# Bowhunting Fall Turkeys-Shot Placement



## Ack (Oct 3, 2004)

I'm sure many guys will be trying to fill their fall permit by using their bow this year, so I thought I would post up a few more pics to help show shot placement when using archery equipment for turkeys. Some of this is the same as my post from this past spring, but note that I haven't included any strutting pics, since more than likely you won't run into that kind of situation in the fall.

Really you can shoot a turkey from just about any angle and kill it, but certain shot angles are going to be higher percentage than others. Of course you can always take a head shot, but unless you are using a Guillotine this will be a tough shot unless the bird is standing absolutely still. The best shot placement on a broadside bird is right at the top of the bronze patch of feathers that are on the wing. First, this shot will take out the hips on the bird. This shot will pretty much anchor the bird and, without being able to run, he cannot push off to get up into the air...a good thing. Second, this shot will also get the vitals, which actually sit back farther in a bird than a lot of people think. Missing either high or low should still get you the bird, as you will either take out his legs or hit his spine.











A shot taken while the bird is facing or walking away is also a fairly high percentage shot. An arrow placed right where the lighter wing feathers meet the darker feathers on his back will put the bird down quick...basically a spine shot. This shot also gives you a little more room for error, because if you hit high you will get the neck or head, and if you hit low you will get vitals. Keep in mind that in these pics the bird is angled slightly, thus showing a slightly different placement than described above.....




















Shooting a bird head on can be a little tougher, but if you can get the penetration with your equipment just visualize where the vitals are sitting. A shot placed close to where the beard comes out will often times be a little high for getting vitals, but you may get the spine with this shot. If you aim at the base of the waddles, or neck, he will go down pretty quickly.











Here are just a few more scenarios that you may come across this fall.....





























Here is a skeletal picture of a turkey to visualize where things are inside the bird...











To sum all of this up, to get the vitals on a bird just aim halfway up and slightly behind where the leg meets the body, this is where you'll see the bronze patch of feathers, whether the bird is stutting or not. Head shots are a quick kill, but obviously a lot tougher than a body shot. The good thing about a head shot is that either you hit 'em hard or miss 'em clean. I would discourage people from aiming for the wing butt, which many hunters do, simply for the fact that the bird can still run and you really are not getting any vital organs with that shot.

Hopefully these pics will help everyone chasing them with a bow this fall...good luck!:coolgleam


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## mikieday (Jan 20, 2004)

thanks for the heads up


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## TrekJeff (Sep 7, 2007)

Well done, nice pics for shot placement.


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