Wild Turkey Science

In this episode, we discuss the difference between anecdote and research in wildlife science, limitations with unreplicated site-specific studies, how meta-analyses narrow the direction of an effect, and why seemingly conflicting results can each be right within their own context.
 
Resources:
Londe, David W., et al. "Review of range‐wide vital rates quantifies eastern wild Turkey population trajectory." Ecology and Evolution 13.2 (2023): e9830.

Wann, G. T., et al. (2020). The influence of prescribed fire on wild turkeys in the Southeastern United States: A review and synthesis. Forest Ecology and Management, 455, 117661. 

 
We've launched our second online wild turkey course  ! Enroll in  Wild Turkey Manager: Biology, History & Habitat to learn about the principal biology, mating, behavior, food selection, human dimensions, hunter interactions, and historical context of wild turkeys. This course is accredited by the Society of American Foresters as a Category 2 course worth 7 Continuing Forestry Education credits. Participants can also earn up to 5 CEUs in Category I of The Wildlife Society's Certified Wildlife Biologist Program. Enroll now: https://tinyurl.com/WildTurkeyManagerBio
 
Be sure to check out our first comprehensive online wild turkey course featuring experts across multiple institutions that specialize in habitat management and population management for wild turkeys. Earn up to 20.5 CFE hours! Enroll Now! 
 
Dr. Marcus Lashley @DrDisturbance, Publications
Dr. Will Gulsby @dr_will_gulsby, Publications
Turkeys for Tomorrow @turkeysfortomorrow 
UF Game Lab @ufgamelab, YouTube
 
Want to help wild turkey conservation? Please take our quick survey to take part in our research!
 
Do you have a topic you'd like us to cover? Leave us a review or send us an email at wildturkeyscience@gmail.com!
 
Watch these podcasts on YouTube
 
Please help us by taking our (quick) listener survey - Thank you! 
 
Check out the DrDisturbance YouTube channel! DrDisturbance YouTube
 
Want to help support the podcast? Our friends at Grounded Brand have an option to donate directly to Wild Turkey Science at checkout. Thank you in advance for your support!
 
Leave a podcast rating for a chance to win free gear!
 
This podcast is made possible by Turkeys for Tomorrow, a grassroots organization dedicated to the wild turkey. To learn more about TFT, go to turkeysfortomorrow.org. 
 
Music by Artlist.io
Produced & edited by Charlotte Nowak

We break down native early successional (old field) management for turkeys — how to identify the plants that really matter, when and why to use fire versus spot-spraying, and how to keep a field cycling through the diverse structure that makes great brooding cover.
 
Resources:
iNaturalist

Seek App

We manage DEER food plots for TURKEYS (video)

 
Enter our raffle for a chance to win a Wild Turkey Science hunt with Dr. Will Gulsby and Dr. Marcus Lashley at the historic Westervelt Hunting Lodge: https://e.givesmart.com/events/Qam/
 
We've launched our second online wild turkey course  ! Enroll in  Wild Turkey Manager: Biology, History & Habitat to learn about the principal biology, mating, behavior, food selection, human dimensions, hunter interactions, and historical context of wild turkeys. This course is accredited by the Society of American Foresters as a Category 2 course worth 7 Continuing Forestry Education credits. Participants can also earn up to 5 CEUs in Category I of The Wildlife Society's Certified Wildlife Biologist Program. Enroll now: https://tinyurl.com/WildTurkeyManagerBio
 
Be sure to check out our first comprehensive online wild turkey course featuring experts across multiple institutions that specialize in habitat management and population management for wild turkeys. Earn up to 20.5 CFE hours! Enroll Now! 
 
Dr. Marcus Lashley @DrDisturbance, Publications
Dr. Will Gulsby @dr_will_gulsby, Publications
Turkeys for Tomorrow @turkeysfortomorrow 
UF Game Lab @ufgamelab, YouTube
 
Want to help wild turkey conservation? Please take our quick survey to take part in our research!
 
Do you have a topic you'd like us to cover? Leave us a review or send us an email at wildturkeyscience@gmail.com!
 
Watch these podcasts on YouTube
 
Please help us by taking our (quick) listener survey - Thank you! 
 
Check out the DrDisturbance YouTube channel! DrDisturbance YouTube
 
Want to help support the podcast? Our friends at Grounded Brand have an option to donate directly to Wild Turkey Science at checkout. Thank you in advance for your support!
 
Leave a podcast rating for a chance to win free gear!
 
This podcast is made possible by Turkeys for Tomorrow, a grassroots organization dedicated to the wild turkey. To learn more about TFT, go to turkeysfortomorrow.org. 
 
