Survival of the
Thunder Chicken
Can Alberta’s largest upland game bird, the Thunder Chicken, a.k.a. the Wild Turkey, survive and even thrive in southern Alberta? In recent years, wild turkey populations appear to be on the decline in Alberta. In 2021, Alberta Conservation Association (ACA) contacted landowners across known wild turkey range to gather winter counts. The numbers have been tracking down with an aggregate count of 840 in 2021, 792 in 2022, and then down to 637 birds in 2023.
At the northern extent of its range in North America, it is suspected that several factors are affecting these numbers. Winters that bring sustained snowpack and sub-zero temperatures can be hard on most species, and longbeards are no exception. We suspect that predation, disease, access to suitable habitat, survival and breeding success also factor in. To give these birds a fighting chance, we at ACA are aiming to build the population up and establish numerous groups of hearty birds throughout southwest Alberta.
What ACA is doing!
To meet this goal, we translocated 177 wild turkeys from the East Kootenay River Valley in southeast British Columbia (B.C.) into southwestern Alberta in early 2023. They were considered problem birds in B.C. and captured around towns and communities. The birds were released in eight locations to jump-start sub-populations. We then translocated birds from B.C. again in early 2024, and in total, we released 183 at 11 release sites in southwestern Alberta. All captured wild turkeys destined for release in Alberta are tested for disease. To date, all have come back negative. We foresee the need to continue annual translocations for 9-10 more years.
How can I help?
To gain more perspective with population trend we also initiated a poult (young turkey) survey in summer 2021. We requested the public to report counts of poults and hens in summer and early fall. Our sample sizes are low and therefore to be interpreted cautiously. Even so, the ratio of poults per hen over the three years suggesting recruitment has been low during this period (poults/hen 1.55:1 in 2021, n=17; 0.97:1 in 2022, n=23; and 1.39:1 in 2023, n=30). A ratio above two poults per hen (i.e., 2:1) is considered a threshold for a stable population for wild turkeys.
Click here to report brood observations (July through October only).
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