Wildlife Society bulletin 

About: Wildlife Society bulletin is an academic journal published by Wiley. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Biology & Wildlife. It has an ISSN identifier of 2328-5540. Over the lifetime, 185 publications have been published receiving 94 citations. The journal is also known as: WSB.

Status and distribution of wild turkeys in the United States in 2019

Abstract: After increases following restoration efforts, the wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) population appeared to decline during the early 2000s in many areas of the species' range. The 2014 status assessment indicated that estimated population size, harvest, and hunter numbers had declined since at least 2009. Several studies concurrently detailed regional declines in productivity of wild turkey populations. During 2019, we continued to monitor status of wild turkey populations in the United States by surveying state agency biologists charged with overseeing wild turkey management programs. We asked biologists to provide estimates of population abundance and distribution within their state. We also requested that each biologist provide data on turkey hunter numbers and harvest for both spring and fall hunting seasons, if those data were available. Based on agency biologist responses, wild turkey population size declined by ~3% across states that contributed data to both the 2014 and 2019 status updates. However, during our 2019 survey, abundance data were unavailable for 12 states that reported estimates for the 2014 assessment. We estimated that the number of wild turkey hunters declined by 18% between the 2014 and 2019 assessments, but note the 2019 estimate was confounded by missing data from 8 states that provided data during 2014. Across all reporting states, fall and spring harvests decreased by 31 and 12%, respectively, between the 2014 and 2019 assessments. Despite widespread recognition that standardization of monitoring methods across states would facilitate more consistent inferences about wild turkey abundance, further progress towards regional or national standardization is needed. Furthermore, the approach of converting harvest data to a population estimate by dividing harvest estimates by a constant percentage of estimated take should be revisited to ensure accuracy, especially given known spatial and temporal variation in harvest pressure, hunting activity, and hunter behavior. We encourage continued development of improved techniques to estimate wild turkey abundance and distribution, and recommend that all states and provinces consider standardized methods to accurately monitor and report harvest and hunter effort.

Wildland fires ignited by avian electrocutions

Abstract: Uncontrolled wildfires are occurring with increasing frequency across western North America due to a combination of wildfire suppression, climate change, impacts from mountain pine beetles (Dendroctonus ponderosae), alterations in range composition by nonnative grasses, and human population growth in fire-prone landscapes. A poorly studied mechanism of wildland fire ignitions occurs when a bird perched on an overhead power line is electrocuted, its plumage ignites, and the burning bird falls into and ignites dry vegetation. Avian-caused ignitions have been occasionally documented, but not spatially analyzed in the contiguous United States. We hypothesized that spatial analyses could demonstrate specific regions where ignitions from avian electrocutions occur most frequently. To test our hypothesis, we compared public reports of wildland fires ignited by bird electrocutions to Environmental Protection Agency ecoregions. We found reports of 44 wildland fires ignited by avian electrocutions in the contiguous U.S. from January 2014 to December 2018. The Mediterranean California ecoregion had the highest density of avian-caused fires. It would be prudent for electric utilities in the Mediterranean California ecoregion in the U.S., and in fire-prone landscapes globally, to develop fire mitigation plans that include modifying power poles to reduce risk of avian electrocutions and resulting wildfires.

Assessing the precision of wild boar density estimations

Abstract: Effective management of wild boar (Sus scrofa) populations has to be based on precise estimates of local densities. The development of an effective and cost-efficient technique to cope with this need has always represented a challenge for wildlife managers and researchers. Drive counts, hunting bags, and Random Encounter Model (REM) are among the most frequently used techniques, with the latter recently gaining wide recognition. We sought to compare the 3 methods in terms of their suitability for management, precision, and effort required. Moreover, we evaluated the uncertainty of REM results when all sources of error were considered. In our study, the 3 methods were applied to a wild boar population of the Italian Apennines in 2013. We used the delta method to assess the total uncertainty of REM density estimates on the basis of the errors associated to all the parameters involved. Notably, the 3 methods tested showed consistent mean density estimates, though none of them reached fully satisfying levels of precision for management purposes. Since the low precision of REM was mostly due to the high variability of the group-size parameter, we propose simple technical improvements aimed at reducing the variability of this parameter and, thus, of REM. Although all the methods tested still need to be further developed to be effective for wild boar management, REM seems to be the most promising one in terms of both potential precision and effort required. The limited effort required by REM is particularly relevant in the current wildlife management scenario, where funds are often lacking and the number of hunters acting as volunteers is decreasing.

