Story courtesy of Texas Fish and Game magazine.

As the Texas sun beats down in mid-summer, serious hunters know this is the time to start getting ready for fall hunting season. Whether you’re chasing whitetail deer in the Hill Country, doves in South Texas, or feral hogs across East Texas, the key to a successful season is groundwork laid months in advance. Here’s a practical, Texas-focused guide to getting ready.

Inspect and Repair Hunting Blinds

The brutal Texas summer can take a toll on even the sturdiest hunting blinds. July and August are the perfect time to get out to your lease or land and do a full inspection.

Start by checking structural integrity—look for cracked wood, rusted hinges, and wasp nests. Patch holes, reseal edges, and repaint if needed, especially if your blind is exposed to the elements. Replace worn-out chairs or shooting rests and make sure windows still open quietly.

If you use pop-up or mobile blinds, air them out and check for tears or broken poles. Mice and mold are common problems if gear has been stored since last season.

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Researchers at Texas A&M University are conducting first-of-its-kind wild turkey research, looking at the exposure of different turkey populations to neonicotinoid pesticides. Neonicotinoids are the most commonly used insecticides in the world, with near ubiquitous application to crop seeds in North America. Using funding provided from the NWTF’s National Request for Proposals Program, this past spring turkey season marked the team’s first year of collecting blood and tissues samples to test for the presence of neonicotinoids.

“We are trying to understand if wild turkeys are exposed to neonicotinoids as a starting point to see if additional work is needed to determine the consequences of these exposures,” said Sarah Hamer, Ph.D, principal investigator and director of the Schubot Center for Avian Health in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at Texas A&M. “We are building upon our prior work that shows broad patterns of wild bird exposure.”

Neonicotinoids are a major driver of insect biodiversity loss, killing many non-target insects and indirectly affecting birds through this loss of prey. Based on research done with other species in controlled laboratory settings, there's reason to believe that these exposures can have health consequences that decrease avian fitness or survival.

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The Texas NWTF State Chapter met earlier this year in Marble Falls to review Hunting Heritage Super Fund project proposals for the 2025 fiscal year funding awards. After the reviewing and ranking process, proposals were approved by the Texas NWTF State Chapter Board of Directors. The board budgeted $77,225 for conservation projects and $77,841 for hunting heritage projects. NWTF conservation project award funding will be matched with over $954,000 in partner or grant funds for the approved projects, equating to over $1 million in NWTF mission-related projects in 2025.

“I commend our Texas NWTF State Chapter and local Texas NWTF chapter members for working so hard to raise these funds to further our mission in Texas,” said Annie Farrell, NWTF district biologist. “From wild turkey research to habitat enhancements across the state, our dedicated volunteers make it a priority to put their hard-earned dollars toward critical projects that greatly impact the wild turkey and our hunting heritage in the Lone Star State.”

The NWTF’s Hunting Heritage Super Fund is a decades-long funding program well-known throughout the country as a conservation powerhouse. Created in the NWTF’s formative years, the Super Fund is a volunteer-driven program.

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On a warm spring weekend near Mathis, Texas, the rolling landscape of McGloin Ranch set the stage for an unforgettable experience hosted by the Texas Wildlife Association and the National Wild Turkey Federation.

As part of the Adult Learn-to-Hunt Program, five new hunters were given the opportunity to pursue their first wild turkey alongside dedicated mentors and volunteers.

The program, designed to teach hunting skills to adult newcomers, brought together passionate conservationists like Matt Hughes from TWA and Mike Shouse of NWTF. Before the hunters ever set foot in the field, they received hands-on instruction in turkey calling from veteran caller Bob Linder — laying the foundation for a thoughtful, ethical hunt.

Josh Rodriguez, one of the mentees, was partnered with me for the weekend. Our first sit on Friday brought promise, with a lone hen investigating our decoys. A tom gobbled across the river behind us but never crossed, despite our best efforts. Saturday morning proved quieter, and even a location change for the evening hunt only offered a distant glimpse of jakes and toms 600 yards out — too far to pursue effectively.

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The Cayuga High School Bass Fishing Team had an amazing 24-25 season.

This was our eighth year of high school fishing through the Texas High School Bass Association. Coached by Erika Goolsby, the team had 40 young men and women fishing this year - making up 20 teams. We had eight teams placed in the Top 40% of the Central Division to advance to Regionals on Lake Palestine in April.

Out of the eight teams two placed in the Top 30% to advance to the State Tournament that was held May 31-June 1 on Lake Conroe. The two teams were Hayden Goolsby and Landon Reed (boat captain Shane Goolsby) along with Gus Beckendorf and Cason Mills (boat captain Cooper Harris).

