Post by Woody Williams on May 10, 2023 7:32:00 GMT -5
Good read.,
75 years of research on Wild Turkeys nothing NEW, it's been the same story, only difference today no fur market and less trappers. You decide!
Only 1 comes out as the NO. 1 Nest predator!!!!!! 5 years more research coming will make it 80 years!!!
Even the Raccoon Research Paper in Southwest Missouri has been submitted to wildlife journals
1948 - Alabama –
Raccoon – 31 Nest Destroyed.
1980’s - KENTUCKY
Raccoon - 52 Nest Destroyed 48.6%
1980’s – Florida
The turkey had a 59% success rate when predator control was not practiced.
The turkey had a 72% success rate where predator control was being carried out during the nesting season.
1980’s – Alabama
Nest Losses – 44.5% - The nest predation
On predator control areas a total of 55.1% of the hens (1971-75) was accompanied by poults compared to only 24.4% on non-predator control areas.
Total poult production was much higher on predator control areas than non-predator control areas for the 5 years.
176 hens and 609 poults seen on predator control areas. 5 year average of poult:hen ratio of 3.5 on predator control areas.
156 hens and 169 poults seen non predator control areas. 5 year average of poult:hen ratio 1.1
1995 – Missouri
In this study, predation caused, on average, 68% of the hen mortality on the two study areas
In this study, legal harvest accounted for 30% of the adult gobbler mortality, and predation accounted for 51% of the mortality.
2015 – Wisconsin
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Bureau of Wildlife Management - Ecology of Wild Turkeys in Wisconsin - A Plan for their Management: 2015-2025 - This is a report of the Wisconsin DNR Turkey Advisory Committee
- Predation accounts for the vast majority (>80%) of nest mortality in most studies.
- Poult survival through the first month of life has varied from 11-76% in published studies of eastern wild turkeys and, though annual variation is tied to weather conditions, predation is often the direct source of mortality.
-Hen and Gobbler Survival. Annual survival for both adult and juvenile hens averaged 53%, but varied from 43% to 63% for 224 hens monitored during the study. Survival varied seasonally, with higher mortality occurring during the reproductive period (March-July). Predators accounted for 70% of mortalities for which the mortality agent could be identified, with fox and coyotes responsible for at least 78 of 94 mortalities. Two hens were killed on roosts by great horned owls.
Of 66 radio-marked gobblers monitored, 59% were harvested during the spring hunting season. Predators, primarily coyotes, accounted for a further 27%.
Production. For hens alive in early April, 98% of adults and 79% of juveniles attempted to nest. However, nest survival was low, with only 14% of nests successfully hatching >1 egg. Over half (55%) of hens that lost their first nest attempted to renest, and in total 22% of hens were successful in hatching eggs in a given year. Of all nests destroyed, 92% were destroyed by mammalian predators. Nests contained an average of 11.2 eggs, with slightly fewer eggs in renests and nests of juvenile hens. Most first nests were initiated from mid- to late April and hatched in late May through June.
2021 - Missouri
"About 75% of nests failed due to predation of the actual nest, and 8% failed due to predation of the hen that was incubating the clutch"
2022 - Oklahoma
Work started with 28 hen turkeys fitted with GPS or VHS radio trackers. Predators killed seven during mating season. Of 21 remaining, only nine are documented to have attempted a first nest and all those nests were lost.
Of those hens, seven attempted a second nesting. By the first of June only four nests remained active. Predators took the eggs of one nest, two nests failed due to predators killing the hens and one nest of four eggs saw a successful hatch of three poults.
The day after the poults were fitted with transmitters all three were killed. One died of unknown causes, one was killed by “a mammalian predator,” and one transmitter was found inside a cottonmouth snake. None of the hens attempted a third nest.
2022 – Alabama
ALABAMA RESEARCH UPDATE (YEAR 1) - Turkeys For Tomorrow
TFT’s preliminary results of this study are as follows:
A total of 20 hens were monitored during spring/summer 2022.
18/20 hens survived (90%).
15 hens (75%) attempted to nest. All hens in the study were adults at time of capture.
2 hens (10%) successfully hatched at least one poult. All other nests failed.
Brood survival was 0% (none of the hatched poults lived).
