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Home , Deadly (franchise), Domestic turkey, List of howitzers, North America, Ocellated turkey, Peafowl

History of the Wild ERVICE in North S OREST America U.S. F were severely cut by the early settlers for building needs and for cooking fires and warmth. Wild by James Earl & Mary C. which had inhabited the forests were displaced or disappeared. Kennamer, Ron Brenneman states having turkey populations. NWTF BULLETIN NO.15 he , native to the North American , was are also held Tthe largest ground–nesting in and other Canadian found by the first European immi- provinces as well as in . grants. But the abundant numbers of wild turkey written about in early TERMINOLOGY: historical accounts declined with col- The Europeans were familiar onization until its continued exis- with , and , but tence was questionable. It wasn’t then their explorers found a New until the that the restoration of bird similar to, but not exactly the wild turkey was heralded as a like, what they were used to seeing. wildlife management comeback Those early explorers often wrote of marvel. finding guinea and peafowl–type Early settlers found the wild . Their descriptions though turkey in a variety of habitats as they were later determined to be of a new pushed westward and felled forests bird soon known as the wild turkey. with the and saw. Wild turkey Even Linnaeus, who proposed the populations dipped to their lowest scientific Meleagris gallopavo in numbers between the end of the 19th 1758, used reminiscent of the century and the 1930s, surviving earlier confusion. The name only in the most inaccessible Meleagris means “guinea fowl,” from habitats. the ancient Greco–Romans. The As stands regenerated fol- species name gallopavo is for lowing the Great Depression, the “peafowl” of (gallus for cock stage was set for the return of the and for chickenlike). Linnaeus’ wild turkey to former ranges. After descriptions, however, seem to be II, active restoration pro- based primarily on the domestic grams and research efforts by state NATIONAL WILD turkey imported to the U.S. by agencies eventually led to wild Europeans. He also described a TURKEY FEDERATION turkey populations in every state Mexican subspecies from a specimen except . In 1991, spring wild taken at Mirador, , but turkey hunting seasons were for the which is probably extinct today. first time open in every one of the 49

14-1 MITH ” S INK “T LENN G The eastern wild turkey is the most abun- dant of the 5 subspecies found in North Over the , 5 distinct sub- specifically) by being intermediate; America. It inhabits roughly the eastern species occurring in the wild have hence its name. half of the . been named, all native to North The fifth recognized subspecies America but in different habitat is the Gould’s (M. g. mexicana), which areas. is found in northwestern Mexico and The eastern wild turkey (M. g. parts of southern and New silvestris) inhabits roughly the east- Mexico. This subspecies, which cur- ern half of the United States. It was rently numbers several hundred named by L.J.P. Vieillot in 1817 using individuals in the United States and the word silvestris, meaning “forest” more numerous south of the , turkey. was first described by J. Gould in The wild turkey (M. g. 1856 during his travels . A osceola) was described in 1890 by sixth subspecies (M. g. gallopavo) W.E.D. Scott and was named for the originally inhabiting southern famous chief, Osceola, who Mexico is now probably extinct. It is led his tribe against the white man in the accepted forerunner to the a war beginning in 1835. This bird is taken home from a resident of the southern half of Mexico by the Spanish conquerors in Florida. the . The Merriam’s wild turkey (M. The (M. ocella- g. merriami) of the mountain ta) is a different species, occurring on of the was the Yucatan Peninsula of southeast- named by Dr. E.W. Nelson in 1900 in ern Mexico and possibly in adjacent honor of C. Hart Merriam, first chief countries. In it is much closer of the U.S. Biological Survey. to the peafowl than to its 5 cousins to The Rio Grande wild turkey the north. Males have a (M. g. intermedia) of the south–central bronze–green , long states and northeastern spurs, but no beard. The primary Mexico was described by George B. wing are edged in white. Sennett in 1879. He said the Rio The gray feathers are tipped with Grande turkey differed from the a blue–bronze hue, and there are other races (eastern and Merriam’s peacock–like spots on its tail coverts 14-2 which its name implies. The blue Franklin to be the symbol represent- head has distinct, randomly spaced, ing the collective states on the round, pinkish growths. Instead of nation’s seal when proposals were making the familiar gobbling and being discussed in the and clucking sounds of the other sub- 1780s. Apparently that wasn’t so. species, the ocellated turkey makes a The first “seal committee,” formed whistling noise. the same day the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776, POST–COLONIAL HISTORY: was composed of Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams. When European settlers arrived The committee could not reach on the eastern seaboard, wild agreement on a symbol, but a wild turkeys apparently lived in what are turkey was not one of the options. now 39 continental states and the By 1782 a third “seal committee” Canadian province of Ontario. The rejected artist William species is tied closely with the early Barton’s design of the “Imperial Native American cultures and has an ” of . Subsequently, the often–misunderstood association design was changed to the bald with the history of the United States eagle, also native to , of America. which was adopted by Congress June 20, 1782, as the symbol to repre- sent the new nation. Franklin apparently grew tired of the variety of motifs which shortly thereafter came to be used by a number of groups. In a letter to his daughter, Sarah Bache, in 1784, he noted that the “ of Cincinnatus” had produced a badge more like a turkey than an eagle. Franklin went on to talk about the bad points of the eagle and the good It took only 5 years for the points of the turkey but never recom- settlers to see the need for some conservation mended the turkey for the American measures. Vast virgin forests were being steadily cleared, and wild turkeys were among wildlife symbol. In fact, Franklin’s com- hunted -round. These were only 2 of the ments that the turkey was more activities involved in providing necessities for the rapidly growing number of colonists.

