Blog #362 Thanksgiving

A male or “tom” turkey in full breeding display, courtesy of Ryan O'Keven. 

“I don’t remember seeing wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) as a kid,” is commonly  heard these days across rural New York. Large bands of up to 50 females travel around  fields and woodlands in search of food and males. But like many hawks and other game  birds, turkeys were almost wiped out in the 19th century due to rapid habitat destruction and over-hunting. Their recovery was slow and we’re lucky they didn’t vanish entirely.  

Originally, wild turkeys occupied the southern portions of New York, Vermont, New  Hampshire, and Maine and were a valuable food source for Native Americans, who first  domesticated the birds, and early European colonists also hunted turkeys for their meat. Turkeys were abundant in eastern woodlands until the mid-1800s, when settlers cleared  forests for agriculture, real estate development, and railroad construction. Unregulated  hunting and rapid loss of forest habitat led to steep population declines. Wild turkey  numbers fell to their lowest by the 1930s-40s; populations declined by 90 % across their  range in New York and New England states. All efforts to restore wild turkey populations  failed.

Vast stretches of northeastern farmland were abandoned in the Great Depression allowing the regrowth of turkey habitat. After decades of failed restoration techniques,  wildlife biologists the 1950s, utilized cannon nets to capture and relocate turkeys to their  former habitats. These restoration attempts were successful and used to relocate wild  turkey throughout the U.S. 

A group or “rafter” of Wild Turkeys, courtesy of Christine Haines. 

Wild Turkeys are easily to identify because of their large size, long neck and legs, and  bare head. Both sexes have a red wattle—loose, bumpy skin hanging from their neck— but it is more noticeable in male or “tom” turkeys. Toms perform an impressive breeding  display with their tail feathers fanned and the chests fluffed up. Known known for their  famous “gobble” vocalization, these heavy bodied birds are awkward short distances  fliers and roost in trees. 

Turkey seek out mature forests with open canopies, adjacent to fields and other  openings. In the northeast, they seek out forests comprised of nut trees, like oaks,  hickories, and beech, and soft mast species like cherry. Turkeys forage for seeds and  nuts on the forest floor, grain in the fields, and the occasional plants and insects. Their  ground nests are found at the base of trees in the forest, but can also be built in tall  grass or under a shrub. 

Wild Turkey populations recovered and strict hunting regulations helps keep the  population in check. Turkeys have expanded their range to include all states, except  Alaska, parts of Mexico, and southern Canada. Their conservation success story was  due to a cooperative conservation efforts to restore their population. Landowners can help create and maintain important habitat for many birds, including Wild  Turkey. By creating open canopies within mature forests, and planting nut and berry-

producing trees, turkeys property owners will benefit many other forest birds that use  similar habitat, like American Woodcock, Ruffed Grouse, Cerulean Warbler, Downy,  Pileated, and Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Indigo Bunting, White-breasted Nuthatch, Blue  Jay, and many more. Many mammal species use turkey habitat, as well, including deer,  bear, hare, squirrels, and more. 

A poult staying close to a hen, courtesy of Jeanette Tasey. 

New Yorkers can help monitor the by participating in the Department of Environmental  Conservation’s Summer Wild Turkey Sighting Survey. Observers share details about  the number of males, females, and young turkeys they see to track the reproductive  success of turkeys for future generations. 

Happy Thanksgiving! Be thankful and give to others. 

Eyes to the sky! 

Candace 

Candace E. Cornell 

Friends ofSaltPoint 

Lansing, NY 

Cayuga Lake Osprey Network

NY cec222@gmail.com