2022 IOWA RESEARCH UPDATE (YEAR 2) Turkeys for Tomorrow.
Dan Kaminski, a wildlife biologist with the Iowa DNR, has been marking hens and poults with GPS or VHF/radio transmitters since 2021. This has enabled Dan to evaluate population demographic parameters related to hen and poult survival, cause-specific mortality, and nesting rates.
A portion of Dan’s research is listed below and gives a glimpse into the challenges the wild turkey is facing in Iowa. These results are only for one year and so additional years of data are needed to understand how these numbers fit into the greater picture of turkey reproduction in Iowa.
- A total of 73 hens were marked last winter.
- As of early August, 27 hens have died for a mortality rate of 38%.
- Of 63 hens available to nest starting on May 1, only 7 nests hatched successfully (i.e., hatched at least one egg; 11% hen success rate).
- Of 33 hens marked with GPS transmitters, 7 hens did not incubate a nest, 17 incubated 1 nest, 8 incubated 2 nests, and 1 incubated 3 nests.
- Most of the nest failure was due to predation, however, one nest failed due to hay mowing and one failed due to abandonment by the hen
- The median day of nest failure was 8 days, and a preliminary nest survival model indicates 50% of nests failed by day 10 of incubation.
- Of the 7 nests that successfully hatched, the average clutch size was 9.9 eggs per nest and the average number of eggs hatched was 7.7 eggs per nest.
- Of the 54 eggs that hatched, 18 poults were observed during poult captures conducted within 1-3 days post-hatch and a total of 12 poults were marked with VHF/radio transmitters.
During 4-week flush counts for 6 of the 7 hens that hatched a nest, a total of 4 poults remained alive.
2022 TENNESEE RESEARCH UPDATE - Turkeys for Tomorrow.
Turkeys For Tomorrow is helping restore turkey populations in Tennessee by contributing funding to an ongoing research project in Spring 2023.
Dr. Craig Harper and Dr. David Buehler, both with University of Tennessee, have led a comprehensive study of wild turkey ecology and management in five counties of south-middle Tennessee for the past six years. Their preliminary findings are both striking and encouraging.
In brief, findings indicate low nest success and poult survival as a result of predation is limiting the population, and a two-week delay applied to the hunting season’s opening has not impacted any aspect of reproductive success.
By helping fund an additional year of study, Turkeys For Tomorrow will help Harper, Buehler, and their team collect another year of data that will include reproductive success, survival, habitat use, and a predator index, all of which will help provide managers and agencies with information needed to make key decisions related to the impact of predators and season-date decisions on public and private lands
2022 MISSOURI WILD TURKEY RESEARCH - Year 2
Currenly 85.12% nest rate and only 18.4% re-nesting rate, 20% of initial nest hatched
FYI nest success was 30+% on average and 40% or even beyond in certain years
2022 - 72.5% of nest failed due to nest predation of the actual nest, and 12.5% failed due to predation of the hen that was incubating the clutch.
Michael Chamberlain - 2023
Terrell Distinguished Professor of Wildlife Ecology and Management at University of Georgia
Predation is the primary cause of death for hens, nests, and poults. Using data from >1000 nests across the south, we’ve seen that nest success (% that hatch) hovers around 21% on average annually – most nests are taken by predators. Of the 21% that hatch, ~ 35% of them produce at least 1 poult that survives the first month. So, <10% of nests produce a poult that lives to be a month old – producing poults is a challenge!
2023 – Dr. Craig Harper - Headlines: - Less Mowing and More Trapping – Trapping can make a difference - Wild Turkey Science – EP01
Primary Nest Predator - Raccoon still No. 1 nest predator in 2023 - 75 years later
2023 - Taylor Fork Ecological Area is a 60 acre site near Eastern Kentucky Univeristy main campus in Richmond. The Area's habitat is primarily old pastureland with fencerow strips of trees and small patches of woods and canebrakes. Developed as a site for learning, research and restoration, Taylor Fork was conceived by students in EKU's Wildlife Management Program. The students marshaled administrative support, wrote funded grant proposals, organized work days and help manage the site.
13 of 17 artificial nest were depredated 76%
126 of 180 egg were depredated 70%
Primary Depredation Results
Raccoons – 37 events
Coyote – 7 events
Opossums – 3 events
Secondary Depredation Results
Raccoons – 208 events
Coyote – 3 events
Opossums – 62 events
75 years of research on Wild Turkeys nothing NEW, it's been the same story, only difference today no fur market and less trappers. You decide!