Wild turkey was most likely part of the “fowl” served at the most famous at Plymouth in 1621. However, it did not become a traditional part of the Thanksgiving celebration until about 1800.

Contrary to popular belief, Thanksgiving did not become a tra- ditional celebration because of the Pilgrims; nor was the turkey for a fact the piece de resis- tance at the famous 1621 meal. It has been speculated that the turkey did not become a common adjunct to a until about ERVICE 1800. S

It is also often thought the wild OREST turkey was championed by Benjamin U.S. F

14-3 neer villages from potential attack by Native . With the turkey’s habitat fast dwindling and changing, and under the relentless pressure from market hunters to feed the growing number of colonists (4 mil- by 1790), the wild turkey started vanishing from much of its original range. Exceptions were some isolat- ed and inaccessible areas, mostly in the southeastern United States. In 1706 the hunting on deer was limited on ’s Long because continued hunting had almost eliminated them. Could turkeys have been far behind? As the settlers tamed the wilder- ness, cleared the woodlands and pushed westward, fewer wild NWTF turkeys were left behind. By 1920, the wild turkey was lost from respectable than the eagle and a true Connecticut had lost its wild turkeys 18 of the original 39 states and Ontario, by 1813. held out until 1842 , in its supposed ancestral range. original native came 2 years after the official seal design had been selected. and other states followed. By 1920, the wild turkey was lost from 18 of DEMISE OF POPULATIONS: the original 39 states and Ontario, Canada, in its supposed ancestral As the fledgling nation began to range. grow, the wild turkey populations quickly began to disappear. Wild RESTORATION: turkeys were an important source of EARLY RECOVERY food for the pioneers and were hunt- ed year– round without the protec- Wild turkey population numbers tion of laws (regulated hunt- remained extremely low into the ing). In 1626 Plymouth Colony early 1900s. The 5 subspecies of wild passed the first conservation law, lim- turkeys in the United States probably iting the cutting and sale of colonial declined to their lowest numbers in lumber. Vast virgin forests were the late 1930s according to data col- being cleared for and to lected by Henry S. Mosby. “In 1937, provide safety for the pio- the wild turkey was in trouble

As the American population expanded, small farms popped up wherever man could make a living from the land. But once the fields wore out and all the usable timber cut, the moved on leaving the land barren. There were no plans for . ERVICE S OREST U.S. F

