Rio Grande wild turkey (RGWT) abundance in portions of the Edwards Plateau has declined steadily since the late 1970s as compared to other areas of the Edwards Plateau where populations have exhibited no trend. The reasons for this decline remain unclear. Possible factors include changes in habitat, and increased human population. The overall objective of this study was to identify landscape changes and habitat characteristics that affect RGWT populations using spatial analysis and modeling at multiple spatial scales. Specific objectives for this study included the quantification of flood-induced landscape changes between 1972 and 1995 along the Medina River bottomlands and their impact on RGWT habitat, the quantification of landscape characteristics of stable and declining study sites in the Edwards Plateau, and the development and evaluation of a GIS-based habitat-suitability model for female RGWTs during the breeding season that will allow the assessment of the spatial distribution of adequate habitat in the Edwards Plateau.The analysis of the landscape characteristics along the North Prong Medina River due to flooding in 1978 had a negative impact on RGWT habitat. Changes in the spatial distribution of woody cover in the bottomlands and the removal of woody cover along riparian zones most likely limited habitat use and dispersal of RGWT along the North Prong Medina River. The analysis of landscape characteristics in sites with stable and declining of RGWTs populations showed that disturbance and a high proportion of woody cover were important factors influencing RGWT populations in areas where turkey numbers had declined. Landscape attributes were used as habitat variables to develop a habitat-suitability model for female RGWTs during the breeding season. The model performed well in characterizing high-suitability habitat for adult female RGWT during the breeding season in the study areas. The use of two scales relevant to RGWT provided important information about the high-suitability areas for female RGWT in stable and declining sites in the Edwards Plateau.

Sustainable management of wildlife populations relies on accurate estimates of population size as harvest recommendations are dependent on estimates of sustainable surplus. Techniques for surveying wild turkey populations in Texas are constrained by land access issues, requiring that new methods be developed for population monitoring. I evaluated a combined approach using patch-occupancy modeling at broad spatial scales and intensive double observer roost surveys at local scales to estimate Rio Grande wild turkey (Meleagris gallapavo intermedia) distribution and abundance. I flew replicated aerial surveys during 2007 and 2008 to evaluate distribution of Rio Grande wild turkeys in the south Texas Coastal Sand Plains. I used a double observer approach to estimate local scale abundance. I used a single observer approach to estimate temporal variation in roost use. Detection probabilities from aerial surveys ranged between 0.24 (SE = 0.031) and 0.30 (SE = 0.083). Spatial parameters that influenced distribution of wild turkeys included size of suitable roosting habitat patches and distance to the nearest suitable roosting habitat. I conducted 100 inter-patch double observer roost counts, with counts ranging between 0 to 183 individuals. Average detection probabilities for observers were ~0.90. Roost level occupancy was ~0.84 with detection probabilities between 0.69 (SE = 0.107) and 0.79 (SE = 0.091). Based on my results, aerial surveys combined with local abundance estimation may be one viable alternative to monitor turkey populations over large spatial scales, by reducing overall survey effort without loss of estimated precision.

Rio Grande wild turkey (RGWT) abundance in portions of the Edwards Plateau has declined steadily since the late 1970s as compared to other areas of the Edwards Plateau where populations have exhibited no trend. The reasons for this decline remain unclear. Possible factors include changes in habitat, and increased human population. The overall objective of this study was to identify landscape changes and habitat characteristics that affect RGWT populations using spatial analysis and modeling at multiple spatial scales. Specific objectives for this study included the quantification of flood-induced landscape changes between 1972 and 1995 along the Medina River bottomlands and their impact on RGWT habitat, the quantification of landscape characteristics of stable and declining study sites in the Edwards Plateau, and the development and evaluation of a GIS-based habitat-suitability model for female RGWTs during the breeding season that will allow the assessment of the spatial distribution of adequate habitat in the Edwards Plateau.The analysis of the landscape characteristics along the North Prong Medina River due to flooding in 1978 had a negative impact on RGWT habitat. Changes in the spatial distribution of woody cover in the bottomlands and the removal of woody cover along riparian zones most likely limited habitat use and dispersal of RGWT along the North Prong Medina River. The analysis of landscape characteristics in sites with stable and declining of RGWTs populations showed that disturbance and a high proportion of woody cover were important factors influencing RGWT populations in areas where turkey numbers had declined. Landscape attributes were used as habitat variables to develop a habitat-suitability model for female RGWTs during the breeding season. The model performed well in characterizing high-suitability habitat for adult female RGWT during the breeding season in the study areas. The use of two scales relevant to RGWT provided important information about the high-suitability areas for female RGWT in stable and declining sites in the Edwards Plateau.

