Gobble, gobble
Eastern wild turkeys: The past, present and future
By MICAH POTEET TPWD Wildlife Biologist

Mention wild turkeys in the Pineywoods and there is nearly the same amount of interest as there is when conversations lead to other game species, including deer. Considering that it was not too many years ago that you could not hunt the elusive bird in East Texas that level of interest says a lot. And for those that count the days until the first of April, hunting other species simply does not compare.

It was a long bumpy road to get to this point, but the road in front of us is at least paved and a lot smoother. There may still be some potholes to contend with, but none that can't be fixed or overcome.

As the restocking efforts of the late 1980's and early 1990's began to come to a close, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) indicated that the goal of restocking East Texas with enough birds to build a population had been met.

We weren't wrong, as there had been an adequate number of birds released, and all indications were that populations were starting to build. Through the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) Target 2000 program approximately 10,000 birds had been relocated from other states and released into the Pineywoods and eastern Post Oak Savannah.

Interest in hunting the birds built momentum as the stocking program reached its sunset days. Opening counties for hunting took some hard thought, as everyone within TPWD was hesitant to open a county for hunting where there may still be a possibility of stocking. It simply wasn't responsible to be releasing birds and creating a "put and take" hunting scenario, not to mention being in opposition to the TPWD stocking policy.

Slowly but surely counties were opened until a total of 40 counties were available to hunt eastern turkeys. Across this area is a vast amount of public land, which makes hunting opportunity readily available, especially since much of the public land is owned by the U.S. Forest Service and comprises some of the most suitable habitat.

Even with the successful completion of the targeted restocking and the subsequent opening of 40 counties for hunting, however, nagging questions kept surfacing with TPWD personnel.

With that many birds released, why were we not seeing greater population growth? Could something be done to increase the population and further spread the distribution of the birds?

In 2002, TPWD field staff made a request to bring additional birds into the heart of the Pineywoods for additional restocking. The request set in motion the next phase of the eastern turkey restoration program, when TPWD field and program staff agreed that it was time to look for answers to some of those nagging questions.

In cooperation with Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA), Texas A&M University, NWTF, U.S. Forest Service, and several private landowners, an intensive research phase of the turkey program was initiated.

The most common question asked and the first in need of answering is simply how many birds are out there. That question is more easily asked than answered as there is no reliable way to count turkeys.

Currently, there is a SFA graduate student diligently trying to answer that question through his work on the Angelina National Forest and several private lands in the area. This phase of the research should be completed within a year and hopefully will provide valuable insight that will lead to a reliable census technique.

Other research projects which have been initiated include trying to determine nesting success of hens and nest site selection. Another SFA graduate student is looking for answers to determine if East Texas habitat truly offers what it takes to successfully recruit poults into the population. This project is in the beginning stages and still has several years before many answers will be available.

The winter of 2006 also saw the initiation of an intensive restocking research project. Nearly 240 birds were brought in from Tennessee and South Carolina and were released onto three private tracts that varied in habitat quality.

The purpose of these releases is to try and determine if an increase in the number of birds stocked per site results in greater success than that experienced earlier in the restocking program, when the number of birds released per site was much lower.

Since the three properties vary in habitat quality, we may be able to determine the quality of habitat necessary for survival and growth of the population, regardless of the number of birds released.

We will see the beginnings of another SFA project during Winter 2007-08. The purpose is to look at the genetic variability in the birds we currently have in the state. This information will hopefully determine which birds hold the most future promise for success.

It has been busy in the turkey world in East Texas over the past couple of years, and we are looking forward to gaining valuable insight that could lead to further success in the program.

Once completed, the aforementioned projects will probably dictate the direction of the program in the future. Although requests for additional releases continue to come in, none are being scheduled until the research reveals some answers.

The three sites selected for the current research met some serious criteria to be considered. Each one spanned at least 10,000 acres and signed up under a Memoranda of Understanding to operate under a TPWD approved Turkey Management Plan.

The same criteria will likely be the standard used for any additional properties to be considered as TPWD builds a stocking priority list incorporating the research findings. Additional releases (if any) will be dependent on the questions answered as a result of the research projects.

The renewed interest in eastern turkeys has led to increased excitement in the Pineywoods. There has not been this level of activity for over a decade and it may be that the best is yet to come.