14-4 throughout most of its range. ... In task of restoring wildlife populations the late and 1930s there was a including the wild turkey. scarcity of factual information on One of the first obstacles existing game bird populations in was how to capture and move birds most states because of a paucity of from existing flocks for release in both funds and trained personnel.” other suitable habitats. One early The period, and the method, which had been used by the Great Depression, which came a Native Americans, was the pole decade later, showed little change in trap––poles 5 to 8 high on 4 existing populations. sides and covered with netting. A As the small tenant fields and trench was dug under one of the farms of the 1930s and the previously trap and the setup was baited with harvested forest areas began to revert corn. Modifications included fun- to successional types of shrubs and nel–entrance traps and open–front trees, suitable habitat was returning traps, which improved the chances which would support the comeback of capturing birds. Nonetheless, Adopting a trapping method once used by the Native Americans, wildlife biologists construct- of the wild turkey. Conservation these traps were hard to construct ed pole traps to catch wild turkeys. This primi- practices slowly improved the land- and lacked the flexibility to catch tive method used in the late 1930s and early scape for the future of the wild large numbers of wild turkeys. 1940s lacked the ability to capture birds effec- tively. turkey and other wildlife species. Laws enacted early in this centu- ry––such as the Lacey Act in 1905 prohibiting the interstate sale of taken wildlife––along with other laws and their enforcement gave needed protection to the remaining wild turkey flocks. Many of our national forests found their begin- nings in lands bought by the federal government––much of it marked by ESOURCES eroded gullies and fields devoid of R

topsoil, indicative of overworked ATURAL

and abandoned farmland. The & N nation was slowly recovering from the Depression until war came again ONSERVATION in 1941. C OF Before the days of early wildlife . management, little was known about EPT the biology of wild turkeys or the AL D factors that influenced populations. In 1943, Mosby and Charles Handley What eventually made possible answered some of the basic ques- the capture of large numbers of wild tions and ushered in a new era of turkeys was the cannon net, original- research and management when ly designed to capture waterfowl. they co–authored The Wild Turkey This capture technique allowed more in . states to move wild–trapped birds The wildlife management move- into restored habitats. ment had gained credibility with the The cannon–net technique publication of Aldo Leopold’s 1933 involved concealing on the ground a book of game management princi- net that would be remotely propelled ples. The Pittman–Robertson Act of over turkeys by a trapper from a 1937 put an excise tax on sporting nearby blind. The net was a folded goods and ammunitions. That 30–by 60–foot cloth mesh with money, when matched with state square openings of 2 inches, pro- hunting license dollars, provided pelled by 3 or 4 black–powder can- funds to initiate wildlife recovery nons electrically detonated. programs. When the GIs returned to The first wild turkeys known to the U.S. workforce, state fish and be captured using this method were wildlife agencies, universities, and on the Francis Marion National federal agencies tackled the difficult Forest in South Carolina in 1951. 14-5 control of the laws of ,” accord- ing to the ’94 resolution. Using the pen–raised method slowed the wild turkey comeback in North America for almost 2 decades. Furthermore, this technique used untold millions of dollars that might have been spent in more wild turkey trap–and–transplant programs, which have proved immensely successful. A 1979 turkey restoration survey of 36 states compared the success of both pen–raised (or game–farm) turkeys and wild–trapped birds. About 30,000 wild–trapped birds ARKS released on 968 sites resulted in 808 & P

ISH established populations occupying , F more than 200,000 square miles of AME G range. Over 330,000 pen–raised birds OF .

