Crop Contents

[Old Geezer]

My wife and some fellow hunters think I have gone off my rocker when I start sorting through the crop contents of birds I shoot.  But by identifying what the birds are eating, at times it makes them easier to find.  The grouse I shot before the PA turkey opener had eaten multiflora rose hips and some small crabapples, what I consider regular grouse food.  When I examined the crop of my opening day mature hen I was in for a surprise.  Nine nuts from a Pignut Hickory tree, many barberries, small millipedes -still alive, some dandelion leaves, a green stink bug, some unidentified seeds in the upper left that had sprouted and other items.  If you see anything not mentioned add it to the thread.

Ralph

[West Augusta]

We always opened the crops of Grouse back when there were grouse.  They were always full of Mountain Tea.  I have 't seen any Mountain Tea in years  By coincidence, I haven't seen any grouse in years either.

The hollow I hunt is full of Pig Nuts.  That might be part of the reason the birds were hard to find.  Food everywhere.

[Mjc21706]

I always find it very interesting myself Ralph and I agree it sure helps to know.

[firedup]

Ralph, I have always heard that turks eat hickory nuts and I have opened a few crops (but not all )  and that is the first hickory nuts I have seen.  PROOF AT LAST!   The bird my niece took this past weekend was half full of pawpaw seeds. 

[Will]

I do it with everything I harvest be it fish, deer or turkeys.  You can learn a lot.

[GR8CALLS]

 My dad would always do a necropsy on the stomach of any game we brought home from our hunts. Didn't make a difference if it was squirrel, fox or deer, we studied and learned when and where to find game when they became scarce. It's always helped me when I'm in the woods and hunting.

Bill

[nx95240]

Ralph, I have always heard that turks eat hickory nuts and I have opened a few crops (but not all )  and that is the first hickory nuts I have seen.  PROOF AT LAST!   The bird my niece took this past weekend was half full of pawpaw seeds. 

the pawpaw  that the banana like fruit right?

[West Augusta]

Ralph, I have always heard that turks eat hickory nuts and I have opened a few crops (but not all )  and that is the first hickory nuts I have seen.  PROOF AT LAST!  The bird my niece took this past weekend was half full of pawpaw seeds.  

the pawpaw  that the banana like fruit right?

Yes it is Brian.  You find them around old farms up here.

[lonnielou688]

Good post Ralph, I always check it myself, even with the fish I catch, helps a lot.

[longbeard56]

I always check. Interesting to see the various stuff the birds eat. The Turkeys really know how to shop for food.
Good Post!!

[mmclain]

I check the crops too......ducks, turkeys, dove........found a crop full of trillium leaves once, and dogwood blossoms another time.....

[Lowcountry Longbeard]

I always do this too Ralph.  It's great to see the what is on the local salad bar.  Imagine how I felt last year when I opened up a crop on a beautiful tom to find it full of scratch (cracked corn and wheat) grain!!  Since nobody on the property hunted turkeys and it was my first visit of the year, it certainly can tell you what the neighbors are doing!! 

[hawglips]

I typically check the crop also.  And I recall the first time I killed a bird with a crop full of corn.  Scared the heck out of me.  That answered why the turkeys always wanted to be heading over to the neighboring property....

[magnoliagamecalls]

Here is one we killed on the Rosebud Indian Reservation a few years back.

[Old Geezer]

Great photo,  they look like corn worms.  Does anyone have a positive ID?

Ralph