Wild or domesticated, turkey is a blessing
- John Lorson: The Rail Trail Naturalist
- November 22, 2024
- 31
With our own day to gobble on the near horizon, I thought I’d share a few words on the country’s favorite Thanksgiving entrée. And while it’s likely the vast majority of birds that find their way to the center of the table this season will be of the domesticated variety, it’s important to remember we are actually very fortunate that the wild turkey is still extant on our continent.
We all know from our elementary school lessons that on the origin of Thanksgiving, the wild turkey was present and abundant on our continent well before the Pilgrims arrived. What happened after that gets a lot less airplay, but the long and short of it is that in many areas of the country — our beloved Buckeye State included — the wild turkey was hunted to near extinction. By 1900 the bird was likely extirpated from the state entirely. It may have been just as well for the turkey because there was literally nowhere to hide. A state that had once been 98% forested had been shorn to a mere 20% by the late 1800s.
Fortunately, beginning in the 1950s as Ohio’s forests rebounded, the Ohio Division of Wildlife began a “trap and transfer” reintroduction program, and by 1966 populations had grown to the point where a limited spring wild turkey season was offered across nine counties. By 2000, with stable and growing populations in all of Ohio’s 88 counties, a statewide season was offered. The Ohio flock is now estimated at around 150,000 birds with an annual harvest that hovers around the 15,000 mark.
While turkey numbers grew rapidly through the end of the 20th century, they did so with limited but growing predation. Nest raiders including raccoon, fox, opossum and the great horned owl did their best, but growing populations of coyote and most recently a return of the bobcat to broad swaths of the wild turkey’s range have placed increased pressure on the birds. As is the case with all managed wildlife, Division of Wildlife biologists keep a close eye on the numbers and adjust seasons and bag limits accordingly.
On the domesticated end of things, the turkey on your table this week faced perils of its own with avian influenza decimating flocks of domesticated birds in several areas of the country. Science once again stepped up as the champion with a timely response to isolated outbreaks and tightened controls on access to poultry facilities. So far these efforts have limited what could have easily become a catastrophic epidemic throughout the entire poultry industry. The fact that we even have turkey upon which to feast this year is just one more reason to be thankful. Have a blessed holiday!
If you have comments on this column or questions about the natural world, write The Rail Trail Naturalist, P.O. Box 170, Fredericksburg, OH 44627, or email jlorson@alonovus.com. You also can follow along on Instagram @railtrailnaturalist.