Wild Turkeys in Decline

Now that you have stuffed your face with factory raised turkey meat, here is a story of wild turkeys.  Turkeys were a 20th Century conservation success story.  They were brought back from eradication and re-established to their home ranges with such success that several states brought back hunting seasons.  The bulky birds are still more common than they were several decades ago, showing up on roadsides, college campuses, yards and parks.  But the endemic bird, once considered for the national emblem, is in steep decline in the south and midwest.  Scientists have not yet been able to explain the steep drop in their numbers in these regions, while populations in the northeast and west are stable or growing.

Kansas was once a destination for turkey hunters.  Today the state has curtailed its hunting seasons
as the state's turkey population has declined by sixty percent since 2007.  Being a generalist and very adaptable to changing environments, their decline is a bit of a mystery.  Research is being done on the question, but there are no firm answers yet.  Conservationists point to several factors such as loss of habitat, climate change, disease, or pressure from predators.  The likely explanation is a combination of such factors.  Tracking turkeys is not easy work as researchers attempt to understand what is happening.  Wild turkeys  never do what you expect them to do.  One explanation of why they are still with us.  Gobble, gobble!.