Spatiotemporal variation in animal space use is critical for understanding how individual animals respond to changes in resource availability across space and time. My study was aimed to: 1) determine functional responses of habitat selection by eastern wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) across 7 study sites in Mississippi; and 2) determine the effect of temporal vegetation variation on order-II habitat selection by wild turkeys over 12 years. I developed resource selection functions using radio telemetry location data. Individual-specific coefficients of order-III habitat selection for forest were related inversely to forest availability in meta-regressions. Yearly coefficients of order-II habitat selection for forest were related inversely to the mean normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) in April, but the coefficients for open fields were related positively to coefficient of variation in the NDVI from March to May. Wild turkeys exhibited functional responses of habitat selection to spatiotemporal forest availability across Mississippi.

The wild turkey is endemic to North America and has played a role in human cultures past and present. However, with the turkey's elusive behavior some aspects of its ecology are challenging to understand. Diet is one of these difficult aspects to study. The purpose of this study was to determine the diet selection of wild turkeys in central Utah using non invasive stable isotope technology. We hypothesize that turkey diet is highly specific, that consumption of specific plant species correlates with the needs of the individual turkey, and that stable isotope analysis will reveal patterns in annual dietary intake. Vegetative forage, turkey feces, and feather samples were collected from the Salt Creek area east of Mt. Nebo during 2007 and 2008. Feces samples were identified to bird sex and forage samples were identified to family or growth form (grass, forb, and shrub) when species could not be determined. Carbon isotope analysis of turkey feces and dietary forage using a mass spectrometer revealed that composition of turkey diet changed seasonally and yearly. Isotope analysis of dietary forage according to vegetative growth form revealed that turkey diet for the spring of 2007 contained approximately 46.0% grasses, 30.0% forbs, and 24.0% shrubs and trees. The summer diet for 2007 consisted of 39.0% grasses, 31.0% forbs, and 30.0% shrubs and trees. During spring 2008, grasses comprised 10.3% of the diet whereas forbs and tree/shrubs constituted 53.0% and 36.7%, respectively. Turkey summer diet for 2008 was found to consist of 13.1% grasses, 48.5% forbs, and 38.4% shrubs/trees. Isotope analysis of turkey feathers revealed no significant patterns in isotope signatures in relation to vegetation type and season of year. Stable isotope signatures resulting from fecal analysis reflect opportunistic foraging behavior as birds utilized a wide variety of forages throughout the year. Our findings suggest habitat structure and type play a more major role in wild turkey survival then food type. These findings also strengthen the need to rigorously evaluate turkey habitat prior to reintroduction with respect to vegetative composition and structure and their relationship with wild turkey behavior and life processes.

Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) survival, habitat use, and nest-site characteristics were studied on Malmaison Wildlife Management Area, Mississippi, 2003-2004. Survival rates were 0.55, 0.0004, 0.26, and 0.30 for jakes, adult gobblers, juvenile hens, and adult hens, respectively for the entire study. Spring survival for all groups was 0.51 (95% CI 0.36, 0.65) and was least among seasons. Predation (65%) and harvest (21%) were major causes of mortality. Brood hens used bottomland hardwood stands, pine plantations, and old fields more than expected during the post-nesting period. Non-brood hens used bottomland hardwood stands more than expected during the pre- and post-nesting periods. Forbs were the predominant vegetation type at nests. Vegetation height was 0.3-0.6 m for all nest sites. Vertical screening cover for all nests was in the 21-40% obscurity category at 1 m and 41-60% category at 3 and 5 meters. Vine composition differed between successful (2%) and unsuccessful (20%) nests (P = 0.03).

Wild turkey mortality rates, habitat use patterns, and recruitment were investigated on intensively managed pine forest of the Central Piedmont. Thirty-two adults and poults were captured with adult dosages of alpha-chloralose. Poults were easily sedated and usually recovered 1 day sooner than adults. The annual mortality rate for marked turkeys was 85%; September-February mortality was 65% (N=17), and March-August mortality was 57% (N=21). Turkeys that died during hunting seasons were recovered significantly (p < 0.05) closer to roads than those that died out of hunting seasons. High mortality during the hunting seasons and the association of hunting season mortality with roads suggests a crippling loss to legal harvest ratio as high as 4:1. Use of young pine plantations, hardwood leave strips, large stands of mixed hardwoods, mature pine stands, and fields was not significantly different (p > 0.1) from availability. Turkeys were associated with edges while on their winter and prenesting ranges. Nests were located in a variety of stand types, near edges, and in heavier cover than generally available. Nesting success was 48%. Post critical period brood survival was 90%. These data indicate that wild turkeys can adapt to the early stages of forest conversion for intensive pine management. / Master of Science

