‘I was in disbelief — total disbelief. The chances are so slim. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve dreamed of killing a color phase.’
Mississippi Clarion Ledger
April 16, 2026, 4:03 a.m. CT
Mississippi turkey hunter fulfills dream with red and black phase gobbler
‘I was in disbelief — total disbelief. The chances are so slim. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve dreamed of killing a color phase.’
Mississippi Clarion Ledger
April 16, 2026, 4:03 a.m. CT
- A Mississippi hunter harvested a rare turkey with an unusual color pattern.
- The hunter, Caleb Hinton, is the Wild Turkey Program coordinator for the state’s wildlife department.
- The turkey had characteristics of both a red phase and a black phase, which are rare genetic anomalies.
- Hinton described harvesting the bird as a once-in-a-lifetime experience and the ultimate in turkey hunting.
A Mississippi hunter said he has heard stories and seen photos of turkeys with unusual color patterns for much of his life.
In Mississippi, hunters have harvested white turkeys, copper and black turkeys and some that are a light rust or reddish color.
Harvesting such a rarity always seemed like something that happened to someone else — until it happened to him.
“I was shaking,” said Caleb Hinton of Beaumont. “I wanted to cry and immediately called my dad.
“I was in disbelief — total disbelief. The chances are so slim. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve dreamed of killing a color phase. I used to love watching the hunting shows on VHS tapes. I don’t know if anyone killed one, but they talked about it. I absorbed that and wanted to experience it myself.”Need a news break? Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more!
If you’re a regular reader of the Clarion Ledger and the name Caleb Hinton sounds familiar, there’s a reason. Hinton is the Wild Turkey Program coordinator for the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. He is the person who is often interviewed for articles about turkeys in Mississippi, particularly if one with an unusual color phase is harvested.
This interview was different, though. This time, Hinton was the hunter who harvested a rare bird.
Mississippi turkey hunter locates a gobbler
Hunting in South Mississippi, Hinton said he spotted a gobbler on the land where he hunts along the Leaf River earlier this season.
“I glimpsed him running across the road a couple of days earlier, but I didn’t know he was a color phase,” Hinton said. “I just knew he was a long-beard.”
On Saturday morning, March 21, Hinton was in the woods where he had seen the bird.
“I was there about 6:15, nothing crazy,” Hinton said. “I think he gobbled around 6:40ish.
“He was pretty close. He was about 200 yards. I advanced to him. He was in a typical hardwood bottom we have down here on the river.”
Hinton moved toward the turkey, but kept a good distance between them so as not to spook him. Hinton set up on a ridge about 125 yards from the bird. The turkey was gobbling on the roost and then flew down to the ground, but based on the direction of the gobbles, it didn’t move much farther.
“I just sat tight and called to him and scratched in the leaves, but he was sitting tight where he landed,” Hinton said.
A change of calls produces a gobbler for MS turkey hunter
Hinton was using a diaphragm call and a trumpet call to lure the turkey in. The turkey was gobbling, but not budging. So, Hinton decided to change tactics and pulled out a box call. That got the gobbler’s attention.
“When I clucked on the box call, he double-gobbled,” Hinton said. “I thought that was a good sign.”
And apparently it was. The turkey walked up the ridge where Hinton was sitting and was only about 40 yards away, but Hinton had no shot because growth on the ground was thick.
Then, at about 30 yards from Hinton, the turkey walked into an opening. Hinton fired his shotgun.
Red and black color phase turkey fulfills hunter’s dream
Hinton rushed to the turkey not knowing it was anything other than a typical eastern turkey. When Hinton grabbed the bird and its wings spread, Hinton knew he had harvested something special.
The wing feathers were black instead of being barred. Then Hinton realized there were areas on the back of the turkey where feathers were more of a caramel color instead of the usual black. It had characteristics of both a red phase turkey and a black phase; both of which are genetic anomalies that are considered rare.
