NATCHEZ — As the spring turkey season begins to wind down, stories of successes and disappointments begin to circulate, and it seems that a youth movement is beginning in the turkey hunting community.

Many of the success stories coming from the turkey hunting community are about children bagging their first birds, while some of the older hunters seem to be having some trouble.

Bubba Bruce, of Mossy Oak’s show “Turkey Thugs,” has had some success this spring, but most of it has been out of state, he said.

“Actually, I went to Alabama and had good hunts over there,” Bruce said. “I’m traveling a lot so I don’t have a lot of time to hunt in Mississippi right now. (I have heard) they have been acting a little strange (locally, though).”

“Looking at (the turkeys) right now around here, most of (them) are still kind of grouped up, the toms and the hens, and they haven’t really separated. Therefore they aren’t real vocal and are not going to gobble a lot.”

Bruce, who has lived in Natchez for 40 years, said he’s heard that several local hunters are getting birds later in the afternoon, he said.

“Turkey Thugs” is an instructional show that focuses on people just getting started, Bruce said.

Long-time turkey hunter and Natchez resident Matt Smith said he has heard similar stories about the turkeys’ irregular behavior.

“The guys I’ve been talking to are saying the turkeys are gobbling in the trees, and when they hit the ground, it’s over,” Smith said. “The hens are staying with the gobblers all the time.”

Smith, like Bruce, has heard stories about hunters getting birds later in the day.

“Just from hearsay, from the success of the die-hard hunters, you need to be focusing on going out around 10 or 11 a.m. to try to get a bird to gobble,” Smith said. “So my pointer would be to sleep in and try it later in the day.”

Bruce Ross is another, long-time, local hunter that has had a string of bad luck.

“I haven’t killed a turkey in three years,” Ross said.

“We’re not hearing as many birds as we normally do, I don’t know why. It’s the same thing in Kingston. We hear birds and that’s always good but we’re not hearing the number of birds (as we usually do).”

Ross has been hunting in the area for around 25 years, he said.

“I’ve heard of a lot more (children killing turkeys),” Bruce said. “That’s what you want, I’ve got several friends with sons that have almost limited out.”

And although Bruce Ross hasn’t seen any success recently, he was a key part of the success for one of the young hunters that killed his first bird this season.

Ross’ son Brandon, and Brandon’s friend Tyler Buckles, both 15, went out together on the first Saturday of the youth season (March 5) and Buckles got his first turkey kill, Ross said.

“The whole night before we went out, every five minutes we were saying we were going to kill a turkey,” Buckles said.

Brandon Ross said he had a good feeling about their chances as well, he said.

“When we woke up I said, ‘You’re going to kill a turkey today,’” Brandon Ross said.

Bruce Ross was calling the birds for his son, a freshman at Adams County Christian School, and Buckles, a sophomore at ACCS, that morning at Picnic Ground Hunting Club in Jefferson County.

After the group unsuccessfully called and chased a few birds, they were standing around, planning their next move, and Bruce Ross heard a stick break, he said.

“I just knew it was a turkey,” Bruce Ross said.

The two hunters sat down and Bruce Ross moved about 20 yards away, he said.

“I saw both of them move their guns, and I couldn’t see the turkeys,” Bruce Ross said.

“Then they shot. If it had been another minute they would have walked right up and seen us.”

It was Buckles’ first turkey ever.

He killed two more that week, he said.

“It felt pretty relieving (to get three), because it took me two years to get my first one,” Buckles said.

Brandon Ross has killed several turkeys, but none this year, his father said. Bruce Ross has been taking his son hunting since Brandon was about 8 years old.

Another young hunter went out with her dad and got her first turkey April 15.

The Netterville family, father Howard, his wife Allison and their two children Lexi, 9, and Fred, went for a Sunday afternoon walk at Silverwood Plantation, their hunting land where the family lives in Wilkinson County.

As they were walking they snuck up on some turkeys dining at one of the food plots, and Howard Netterville asked his daughter, Lexi, if she wanted to come back the next day and hunt. She said, “yes.”

The two went back to the food plot the next morning before dawn and tracked the turkeys down to a creek bank.

The two drew close to the turkey and Lexi got him in range and shot, Howard said.

“It makes you want to cry,” Howard said. “You always want to see your kids do what you love to do so it makes me very happy.”

Howard said his daughter has been shooting for a couple of years and has also killed three deer.