Information on the ecology of radio-equipped Merriam's wild turkey hens was recorded from 1982-1985 in north-central Arizona. The average net direct line distance that the hens moved was 16.0 miles (25.8 km). Over 35% of the adult hens and 70% of the juvenile hens died during the study, with the majority dying during the winter months. Fifty-four percent of the hens (25% of the juveniles) alive during the nesting season nested, with 54% of those (100% of the juveniles) successfully bringing a brood off the nest. Cover at twelve nests sampled was higher than the surrounding areas, being supplied by oak thickets, slash, and conifers. Successful nests had more cover at the site and more cover in the surrounding areas than the unsuccessful nests. Three broods followed used different combinations of stand types, depending on habitat and food availability.

Since 1970, Rio Grande wild turkey (Meleagris gallapavo intermedia) numbers in the southern region of the Edwards Plateau of Texas have been declining. Nest-site characteristics and invertebrate abundance were hypothesized as limiting wild turkey numbers in declining regions. Wild turkeys were trapped and fitted with mortality-sensitive radio transmitters on 4 study areas; 2 within a region of stable (northern Edwards Plateau) populations, and 2 within a region of declining populations. Monitoring occurred from February 2001 to August 2003. Nest-site locations were determined via homing during the breeding season. Following nesting attempts/completions, nest fate, vegetation height, visual obstruction, litter depth, percent cover, and cover scores of forbs, grass, litter, and bare ground at each nest site and surrounding area were sampled. This was done to determine if wild turkey hens selected nest sites with vegetative characteristics differing from surrounding habitat. Brood survival was calculated as >1 poult surviving to 2-weeks. Broods were followed for 6-weeks post-hatch or to brood failure. Invertebrates were collected, via sweep-net and D-vac, at each visually confirmed brood location and a paired random site to determine if wild turkey hens selected brood habitat based on invertebrate abundance. Analyses were performed to determine if invertebrate abundance differed between study regions. Turkey hens selected nest sites with greater visual obstruction and more litter depth on both regions of stable and declining turkey abundance. No vegetative differences were detected between stable and declining region nest sites. Frequency of Orthoptera was 3–5 times greater at nest sites on stable regions than declining regions in all 3 years. Orthoptera is a noted food source for young galliformes and comprised the majority of dry mass in invertebrate samples, nest sites and brood locations, on both the stable and declining regions. No differences in total invertebrate dry mass were detected between regional brood locations. Nest-site vegetative characteristics did not alter nest success between regions. The 2 overall objectives of this study were to determine if nest-site vegetation characteristics and invertebrate abundance affected wild turkey numbers in the Edwards Plateau. Regional differences in vegetative characteristics were not detected, thus not likely to be causing differences in turkey numbers between regions. Nest-site invertebrates were found to be 3–5 times greater at stable region nest sites, possibly giving wild turkey poults from stable regions greater initial chances of survival.

To determine possible causes of declining Rio Grande wild turkey (RGWT; Meleagris gallopavo intermedia) abundance in the southern Edwards Plateau, research was conducted on 4 sites, 2 with stable (S [SA and SB]; Kerr and Real counties) and 2 with declining (D [DA and DB]; Bandera County) RGWT populations. RGWTs were trapped, radio-tagged, and tracked. Ranges were constructed with 95% kernels. Data on brood survival and invertebrate and predator abundances were combined with range characteristics to assess habitat at a landscape scale. Annual range sizes did not differ in year 1, but were larger in S than in D in year 2. Range sizes in S increased from year 1 to year 2 while there was no change in range sizes in D. Range overlap was higher in D than S in both years. Movement distances remained consistent in S for both years, but were larger in D during year 1. During year 1 and year 2, RGWT females exhibited larger reproductive ranges and less range overlap in S. Invertebrate abundance for 4 insect orders was 2.5–15.9 times greater in S than in D while coyote abundance was 2–3 times greater in D than in S. Results were similar in year 3, with the exception of SB, where reproductive ranges and spatial arrangement were smaller than all other sites. My results refute the conventional assumption that larger ranges are indicative of poorer habitat quality. Range overlap suggests that useable space may have been limiting in D in the less productive year 2. In D, multiple broods used the same reproductive range, presumably depleting resources faster than in S. Greater predator abundance in D increased the risk of brood predation. The smaller reproductive spatial arrangement of SB females in year 3 correlates there being >3 times the percentage of females missing in other sites. If SB females moved further in year 3 than the detection distance of the radio telemetry equipment, the results would fit the pattern of greater dispersion distance in SA. RGWT females may attempt to separate themselves from other breeding females, possibly to avoid nest or brood predation and/or potential competition for brood resources.