In some areas such as Brownwood, Coleman, Breckenridge and Albany, improvements in range conditions and nesting success have been evidenced by increased populations of both turkeys and quail. It's often the case that if one of these birds does well, so does the other.

In addition to lots of seed-producing weeds and a plentiful supply of small insects, the turkeys also have had an abundance of acorns to feast on for the past two years. Although acorns are a short-term food source, they do help jump-start the turkeys into healthy physical shape before winter arrives and puts the birds on short rations.

Two years ago, many hunters returned from the field with reports of having seen mostly jakes. Their disappointment then suggests positive possibilities for this season, however, as those young birds now are 3 years or more old and will be sporting longer beards and spurs.

Look for some of the best hunting to be in the longstanding hotspot areas that include just about anywhere along the Clear Fork of the Brazos River and the main arm of the Brazos west and northwest of Palo Pinto. Some of the top counties will be Palo Pinto, Stephens, Shackelford, Haskell, Callahan, Young, and Throckmorton; Jack, Jones, Eastland and Parker are apt to yield up many gobblers as well. Don't pass up a hunt in any of these areas.

EDWARDS PLATEAU
Hunters who thought that 2005 was a great year in this region should expect the same or even better success this spring! Last year was great because of excellent hatches in 2001 -- said to be the best since 1997 -- and then again in 2002; these put many large birds in the fields in 2005. Good hatches for the past three years have kept the pace toward large adult birds going for each of the spring seasons.

Some portions of the extreme western Edwards Plateau, especially around the Concho River, remained dry during crucial nesting periods last year, but the overall region has had adequate rain, and turkey populations remain high. The action's expected to be especially fine around Menard, Junction, Lampasas, Hamilton, San Saba, and Bandera, and all the way southward to the high mountains and running creeks and rivers north of Uvalde.

Even though the region harbors a large number of big gobblers, a lot of hunters in that region don't seem to mind taking many of the younger birds instead of waiting for a longbeard. Perhaps that's one reason for the high hunter success in the Edwards Plateau.

But if you're after a trophy gobbler, patience could pay off this year. You should have a lot of gobblers to choose from, and waiting for that 3- or 4-year-old bird could add a lot more enjoyment to your spring hunting experiences.

SOUTH TEXAS
Things look much brighter this spring than they did at this time a year ago, when landowners, hunters and wildlife biologists were concerned about relatively low production of birds in 2003 and 2004. Those two years' merely so-so reproductive success was blamed on dry spring weather conditions. On the other hand, those two years' unusually wet summers aided in keeping the habitat conditions above average, helping those birds that were hatched to achieve a high survival rate.