Hayden Goolsby and Landon Reed, placed 10th out of 182 teams at the State Tournament.

Hayden and Landon also earned the Angler of the Year team in the Central Division.

We had 12 seniors graduate this year and earned over $10,000 in fishing related scholarships.

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The purpose of the article, entitled, ‘Getting the Word Out’ , was to share our experiences engaging with the communities to successfully establish new local chapters and host successful events that optimize membership growth and fundraising for NWTF here in Texas.

The direction of the article are somewhat different from most of the content in Turkey Call, as it focuses on volunteer activities rather than on harvesting and conservation. It helps the NWTF Regional Directors by inspiring and motivating volunteers to start new local chapters. Once volunteers have read the article they have a better understanding on how to successfully start a new chapter.

Turkey Call is the ideal communications vehicle to share this worthwhile subject.

We Texans believe local volunteers are NWTF's most valuable asset, and if we can motivate them to start chapters and host events, we can grow our membership across the country. Increased membership, in turn, gives NWTF greater brand leverage in the marketplace.

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Congratulations to our NWTF Texas State Chapter Academic Scholarship winner Miss Audri Poage!

She was also the recipient of the Highland Lakes local scholarship.

She intends to pursue a degree in agriculture business at Texas A&M University with hopes to one day become an agricultural lobbyist.

Also, Audri plan to continue to help see that the turkeys in Texas thrive!

Pictured with Audri is Highland Lakes Chapter President and State Board Member Lance Gray.

The purpose of the NWTF Dr. James Earl Kennamer Academic Scholarship Program is to recognize and reward an NWTF member, who is currently a senior in high school, for their outstanding academic achievement, community involvement and leadership roles. The National Scholarship Winner will receive a $10,000 scholarship sponsored by Mossy Oak.

Visit https://your.nwtf.org/scholarships/ for more information.

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This federal excise tax has provided billions of dollars to state wildlife agencies for habitat improvement, game conservation and enhancement, range development and hunter education programs.

So how does it work? States receive the funds collected from federal excise taxes paid by manufacturers, producers and importers:

• 11% on sporting rifles, shotguns, ammunition, and archery equipment

• 10% tax on handguns

This applies to all commercial sales, whether for hunting, sport shooting or even home defense. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service then distributes this money to states based on land area and the number of hunting licenses sold. The funds allow TPWD to offer services including:

• Technical guidance to private landowners (who control most Texas wildlife habitat)

• Surveys and research for development of hunting regulations

• Wildlife management area operations

• Hunter education course instruction

• Wildlife population and habitat management

• Shooting range construction and management

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Members of the NWTF Texas State Chapter partnered with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Dallas Safari Club STX, PakMule, Frame Coffee Co., Duck Camp, Zero Tech Optics, OtoPro Technologies, and Yeti to support the Texas Wildlife Association in hosting a successful Adult Learn to Hunt Program mentored hunt at the McGloin Ranch in Mathis, Texas from March 15-17, 2024.

Our own Tim Webster, Norm Wade, Bob Linder, and Mike Shouse all participated as mentors introducing new hunters to our passion. A big thanks to y’all!

Texas Wildlife Association (TWA) is the nation’s leading organization in providing both adults and youth the opportunity to learn how to hunt. Our Texas Youth Hunting Program (TYHP) has successfully run over 3,300 hunts taking in excess of 50,000 youth hunters and parents on safe, legal, ethical and educational. With this history as a basis, we have expanded our programming to meet a vital need in our adult population as well. With our Adult Learn to Hunt Program, we focus our mission on novice hunters with an interest in forging a connection between conservation hunting and sustainable eating. As land stewards, we know the many challenges of participating in traditional outdoor activities and aim to break down those barriers for our fellow Texans.

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The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission have approved hunting regulations for the 2024-25 season with the following modifications and clarifications to 2024-25 Statewide Hunting and Migratory Game Bird proclamations:

• Eliminate the Light Goose Conservation Order from both eastern and western zones due to continuous declines of wintering light geese in Texas.

• Extend the regular goose season for light geese by 19 days in the Eastern Zone to provide more hunting opportunity during the regular season.

• Reduce the daily bag limit of light geese in both eastern and western zones from 10 to five.

• Standardize possession limit for light geese to three times the daily bag limit for regulatory consistency.

• Change greater white-fronted goose daily bag limit restrictions from two in the aggregate to a simplified dark goose daily bag limit of five in the western zone.

• Change the Special White-winged Dove Days season structure due to calendar progression.