Only 1 comes out as the NO. 1 Nest predator!!!!!! 5 years more research coming will make it 80 years!!!
Even the Raccoon Research Paper in Southwest Missouri has been submitted to wildlife journals
1948 - Alabama –
Raccoon – 31 Nest Destroyed.
1980’s - KENTUCKY
Raccoon - 52 Nest Destroyed 48.6%
1980’s – Florida
The turkey had a 59% success rate when predator control was not practiced.
The turkey had a 72% success rate where predator control was being carried out during the nesting season.
1980’s – Alabama
Nest Losses – 44.5% - The nest predation
On predator control areas a total of 55.1% of the hens (1971-75) was accompanied by poults compared to only 24.4% on non-predator control areas.
Total poult production was much higher on predator control areas than non-predator control areas for the 5 years.
176 hens and 609 poults seen on predator control areas. 5 year average of poult:hen ratio of 3.5 on predator control areas.
156 hens and 169 poults seen non predator control areas. 5 year average of poult:hen ratio 1.1
1995 – Missouri
In this study, predation caused, on average, 68% of the hen mortality on the two study areas
In this study, legal harvest accounted for 30% of the adult gobbler mortality, and predation accounted for 51% of the mortality.
2015 – Wisconsin
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Bureau of Wildlife Management - Ecology of Wild Turkeys in Wisconsin - A Plan for their Management: 2015-2025 - This is a report of the Wisconsin DNR Turkey Advisory Committee
- Predation accounts for the vast majority (>80%) of nest mortality in most studies.
- Poult survival through the first month of life has varied from 11-76% in published studies of eastern wild turkeys and, though annual variation is tied to weather conditions, predation is often the direct source of mortality.
-Hen and Gobbler Survival. Annual survival for both adult and juvenile hens averaged 53%, but varied from 43% to 63% for 224 hens monitored during the study. Survival varied seasonally, with higher mortality occurring during the reproductive period (March-July). Predators accounted for 70% of mortalities for which the mortality agent could be identified, with fox and coyotes responsible for at least 78 of 94 mortalities. Two hens were killed on roosts by great horned owls.
Of 66 radio-marked gobblers monitored, 59% were harvested during the spring hunting season. Predators, primarily coyotes, accounted for a further 27%.
Production. For hens alive in early April, 98% of adults and 79% of juveniles attempted to nest. However, nest survival was low, with only 14% of nests successfully hatching >1 egg. Over half (55%) of hens that lost their first nest attempted to renest, and in total 22% of hens were successful in hatching eggs in a given year. Of all nests destroyed, 92% were destroyed by mammalian predators. Nests contained an average of 11.2 eggs, with slightly fewer eggs in renests and nests of juvenile hens. Most first nests were initiated from mid- to late April and hatched in late May through June.
2021 - Missouri
"About 75% of nests failed due to predation of the actual nest, and 8% failed due to predation of the hen that was incubating the clutch"
2022 - Oklahoma
Work started with 28 hen turkeys fitted with GPS or VHS radio trackers. Predators killed seven during mating season. Of 21 remaining, only nine are documented to have attempted a first nest and all those nests were lost.
Of those hens, seven attempted a second nesting. By the first of June only four nests remained active. Predators took the eggs of one nest, two nests failed due to predators killing the hens and one nest of four eggs saw a successful hatch of three poults.
The day after the poults were fitted with transmitters all three were killed. One died of unknown causes, one was killed by “a mammalian predator,” and one transmitter was found inside a cottonmouth snake. None of the hens attempted a third nest.
2022 – Alabama
ALABAMA RESEARCH UPDATE (YEAR 1) - Turkeys For Tomorrow
TFT’s preliminary results of this study are as follows:
A total of 20 hens were monitored during spring/summer 2022.
18/20 hens survived (90%).
15 hens (75%) attempted to nest. All hens in the study were adults at time of capture.
2 hens (10%) successfully hatched at least one poult. All other nests failed.
Brood survival was 0% (none of the hatched poults lived).