Music by Artlist.io
Produced & edited by Charlotte Nowak

We step back to synthesize what's changed in wild turkey science since the show began and where the biggest open questions still remain.
 
Resources:
Huang, M. H., Demarais, S., Brookshire, W. C., & Strickland, B. K. (2022). Analysis of supplemental wildlife feeding in Mississippi and environmental gastrointestinal parasite load. Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 9, 995437.

Huang, M. H., Demarais, S., Strickland, B. K., & Brookshire, W. C. (2022). Identifying aflatoxin exposure risk from supplemental feeding of deer. The Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 58(2), 384-388.

Impacts of vegetation structure on hen survival and nest success | Ep 195

Landscape level habitat corridor sustains turkeys | Ep 158

Longer the snood, bigger the brood | Ep 68

Population dynamics & season dates in Mississippi | Ep 02

REV and LPDV: New research on turkey disease | Ep 182

Rosenberg, K. V., et al. (2019). Decline of the North American avifauna. Science, 366(6461), 120-124.

Shea, S. A., et al. (2026). Retroviral Infections Affect Survival and Clutch Size of Female Wild Turkeys. Ecology and Evolution, 16(4), e73383.

Smith, C. R., et al. (2026). Annual survival and resource selection of juvenile male wild turkeys in central Tennessee. The Journal of Wildlife Management, e70255.

Turner, M.A., et al. (2026). Vegetation composition and structure influences female wild turkey survival during incubation. Journal of Wildlife Management.

 
Enter our raffle for a chance to win a Wild Turkey Science hunt with Dr. Will Gulsby and Dr. Marcus Lashley at the historic Westervelt Hunting Lodge: https://e.givesmart.com/events/Qam/
 
We've launched our second online wild turkey course  ! Enroll in  Wild Turkey Manager: Biology, History & Habitat to learn about the principal biology, mating, behavior, food selection, human dimensions, hunter interactions, and historical context of wild turkeys. This course is accredited by the Society of American Foresters as a Category 2 course worth 7 Continuing Forestry Education credits. Participants can also earn up to 5 CEUs in Category I of The Wildlife Society's Certified Wildlife Biologist Program. Enroll now: https://tinyurl.com/WildTurkeyManagerBio
 
Be sure to check out our first comprehensive online wild turkey course featuring experts across multiple institutions that specialize in habitat management and population management for wild turkeys. Earn up to 20.5 CFE hours! Enroll Now! 
 
Dr. Marcus Lashley @DrDisturbance, Publications
Dr. Will Gulsby @dr_will_gulsby, Publications
Turkeys for Tomorrow @turkeysfortomorrow 
UF Game Lab @ufgamelab, YouTube
 
Want to help wild turkey conservation? Please take our quick survey to take part in our research!
 
Do you have a topic you'd like us to cover? Leave us a review or send us an email at wildturkeyscience@gmail.com!
 
Watch these podcasts on YouTube
 
Please help us by taking our (quick) listener survey - Thank you! 
 
Check out the DrDisturbance YouTube channel! DrDisturbance YouTube
 
Want to help support the podcast? Our friends at Grounded Brand have an option to donate directly to Wild Turkey Science at checkout. Thank you in advance for your support!
 
Leave a podcast rating for a chance to win free gear!
 
This podcast is made possible by Turkeys for Tomorrow, a grassroots organization dedicated to the wild turkey. To learn more about TFT, go to turkeysfortomorrow.org. 
 
Music by Artlist.io
Produced & edited by Charlotte Nowak

Dr. Craig Harper of the University of Tennessee rejoins us to share results from recent research assessing annual survival and resource selection of juvenile males in Tennessee.
 
Resources:
Bones, J. T., et al. (2026). Vegetation response varies by season of burning in pine woodlands across the southeastern US. Fire Ecology, 22(1), 19.

Pollentier, C. D., et al. (2014). Survival and productivity of eastern wild turkey females in contrasting landscapes in Wisconsin. The Journal of Wildlife Management, 78(6), 985-996.

Quehl, J. O., et al. (2024). Assessing wild turkey productivity before and after a 14-day delay in the start date of the spring hunting season in Tennessee. Ecology and Evolution, 14, e11390.

Smith, C. R., et al. (2026). Annual survival and resource selection of juvenile male wild turkeys in central Tennessee. The Journal of Wildlife Management, e70255.