• Change the season structure of the second segment for dove in the north zone to allow later dove hunting during the holiday season.

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NWTF Chapters in Texas received national recognition for their hard work at the 45th Annual NWTF Convention and Sports Show, February 14-18, 2024, at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville, TN. Awards were given to the following Chapters for their achievements:

LA Dixon Best First Banquet - 2rd Place - Golden Crescent of Texas Chapter, Victoria

LA Dixon Outstanding Chapter, 2,500-4,999 Members - 1st Place - Texas State Chapter

LA Dixon World Slam Club - April AWOL Chapter, Nacogdoches

LA Dixon Grand Slam Club - Houston Chapter, Houston

LA Dixon Grand Slam Club - Highland Lakes Chapter, Marble Falls

LA Dixon Grand Slam Club - East Texas Chapter, Marble Falls

LA Dixon Grand Slam Club - Golden Crescent of Texas Chapter, Victoria

NWTF Partnership Award - Kauffman County Double Beards Chapter, Terrell | Cross Timbers Chapter, Decatur | Cottonwood Creek Chapter, McKinney

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A great time was had by all who attended the 2023 NWTF TX Awards Night and Volunteer Appreciation Banquet, held at the Stein Room in Houston on January 27, 2024.

Many thanks and a huge shout out to the Houston Chapter for hosting this event. The Casino Night was awesome!

Thanks for coming out to show your support for the National Wild Turkey Federation in Texas and all the good work this organization does across the country in promoting responsible hunting and championing the conservation of our nation’s precious natural resources.

Our banquet would not be a success without the support of our members, sponsorship partners and donors.

Thank you for helping us and the NWTF promoting healthy habitats and healthy harvests in Texas for generations to come.

We appreciate you!

Visit our website at https://www.txnwtf.org/ for the latest news about the NWTF in Texas.

Visit the Houston Chapter website at https://www.nwtfhouston.org/ for all the their latest news.

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I’m incredibly proud of the partnership between Texas Wildlife Association, Texas Parks and Wildlife and the National Wild Turkey Federation Texas State Chapter!

The opportunities this joint venture gives to our JAKES and adults alike is critical to the NWTF Mission of conserving the wild turkey and the preservation of our hunting heritage here in the Great State of Texas!

With Texas being less than 97% private, access to land for introducing new hunters, creating outdoor families, and ensuring we are preserving our Hunting Heritage is harder and harder to do.

Thank you to everyone who supports, likes and shares on social media, and volunteers for these vital partnership hunts!

You are our Mission in Action and we simply could not do it without you!

Amanda Lilly

Texas Regional Director

National Wild Turkey Federation

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The NWTF April AWOL Chapter in the Nacogdoches, Texas area recently made a $20,000 donation to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for the Northeast Texas Conservation Delivery Network’s Habitat Incentive Program.

This increased funding will provide critical habitat enhancements in priority areas in northeast Texas, such as where the Eastern wild turkey has been reintroduced into Texas as part of TPWD’s Super Stocking Program.

Once prevalent in east Texas, the Eastern wild turkey was reduced to an estimated 100 birds in the mid-1900s. Since 2014, the TPWD’s Super Stocking Program, the process of releasing 70-plus birds at a time, has provided east Texas with excellent results and a bright future for the subspecies in the region.

However, TPWD only releases birds on quality habitat where the translocated turkeys will have a higher chance of survival and reproduction. This includes at least 10,000 acres of contiguous land and the essential habitat features that turkeys need to flourish. Habitat is scored and approved before translocation efforts can begin.

Quality habitat is where the April AWOL’s contribution will be allocated.

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Results:

• 593 wild turkey observed (down 28% from 2021)

• 131 unique observations (under 200 goal)

• 0.68 Poults per hen (down 66% from 2021)

• 2.92 Poults per brood (down 30% from 2021)

• 16% of Hens were with Broods (down 71% from 2021)

• 0.77 Males per hen

• 7.08 turkeys per 1,000 miles driven (down 43% from 2021)

• Hope to increase observations in 2023 by enlisting LE assistance

Research Update – Banding Study

Survival, harvest, and population size of Rio Grande wild turkeys in Texas. Published in the Journal of Wildlife Management’s August 2022 edition

• Texas State Chapter of NWTF played a huge role bankrolling the reward bands for this study

• Pairs harvest rates with TPWD’s Small Game Harvest Survey numbers

• 7-year average male abundance was 228,709

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Let’s give a big ole’ Texas welcome to Nashville’s Jordan Rowe, Whitney Duncan and Jenna LaMaster as they visit our great State to harvest birds and share a little music along the way.

