Wildlife biologists use the Wild Turkey Brood Survey to determine the wild turkey population prior to our fall hunting season.  The survey has also been proven to be a valuable predictor of the spring gobbler harvest two years in advance of the season. Data is collected by field personnel of the DNR Wildlife Resources Section and a few volunteer cooperators. The 2002 brood count was 295 and was 36% lower than the 2001 total of 46l.  The count was also slightly lower than our 1991-2002 average.

 

Brood counts normally do a better job projecting spring harvests and combined fall and spring kills, but since 1968, summer brood counts have correctly predicted fall harvest trends 68% of the time.  The year 2002 happened to be another year that the count correctly projected a lower harvest than the previous year (Table 4).

Written by James C. Pack

Click On Link Below For PDF Version of Table 4.

Table 4. Fall Harvest of Wild Turkeys In West Virginia, 1998-2002.
(PDF format, 5.36KB)

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