Turkey Call All Access

While many hunters believe that turkeys were meant to be solely hunted with shotguns, hunters are picking up bowhunting for turkeys to experience something new and challenging. From having to draw birds especially close, to limiting movements while drawing back on the bow, archery for turkeys can surely test your skills as a hunter. At the NWTF's Convention and Sport Show, we sat down with Bill Va...

Brent Rogers is a wild turkey hunter, historian, author, podcast guest, collector and more. And, he was the recent recipient of the NWTF Tom Kelly Communicator of the Year Award at the 2026 Convention and Sport Show for his communication effort that share the organization's mission to conserve the wild turkey and preserve our hunting heritage.  On this episode of the Turkey Call All Access Podcast...

Realtree and the National Wild Turkey Federation recently announced a landmark partnership with Realtree supporting the NWTF's Habitat for the Hatch initiative in the Southeast. Now, during the NWTF's 50th Convention and Sport Show, Realtree is celebrating it's 40th anniversary.  During the final day of the annual gathering of the NWTF flock in Nashville, the NWTF's Pete Muller and newly hired NWT...

When founder Toxey Haas launched Mossy Oak in 1986, he did so because he wanted to have a better way to hide from wildlife. Now 40 years and dozens of camo patterns later, Mossy Oak has helped countless hunters make memories through their adventures afield.  The NWTF's Pete Muller sits down with Mossy Oak's President and first official employee Bill Sugg and Director of Marketing Daniel Haas to ta...

As the daughter of Colonel Tom Kelly, the poet laureate of the turkey woods, Laura Bates is no stranger to the world of turkey hunting and the impact her father's books have had on so many hunters who take to the woods each spring.  With the upcoming launch of the Tenth Legion: Bootleg Revival edition, set for release at the 2026 NWTF Convention and Sport Show, Bates joins the NWTF's Jesse Warner...

With the NWTF Photography Contest, sponsored by Tactacam, currently open for submissions at https://your.nwtf.org/photo_contest/ (call for entries closes on January 10, 2026), wildlife and lifestyle photography are on our minds.  The NWTF's Jesse Warner continues conversations about wildlife photography by sitting down with Zack McQueen. You may have seen McQueen's work in the NWTF's photo contest...

With the NWTF Photography Contest, sponsored by Tactacam, currently open for submissions at https://your.nwtf.org/photo_contest/ (call for entries closes on January 10, 2026), wildlife and lifestyle photography are on our minds.  On the episode, the NWTF's Jesse Warner sits down with talented photographer Clayton Worrell of Cedar Bluff, Iowa. They talk the origin of his photography studio name — G...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes a conversation with the authors and presenters from the following papers included in the "New and Emerging Tools" session: " Investigating...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes a conversation with the presenter from the following paper included in the "Tools to Estimate Survival" session: " Evaluating camera surve...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes conversations with the authors from the following papers included in the "Human Dimensions and Hunting" session: " Hunting impacts male wi...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes a conversation with the author from the following paper included in the "Population Dynamics - A Regional Look Around the USA" session: "...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes conversations with authors or presenters from papers included in the "Habitat Selection" session: " Effects of temperature and precipitati...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes conversations with authors or presenters from papers included in the "Habitat Selection" session: " Multi-scale evaluation of eastern wild...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes conversations with authors or presenters from papers included in the "Disease Ecology and Predation" session: " Influence of lymphoprolife...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes conversations with authors or presenters from papers included in the "Wild Turkey Genetics" session: " Role of kinship in sociality of fem...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes conversations with authors or presenters from papers included in the "Status, Brood Survey and Hen Survival" session: " Status and Distrib...

As we know there is an elevated interest in wild turkey science within the turkey hunting community, we are working to bring you numerous updates and research summaries from the 13th National Wild Turkey Symposium in Kansas City, Missouri. This episode includes summary talks from the "Welcome & Introductory Remarks" session that included Eric Kurzejeski's " Wild Turkey Research: A Look Back" and D...

It is an exciting time in the NWTF Education and Outreach arena, especially as we continue to grow our programs.  The NWTF's vision has always been to unite a nation through the power of the outdoors, and through talking with NWTF education and outreach staff, one can see how far we've come.  To celebrate National Hunting and Fishing Day for 2025, we sat down with Mandy Harling, National Director...

In this episode of the NWTF podcast, we explore what makes the West unique — and why conservation here matters to all of us. The American West is a region of unmatched beauty and opportunity, but also one of incredible complexity. From rugged mountains to sprawling deserts, its vast public lands provide vital wildlife habitat and unparalleled access for hunters, anglers, and outdoor enthusiasts. N...

The NWTF has just launched its bold new Roots to Roost Initiative — a groundbreaking, cross-boundary conservation effort set to make a landscape-scale impact across the Midwest.  This initiative bolsters the organization's conservation, policy, and education efforts to increase wild turkey populations and conserve the diverse ecosystems they depend on.    In this episode of the Turkey Call All Acc...

In this episode of the NWTF Turkey Call All Access Podcast NWTF staff members from the Great Plains region explore the vital connection between wild turkeys, riparian ecosystems, and NWTF's Waterways for Wildlife Initiative. Together, they break down why riparian corridors—those narrow but powerful "ribbons of life" along rivers and streams—are so important to turkeys, hundreds of other wildlife s...

The NWTF's Habitat for the Hatch initiative just wrapped up its second year, improving nesting and brood-rearing habitat across the Southeast at an accelerated pace.  The initiative is made possible by NWTF state chapters, partners, staff and a shared dedication to the wild turkey.  In this episode of the Turkey Call All Access podcast, we're joined by NWTF district biologists Derek Alkire and Ric...

There's always something new to learn when you sit down with a group of NWTF biologists and foresters. Our Forests and Flocks Initiative just celebrated its first successful year of many to come, and we wanted to know what this past year looked like for the Northeast.   For anyone who wants to learn more about the initiative or wants to hear more about regional conservation efforts, regional biolo...

Chris Skates is a freelance writer, former chemist, outdoor writer, political commentator, speechwriter and advisor. Most importantly, though, he is an NWTF member and a long-time turkey hunter. The NWTF's Pete Muller is joined by Skates to chat about the 2025 turkey season, reminisce on Skates' journey as an outdoor writer, past hunting stories  — " The Gobbler of Panther Creek " where Skates bag...

The Rio Grande turkey occupies a variety of regions across the country thanks to translocation, but it is primarily known as the bird that occupies the more arid regions of the country, spanning from Texas north to Kansas.  This bird also is characterized as being more "gobble-friendly" than its relatives to the east, and for it's caramel colored tips of the primary and covert tail feathers. To cl...