Talking Turkey

here is my interpretation

cluck- just milling around communal sounds hens make
purr- similar to cluck, feeding, singals contentment
yelp-turkey letting other turkeys know where they are or trying to find each other

assembly yelp- boss hen yelping 10-20 yelps in a row to bring the birds together

fly down cackle- sound hen makes as she takes the leap of faith in the morning

cut/cutting- exited hens do this, either in excitement or challenging another hen

fighting purr- angry sounds when coming in challenging or mixed with a fight

kee kee run- baby/young turkeys do this when lost and searching for momma

cackle- have heard hens do this when all fired up

alarm putt- almost like a sharp cluck when a turkey is spooked youll hear this

tree calls- very soft yelps, mixed in with quite clucks and cuts, as it gets closer to fly down these will get louder and closer together

I think I covered a decent amount of them

Oh yeah:

Gobble- male turkeys do this to try and bring their hens to them, or let their hens know where they are.

See also- noise that turned me into an addict.

A.J. said:

Yes i hear phantom gobbles all the time lol but thanks for the info bud, I have an issue with how loud to call, like when someone says a soft yelp, Im not sure exactly how soft to do it so that the bird can still hear it. Also, are there certain times you want to do certain calls and certain times you want to completely leave a call alone? I mean obviously the leap of faith yelp is an early morning thing before they leave the roost. I don't mean to bombard you with questions, but i have endless amounts of them

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Look up my posts from 2013 in this forum LOL

The thing you really need to do is go out and sit pre season, LEAVE THE CALLS AT HOME, and just listen to turkeys. That is what I did and it really helps you out. Youtube videos are good, but only real life experiences can really give you a feel for the volumes, and what they acturally sound like.

IMO my biggest issues in my first three years was just calling too loud. Yeah I killed birds but had more hang up. This year toning down my calling, and not calling as much, has paid off big. I attribute that to just being out around the turkey and getting a feel for what they sound like, what sounds they make when, how gobblers respond to different calls.

You are exactly like how I was when I first started. The thing you will learn is that it is not instant success. Yes you may kill birds, but I am sure you have had birds hang up on you and such. I am no pro by any means, but anything I am recommending is because I have been there.

Youll get there, but even veterans that you see posting in here still learn things everyday, but for sure your best teacher is a hen. I got into contest calling this year, and found myself watching other callers, or listening to guys calling. This IMO is not the way to do it. Listen to turkeys, and try to mimic them. They are your best teacher.