“Featuring Texas in this film series means a lot to all our local chapters, volunteers and members right across the State,” says Tony Hawley, NWTF Texas State Chapter President. “It’ll go a long way in helping us get more people involved in the NWTF mission and the hunting experience here.”

Country music, Rio Grande turkeys, first-time turkey hunters and new hunting adventures are the heart of the upcoming “Gobblers and Guitars: Texas Edition” digital video series from the National Wild Turkey Federation, Winchester Repeating Arms, Shine United and HuntStand.

Set to kick off the week of July 3, the three-part series will follow Nashville singer and songwriters Jordan Rowe, Whitney Duncan and Jenna LaMaster as they hit Mason, Texas, to chase Hill Country turkeys and share in the camaraderie of the outdoors.

The avenue into the outdoor lifestyle is never a set path, and the same holds true for the musicians featured in “Gobblers and Guitars.”

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National Wild Turkey Federation member and wildlife journalist Chester Moore was honored by the Press Club of Southeast Texas for journalistic work on wild turkeys and wild sheep conservation at their Excellence In Media Awards.

His article “Conservation In Action: Angelina County Eastern Turkey Release” took first place for environmental writing.

Moore has photographed and written on the Eastern turkey releases at that site since they began in early 2021.

“It’s such an honor to be recognized for that story as what I have seen Texas Parks & Wildlife, NWTF and the Middle Neches Eastern Turkey Cooperative do in Angelina County has been amazing. It’s true environmental stewardship,” Moore said.

His “Wild Sheep Pandemic” public service announcement took first place in the Public Service Announcement category and was written, narrated and edited by Moore to raise awareness to the issue of pathogen/disease transmission between domestic and wild sheep.

His radio program “Moore Outdoors” on Newstalk AM 560 KLVI, took first place for radio talk show for an episode he did on Texas’ desert bighorns with Froylan Hernandez, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department Desert Bighorn Sheep Program leader.

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Dr. Samuel Prescott McManus was born on March 16, 1933, in Gulfport, Mississippi, to parents Sidney and Dixie.

He and his older brother, Hugh, spent many days fishing on the coast and exploring the woods together every chance they could.

Sam played sports in High School, was as smart as a whip and the President of his class. He was active in the U.S. Naval Reserve and then attended Ole Miss, where he met and married his soulmate and the love of his life, Lee.

Sam was passionate about the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF), tirelessly giving his time and talents to the organization at the local and state level for over 50 years. What was important to Sam was sharing the experience with others, spending time in the woods and promoting the stewardship of the land. In his early days you had to be quick to outdraw him on a gobbler, but in later years he gracefully made sure to put his hunting partners in the best position for the shot.

Forever the optimist, he was always convinced that another gobbler was just over that next ridge.

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We will be awarding Jaci $2500 to be paid to her school of choice.

Jaci is a worthy recipient of the Dr. James Earl Kennamer Scholarship because of her involvement in her community, her extra curricular activities, maintaining a high GPA and class rank and still be able to hunt and preserve our hunting heritage.

Jaci started hunting at the age of six. Whether it was deer, turkey, or even an oryx she was always ready to go hunt. Being raised in an environment where her family hunted, she learned very many lessons and understood how important the outdoor and hunting are.

Every year she looked forward to attending the Cross Timbers Chapter banquet because it was her dream to win a gun. One year, she recalls, she bid on a pink .22 Crickett against other kids and was lucky to snag it even after raising her hand a few more times than her parents may have wanted her to.

Jaci is thankful for the opportunities that she has been given to get outdoors and hunt because she has been able to learn, grow, and share memories with her family. Eventually, she would like her kids to have those same opportunities she did as a child.

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NWTF Texas Chapters were back in Nashville, February 16-20, 2022, for the 46th Annual NWTF Convention and Sport Show at the beautiful Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center for a weekend packed with the latest hunting gear, live and silent auctions, entertainment and much more.

NWTF Chapters in Texas received national recognition for their hard work. Awards were given to the following Chapters for their achievements:

• LA Dixon Outstanding Chapter, 2,500-4,999 Members - 3rd Place - Montgomery County Chapter, Conroe

• LA Dixon Royal Slam Club - Pineywoods Chapter, Lufkin

• LA Dixon Grand Slam Club - April Awol Chapter, Nacogdoches

• LA Dixon Grand Slam Club - Highland Lakes Chapter, Burnet

• NWTF Partnership Award - Kauffman County Double Beards Chapter, Terrell | Cross Timbers Chapter, Decatur | Cottonwood Creek Chapter, McKinney

Click the link below for the Convention recap:

https://www.nwtf.org/convention/recap

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