it took off running into the brush. I'd never seen a bear either so that was pretty cool (scary).So after that I needed a new set of drawers, lunch and a beer. After lunch I head back in and I bump a bird. It took off up the trail and into the bush. It's tail feathers more Rio colored, not brown like an teaser but tan. So I think it might of been one of the hens I saw earlier. So I continue up the trail and set up and just wait. The trail is an old logging road that has grass and moss on it so I figured it looked like a feeding ground. (Close to the tree line but somewhat open.) After an hour I see him. He just wandered out feeding 60yrds out and then after 2 steps in the opening he turned back in to the bush. After 5 min he popped out again at 45 paces and I didn't pass the opportunity. I rolled him hard. When I walked up, to my surprise , he had these colors. But he was tall. Then I hit the road and Elkpiss helps me out with some pictures and few of his friends stopped by they all didn't seam suprised by the coloring. They all refered to it as an eastern and their from the area. So all I DO know is that this was the most mentally,physically and time consuming hunt I've ever done.
 

[SkookumHntr]

You got that bird in the hart of eastern country man! Good job! 

[DIYARCHERYJUNKIE]

nice bird!  Congrats

[Dan-o]

Very cool hunt.

You definitely earned that bird.

Thanks for sharing.     

[Turkeyman]

I have killed a bunch of eastern's on west side. Nice bird but definitely not an eastern.

[bb76]

Nice bird!

[Trapper John]

Nice Bird   
My next adventure is to try turkey hunting
JC

[The Gobble-stopper]

Ran into a guy a few years back that dabbled in turkey planting. He was raising pure bred easterns, rios, and merriams. Released all as is. And interbred the species together in different ways. easterns with rios, merriams with rios, etc. He also introduced the tame bird, the black Spanish. Which was an acient wild bird in the Americas. Tame, but the only tame one that flys. This gave the birds a dark feather pattern. He stated he had success with all breeds. Some of the areas released were in Thurston county. Many showed all traits. Most went away from the eastern colors. That's about all I know. I do know that some of his releases were in areas locally that every one knows about, and I believe where this bird came from. And even after about 12 years, the birds continue to do well. Good job. Still an eastern, according to the game dept.

[RadSav]

Seems like a lot of people have no problem breaking the law and messing with the species in Thurston Co.

Wonder when we are going to see one of these?  I'd buy a tag...I think

[DIYARCHERYJUNKIE]

 

[one more]

Jester:            Congratulations!!!  That's a great bird!!!  Best Wishes on getting all three this season!

RadSav:   Photoshop sure makes pretty birds.

Diane

[Tom Tamer]

Don't if it's much more than just a gene that popped out, All the major species of turkey( as far as I've read) all have the exact same DNA, so go back far enough a Merriam's is and Eastern that just moved west, plumage adapated to their surroundings, I've seen " Merriam's" color phased Hens within miles of the JC release sites. Just got one where the dominant feather color DNA happened to be buff? My two cents. Look at the Barred wing feathers, Easterns have far less white on their primaries then do the other two in this state. But yes Wacent would be my goto for more analysis.

[kodiak 907]

 
My buddy got this Tom last week. It is one of the coolest color phase birds I hav ever seen. Didn't look like a Merriam at all to me, but it was in the heart of Merriam country 

[RadSav]

My buddy got this Tom last week. It is one of the coolest color phase birds I hav ever seen. Didn't look like a Merriam at all to me, but it was in the heart of Merriam country 

Look at the wing feathers on that guy!  Sort of looks like a Bronze in the tail and a Spanish Black in the wings.  That is one cool bird

Maybe a Spanish Black Wing Heritage Bronze...Yeah, that's it...Yeah