I was in a discussion with a diehard turkey hunter the other morning on a dusty country lane. He had been out since before daylight and was scouting for likely bird hunting spots.

Gobblers have this uncanny ability to be triggered into making a response to different sounds they hear. Owl hoots, crow caws, fire sirens, thunder and even the gobble of a rival gobbler can set off a response.

The response can be a big mistake for the birds, as it gives away their location to hunters and predators. However, the gobbling also serves as a notice to other turkeys that the territory has been claimed.

The opening day of spring turkey season is this weekend, and they will hear all kinds of gobbles, purrs and putts in the woodlands.

In the past, I might have thought that the turkey would respond to the most vigorous calling efforts, but now I am a bit wiser. We have quite a history of observing turkeys at our homestead. They are regular visitors at certain times of the year, and, during these visits, we have learned a great deal about their behavior.

First of all, in the world of turkeys there is only one boss. The lead hen turkey is the ruler and is the smartest bird in the flock. She sets the pace for the entire group.

For years, we had a bearded hen turkey that ran the show around our property. She would bring her poults to feed at our bird feeder, work the lawn areas and scratch the woods for acorns.

In the summer months, we would hear the sound, and her posturing guided her young with soft reminder clucks and sharp warning pops.

At times, she would wander away and a wayward youngster would lag behind. Suddenly realizing its plight, it would start a string of calls to the lead hen. She would cluck a few times and the young bird would go running.

Gobblers are a different story. They have no family ties and are only interested in hens for propagation. Gobblers often are in bachelor groups with mature birds and Jakes, who are teen gobblers.

During this time, the boss gobbler is decided by a series of fan displays, raucous challenges to each other and sometimes fights. The fights are usually over quickly, with the lesser bird running out of the area.

At times, two big gobblers will go at it with wings flapping, legs armed with sharp bony spurs kicking and necks pushing around like a snake. This is a sight to see and the entire flock watches for the victor.

These boss gobblers are the birds that every turkey hunter looks for in the spring.

When measuring up a turkey, many hunters are very choosy while other less experienced hunters are just glad to see a bird. The keys to a prime gobbler can be observed by anyone: it must be a large bird, and, in the world of wild turkeys, a 20-pound bird is large.

They must have a full, even fan of tail feathers. Shorter feathers are signs of an immature bird, and missing feathers are no good, either.

The beard is a wiry patch of hair that hangs down in front of the bird's chest area and should be 9 inches long or more. The spurs on a gobbler look like a sharp spike located on the back of the leg. They are turkey weapons and a mature bird easily can have spurs 1½ inches long.

Good luck with your pursuit of a boss gobbler, but do be careful as turkey hunting is one of the most dangerous hunting pursuits.

The "turkeys" on two legs are the reason that this statistic is so alarming. Wear orange when walking in or out of the woods, tie an orange band around a tree near your setup and don't be afraid to warn off another hunter.