Nest site fidelity and nesting success of female wild turkeys

Abstract: Nest site fidelity is a common behavioral trait among birds that can positively influence reproductive success when there is spatial heterogeneity and temporal predictability in nest site quality. Nest site fidelity in wild turkeys ( Meleagris gallopavo ) has received little attention in the literature despite providing a potential link to nesting success. We used data from 32 female wild turkeys across 8 field sites ranging from South Carolina to Texas with 2 consecutive years of nest data to determine if females showed fidelity to nest sites, if distance between nest locations in consecutive years predicted nest success in the second year, and if females showed fidelity to specific areas within home ranges (patches) for nesting. Females tended to nest closer to previously successful nests (median distance = 920 m) than to unsuccessful nests (median distance = 1550 m) in the second year; however, we documented no evidence of fidelity to specific nest sites. There was widespread reuse of prelaying allow females to draw on prior knowledge of areas within their home ranges. Although distance between nests was not a significant predictor of nest success, females that nested successfully in the first year had a probability of 0.63 of successfully nesting in the second year, whereas unsuccessful females had probability of success of 0.08 in the second year. The tracking of individual nesting success across years warrants further research, as our results imply that a disproportionate percentage of reproduction through time may be attributed to a subset of females that are consistently successful, which may have implications for our understanding of reproductive dynamics in low productivity populations. ANF and KNF and by the USFS, and WMA by the USFS and the U.S. Landscape composition at all 3 sites was similar and characteristic of the region, being dominated by loblolly, longleaf, and slash pine forests in uplands, bisected with hardwood riparian zones. Prescribed fire was used as a management tool of upland forests on KNF and Peason Ridge WMA. Prescribed fires occurred primarily during the dormant season (70% of area burned) on 3 ‐ to 5 ‐ year intervals, with an average burn patch size of 485 ha on KNF. See Yeldell et al. (2017) for more details. Large ‐ scale prescribed fire is traditionally used as a management tool on ANF but was restricted during our study. For a detailed description of ANF, see Sullivan et al. (2020). Climate at study sites in this region were characterized by hot, humid summers, cool winters, and average annual rainfall ~114 cm.

Shifting to sounders: Whole sounder removal eliminates wild pigs

Abstract: Wild pig (Sus scrofa) eradication in demographically open populations has seemed an impossible feat for managers, but more recently, whole sounder removal (WSR) has been proposed as a trapping strategy that has the potential to be successful in eradicating wild pigs from an area. However, little empirical data exist concerning implementation of whole sounder removal strategies. Our objective was to implement and describe wild pig management using WSR. We established a 27-km2 area (northwest section) where sounders were removed using WSR and a 29-km2 area (southeast section) where GPS collars were deployed on Lowndes Wildlife Management Area in Alabama. Prior to implementing WSR, we used game cameras over bait at a density of one camera/km2 in November 2014 and counted 65 and 100 individuals in our northwest and southeast sections, respectively. We began WSR July 2015 and by May 2016, we reduced the estimated population by 90%. However, due to births and seasonal movements of pigs in the periphery of the study area, the population fluctuated between 10–20 individuals from May 2016 to December 2017. In December 2017, we removed the last known remaining sounder, and using game cameras, observed no sounders in the northwest section for the following 7 months, the remaining length of the study. We determined that using the WSR approach can lead to a delay before inevitable recolonization. Therefore, WSR can be a successful tool to significantly reduce a wild pig population and potentially provide managers a pig-free area.