2022 IOWA RESEARCH UPDATE (YEAR 2) Turkeys for Tomorrow.
Dan Kaminski, a wildlife biologist with the Iowa DNR, has been marking hens and poults with GPS or VHF/radio transmitters since 2021. This has enabled Dan to evaluate population demographic parameters related to hen and poult survival, cause-specific mortality, and nesting rates.
A portion of Dan’s research is listed below and gives a glimpse into the challenges the wild turkey is facing in Iowa. These results are only for one year and so additional years of data are needed to understand how these numbers fit into the greater picture of turkey reproduction in Iowa.
- A total of 73 hens were marked last winter.
- As of early August, 27 hens have died for a mortality rate of 38%.
- Of 63 hens available to nest starting on May 1, only 7 nests hatched successfully (i.e., hatched at least one egg; 11% hen success rate).
- Of 33 hens marked with GPS transmitters, 7 hens did not incubate a nest, 17 incubated 1 nest, 8 incubated 2 nests, and 1 incubated 3 nests.
- Most of the nest failure was due to predation, however, one nest failed due to hay mowing and one failed due to abandonment by the hen
- The median day of nest failure was 8 days, and a preliminary nest survival model indicates 50% of nests failed by day 10 of incubation.
- Of the 7 nests that successfully hatched, the average clutch size was 9.9 eggs per nest and the average number of eggs hatched was 7.7 eggs per nest.
- Of the 54 eggs that hatched, 18 poults were observed during poult captures conducted within 1-3 days post-hatch and a total of 12 poults were marked with VHF/radio transmitters.
During 4-week flush counts for 6 of the 7 hens that hatched a nest, a total of 4 poults remained alive.
2022 TENNESEE RESEARCH UPDATE - Turkeys for Tomorrow.
Turkeys For Tomorrow is helping restore turkey populations in Tennessee by contributing funding to an ongoing research project in Spring 2023.
Dr. Craig Harper and Dr. David Buehler, both with University of Tennessee, have led a comprehensive study of wild turkey ecology and management in five counties of south-middle Tennessee for the past six years. Their preliminary findings are both striking and encouraging.
In brief, findings indicate low nest success and poult survival as a result of predation is limiting the population, and a two-week delay applied to the hunting season’s opening has not impacted any aspect of reproductive success.
By helping fund an additional year of study, Turkeys For Tomorrow will help Harper, Buehler, and their team collect another year of data that will include reproductive success, survival, habitat use, and a predator index, all of which will help provide managers and agencies with information needed to make key decisions related to the impact of predators and season-date decisions on public and private lands
2022 MISSOURI WILD TURKEY RESEARCH - Year 2
Currenly 85.12% nest rate and only 18.4% re-nesting rate, 20% of initial nest hatched
FYI nest success was 30+% on average and 40% or even beyond in certain years
2022 - 72.5% of nest failed due to nest predation of the actual nest, and 12.5% failed due to predation of the hen that was incubating the clutch.
Michael Chamberlain - 2023
Terrell Distinguished Professor of Wildlife Ecology and Management at University of Georgia
Predation is the primary cause of death for hens, nests, and poults. Using data from >1000 nests across the south, we’ve seen that nest success (% that hatch) hovers around 21% on average annually – most nests are taken by predators. Of the 21% that hatch, ~ 35% of them produce at least 1 poult that survives the first month. So, <10% of nests produce a poult that lives to be a month old – producing poults is a challenge!
2023 – Dr. Craig Harper - Headlines: - Less Mowing and More Trapping – Trapping can make a difference - Wild Turkey Science – EP01
Primary Nest Predator - Raccoon still No. 1 nest predator in 2023 - 75 years later
2023 - Taylor Fork Ecological Area is a 60 acre site near Eastern Kentucky Univeristy main campus in Richmond. The Area's habitat is primarily old pastureland with fencerow strips of trees and small patches of woods and canebrakes. Developed as a site for learning, research and restoration, Taylor Fork was conceived by students in EKU's Wildlife Management Program. The students marshaled administrative support, wrote funded grant proposals, organized work days and help manage the site.
13 of 17 artificial nest were depredated 76%
126 of 180 egg were depredated 70%
Primary Depredation Results
Raccoons – 37 events
Coyote – 7 events
Opossums – 3 events
Secondary Depredation Results
Raccoons – 208 events
Coyote – 3 events
Opossums – 62 events