EPT released on almost 800 sites resulted in 760 failures. Michigan was the only SD D The “drop net” trap method, although used state that reported significant positive in the southeast in the early 1940s, has been The cannon–net delivery was later results with pen–raised stock. Of 882 most effective in the states. This speeded up by use of rocket projec- game–farm birds released at 13 sites, scene from shows an “old- fashioned” drop net capture around 1960. powered by powder however, only 3 releases were success- Trapped birds were individually bundled from the U.S. military. The rockets ful in Michigan. The survey also into burlap bags to quiet them during propelled a nylon–mesh net. In the reported fall hunting was terminated handling and transportation. 1960s, sleep–inducing were also because of overharvest of turkeys used to capture live birds. with game–farm origin. Another experiment was the The survey reported 6 states had “drop–net” trap used in the prairie problems with diseases in game–farm states and to be more effective birds. Twenty–three of the 36 states than other traps used in more densely had enacted laws banning or restrict- wooded areas found in the east. ing the release of game–farm birds. By 1990 the number of states was 45. In PEN–RAISED PITFALL spite of this evidence, today turkey , poults, and adults are adver- It is highly important to note that tised and sold under the pretense that recommendations in the 1940s to arti- they are “truly wild” and therefore ficially propagate turkeys for restora- suitable for stocking in the wild. tion were not biologically sound. These birds probably fail to sur- Game–farm or pen–raised turkeys are vive because of a combination of fac- “any wild turkey eggs or wild turkeys tors. One cause could be poor genetic which have been hatched and/or quality resulting from the breeding raised under human control,” accord- out of wild characteristics through ing to a NWTF Technical Committee several generations in captivity. Most resolution adopted in 1994. offspring from first–generation wild Game–farm turkeys are deprived of birds cannot survive confinement. normal parental influence, so they They die from stress, trying to escape. never develop normal social behav- The few which survive have become iors or survival skills, regardless of relatively docile and are able to toler- their genetic wildness. ate the confined conditions. So they Although the technique was not reproduce and sustain their popula- new, many agencies and individuals tion. But birds carrying the dominant embraced an idea that seemed logical: characteristics needed for life in the to mass produce these birds for wild are lost under penned condi- release. This approach was taken as a tions. shortcut around the difficult problem A second major factor in the poor of capturing wild birds, which are success of game–farm birds is the “native genetic stock living under the absence of a wild turkey hen to teach 14-6 Embracing an idea that seemed logical, many state wildlife agencies attempted to raise turkeys under the control of humans then release them into the wild. These Game Protectors were collecting turkey eggs from a wild hen’s nest to raise and propagate the offspring for use in restoration. The pen-raised method failed and actually slowed the return of the wild turkey by about 2 decades. OMMISSION C AME PA G skills to developing poults. Wild hens nationwide in 1990 showed wild teach their poults the proper response turkey numbers about 3.5 million to predators and other dangers, plus a birds and today, there are nearly 7 great deal about food sources, the million wild turkeys across North geography of their home ranges, and America. social behavior, such as vocalizations All states but Alaska have hunt- and flocking. The pen–raised turkey able populations. has no opportunity to learn these The primary limitation on wild important survival mechanisms. turkey population levels––besides The wild turkey has been returned to empty The third big problem involving having all suitable range habitats and has been expanded into other pen–raised birds is the increase of occupied––was habitat loss. Also suitable areas. It’s a marvelous comeback diseases and parasites under acting negatively in some areas were story. However, the primary limiting factor on wild turkey populations continues to be confined conditions. The survivors illegal kill, lack of brood and habitat loss like this massive cutover void of may become carriers of infectious dis- habitat, , poor suitable wildlife habitat. eases. An evaluation of the health of 119 pen–raised wild turkeys found at least 33 species of parasites and 3 potentially harmful diseases. Based on an evaluation of disease risks, investigators concluded that the release of pen–raised turkeys should be discouraged or even prohibited.

SUCCESS: Wild turkey populations have increased substantially across the United States since the end of World War II. Trap–and–transplant pro- grams of state game agencies have accelerated this growth since the early 1950s. The support of the private sec- ERVICE and state and federal agencies sub- S

stantially aided the restoration effort. OREST Combined population estimates U.S. F

14-7 The wild turkey has been a direct link between the past and the present—a credit to the bird’s adapt- ability to varying habitat conditions and it’s ability to respond well to modern wildlife management. Keeping the future wild turkey populations healthy will provide pictures like this successful young man’s hunt for generations to come.

production, severe , , and suspected diseases. Probably no other game bird has had more of an impact on the combined cultures of the inhabitants of North America than the wild turkey. The species has directly influenced the lifestyles of Native Americans as well as immigrants and their descendants. Although the wild turkey once was found only in isolated pockets and inaccessible areas, populations now occupy more square miles of habitat than any other game bird in North America. The restoration is truly a modern conservation marvel that is a credit to the wild turkey’s adaptability to a variety of climatic and habitat conditions, as well as to the great bird’s ability to respond well to modern management. A more detailed history can be found in The Wild Turkey Biology and Management edited by J. G. Dickson in 1992 and published by the National Wild Turkey Federation, USDA Forest and Stackpole Books. MITH S ENE G

Financial support for this publication was provided in part by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Federal Cartridge and Wildlife Forever and published by the National Wild Turkey Federation.

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