Forestry Update, October 13

Wild turkeys need food, water and space, as well as habitat for nesting, rooting, and feeding. Turkeys have a home range that may cover several square miles, but if provided the right habitat, a small tract of land may become a turkey magnet. The hens begin to nest from mid-April to mid-June in open herbaceous habitats and thinned pine forests. They prefer native bunchgrasses and forbs 20 to 26 inces tall.

Turkeys like to roost in conifers close to water, as well as on ridgetops. The roosts should be protected from human disturbance or they may leave the site. Food plots can provide supplemental food for turkeys and are especially beneficial in winter. Thinning and prescribed burning can enhance beneficial grasses and forbes that turkeys feed on. No program, however, is practical without a good turkey harvest management to prevent over-harvesting the local population.

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