“That, to me, is the ultimate in turkey hunting,” Hinton said. “That’s like killing a Boone & Crockett whitetail, in my opinion.
“To me, personally, that’s how I feel. In my opinion, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime kind of bird.”
- A Mississippi hunter harvested a rare turkey with an unusual color pattern.
- The hunter, Caleb Hinton, is the Wild Turkey Program coordinator for the state’s wildlife department.
- The turkey had characteristics of both a red phase and a black phase, which are rare genetic anomalies.
- Hinton described harvesting the bird as a once-in-a-lifetime experience and the ultimate in turkey hunting.
A Mississippi hunter said he has heard stories and seen photos of turkeys with unusual color patterns for much of his life.
In Mississippi, hunters have harvested white turkeys, copper and black turkeys and some that are a light rust or reddish color.
Harvesting such a rarity always seemed like something that happened to someone else — until it happened to him.
“I was shaking,” said Caleb Hinton of Beaumont. “I wanted to cry and immediately called my dad.
“I was in disbelief — total disbelief. The chances are so slim. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve dreamed of killing a color phase. I used to love watching the hunting shows on VHS tapes. I don’t know if anyone killed one, but they talked about it. I absorbed that and wanted to experience it myself.”Need a news break? Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more!
If you’re a regular reader of the Clarion Ledger and the name Caleb Hinton sounds familiar, there’s a reason. Hinton is the Wild Turkey Program coordinator for the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. He is the person who is often interviewed for articles about turkeys in Mississippi, particularly if one with an unusual color phase is harvested.
This interview was different, though. This time, Hinton was the hunter who harvested a rare bird.
Mississippi turkey hunter locates a gobbler
Hunting in South Mississippi, Hinton said he spotted a gobbler on the land where he hunts along the Leaf River earlier this season.
“I glimpsed him running across the road a couple of days earlier, but I didn’t know he was a color phase,” Hinton said. “I just knew he was a long-beard.”
On Saturday morning, March 21, Hinton was in the woods where he had seen the bird.
“I was there about 6:15, nothing crazy,” Hinton said. “I think he gobbled around 6:40ish.
“He was pretty close. He was about 200 yards. I advanced to him. He was in a typical hardwood bottom we have down here on the river.”
Hinton moved toward the turkey, but kept a good distance between them so as not to spook him. Hinton set up on a ridge about 125 yards from the bird. The turkey was gobbling on the roost and then flew down to the ground, but based on the direction of the gobbles, it didn’t move much farther.
“I just sat tight and called to him and scratched in the leaves, but he was sitting tight where he landed,” Hinton said.
A change of calls produces a gobbler for MS turkey hunter
Hinton was using a diaphragm call and a trumpet call to lure the turkey in. The turkey was gobbling, but not budging. So, Hinton decided to change tactics and pulled out a box call. That got the gobbler’s attention.
“When I clucked on the box call, he double-gobbled,” Hinton said. “I thought that was a good sign.”
And apparently it was. The turkey walked up the ridge where Hinton was sitting and was only about 40 yards away, but Hinton had no shot because growth on the ground was thick.
Then, at about 30 yards from Hinton, the turkey walked into an opening. Hinton fired his shotgun.
Red and black color phase turkey fulfills hunter’s dream
Hinton rushed to the turkey not knowing it was anything other than a typical eastern turkey. When Hinton grabbed the bird and its wings spread, Hinton knew he had harvested something special.
The wing feathers were black instead of being barred. Then Hinton realized there were areas on the back of the turkey where feathers were more of a caramel color instead of the usual black. It had characteristics of both a red phase turkey and a black phase; both of which are genetic anomalies that are considered rare.
“That, to me, is the ultimate in turkey hunting,” Hinton said. “That’s like killing a Boone & Crockett whitetail, in my opinion.
“To me, personally, that’s how I feel. In my opinion, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime kind of bird.”
Mississippi turkey hunter fulfills dream with rare color phase gobbler