Turkey populations are usually close to 1:1. Gobblers experience the majority of mortality during the spring breeding season, whereas hen mortality is more spread out through the nesting and brood rearing seasons. Thus the proportion of toms is lowest at the end of breeding (spring season). Higher numbers of hens with toms later in the spring season usually indicates an increase in nest predation and/or loss of hatchlings to cool wet weather, predation and/or starvation (low bug numbers at hatching during colder than normal springs). Most hens that lose first clutches/broods will renest, typically with smaller clutch sizes, but they are likely to distract toms later in the season. When nest predation rates are low, most of the hens will be incubating by the first week of May and there will be few hens to be seen, making toms travel more and easier to call in.