Stevenson, E. R., et al. (2019). Resource selection by coyotes (Canis latrans) in a longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) ecosystem: effects of anthropogenic fires and landscape features. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 97(2), 165-171.
Wilhelm, S. R., et al. (2026). Fire frequency and timing influence bee–flower interactions: a case study from an oak‐pine savanna restoration on the Cumberland Plateau. Restoration Ecology, e70533.

 
Enter our raffle for a chance to win a Wild Turkey Science hunt with Dr. Will Gulsby and Dr. Marcus Lashley at the historic Westervelt Hunting Lodge: https://e.givesmart.com/events/Qam/
 
We've launched our second online wild turkey course  ! Enroll in  Wild Turkey Manager: Biology, History & Habitat to learn about the principal biology, mating, behavior, food selection, human dimensions, hunter interactions, and historical context of wild turkeys. This course is accredited by the Society of American Foresters as a Category 2 course worth 7 Continuing Forestry Education credits. Participants can also earn up to 5 CEUs in Category I of The Wildlife Society's Certified Wildlife Biologist Program. Enroll now: https://tinyurl.com/WildTurkeyManagerBio
 
Be sure to check out our first comprehensive online wild turkey course featuring experts across multiple institutions that specialize in habitat management and population management for wild turkeys. Earn up to 20.5 CFE hours! Enroll Now! 
 
Dr. Marcus Lashley @DrDisturbance, Publications
Dr. Will Gulsby @dr_will_gulsby, Publications
Turkeys for Tomorrow @turkeysfortomorrow 
UF Game Lab @ufgamelab, YouTube
 
Want to help wild turkey conservation? Please take our quick survey to take part in our research!
 
Do you have a topic you'd like us to cover? Leave us a review or send us an email at wildturkeyscience@gmail.com!
 
Watch these podcasts on YouTube
 
Please help us by taking our (quick) listener survey - Thank you! 
 
Check out the DrDisturbance YouTube channel! DrDisturbance YouTube
 
Want to help support the podcast? Our friends at Grounded Brand have an option to donate directly to Wild Turkey Science at checkout. Thank you in advance for your support!
 
Leave a podcast rating for a chance to win free gear!
 
This podcast is made possible by Turkeys for Tomorrow, a grassroots organization dedicated to the wild turkey. To learn more about TFT, go to turkeysfortomorrow.org. 
 
Music by Artlist.io
Produced & edited by Charlotte Nowak

In this episode, we dive into turkey reproductive physiology, focusing on how photostimulation and photorefractoriness influence turkey breeding cycles. 
 
Resources:
Dawson, A., et al. (2001). Photoperiodic control of seasonality in birds. Journal of biological rhythms, 16(4), 365-380.

Turkey Predators | Ep 06

 
Enter our raffle for a chance to win a Wild Turkey Science hunt with Dr. Will Gulsby and Dr. Marcus Lashley at the historic Westervelt Hunting Lodge: https://e.givesmart.com/events/Qam/
 
We've launched our second online wild turkey course  ! Enroll in  Wild Turkey Manager: Biology, History & Habitat to learn about the principal biology, mating, behavior, food selection, human dimensions, hunter interactions, and historical context of wild turkeys. This course is accredited by the Society of American Foresters as a Category 2 course worth 7 Continuing Forestry Education credits. Participants can also earn up to 5 CEUs in Category I of The Wildlife Society's Certified Wildlife Biologist Program. Enroll now: https://tinyurl.com/WildTurkeyManagerBio
 
Be sure to check out our first comprehensive online wild turkey course featuring experts across multiple institutions that specialize in habitat management and population management for wild turkeys. Earn up to 20.5 CFE hours! Enroll Now! 
 
Dr. Marcus Lashley @DrDisturbance, Publications
Dr. Will Gulsby @dr_will_gulsby, Publications
Turkeys for Tomorrow @turkeysfortomorrow 
UF Game Lab @ufgamelab, YouTube
 
Want to help wild turkey conservation? Please take our quick survey to take part in our research!
 
Do you have a topic you'd like us to cover? Leave us a review or send us an email at wildturkeyscience@gmail.com!
 
Watch these podcasts on YouTube
 
Please help us by taking our (quick) listener survey - Thank you! 
 
Check out the DrDisturbance YouTube channel! DrDisturbance YouTube
 
Want to help support the podcast? Our friends at Grounded Brand have an option to donate directly to Wild Turkey Science at checkout. Thank you in advance for your support!
 
Leave a podcast rating for a chance to win free gear!
 
This podcast is made possible by Turkeys for Tomorrow, a grassroots organization dedicated to the wild turkey. To learn more about TFT, go to turkeysfortomorrow.org. 
 
Music by Artlist.io
Produced & edited by Charlotte Nowak