Thanks Trapper
That's the thing, as you have found out they consider turkey pretty much vermin. When the NWTF had a chapter going here they tried constantly to get permission to trap problem birds and relocate to another area, denied every step of the way by the Gov. Why? Invasive species according to them. They honestly do not care if we have them or we don't have them. Its a sad state of affairs as turkey can be a pretty big draw for the folks who love it. So to think anything will ever happen with them is tough to fathom.
My .02 from trying to help the birds 15+ years ago.
You can take the man out of the wilderness but you cant take the wilderness out of the man.
one of the reasons the govt may not seem to care about the turkeys, at least here in the west koots, is that they are basically unhuntable legally since the vast majority live on private land & rarely venture off of it. so legal hunting will never be a big influence on their population regardless of tags, no tags or even if generous bag limits were instituted. they continue their spread throughout every valley bottom with a mild enough climate & snow depth that allows them to survive the winters. they are protected from hunting as few folks will allow anyone to hunt on their rural or semi-rural properties here (undertandable given the small average size of acreages/yards the birds are wandering about in) & they are largely protected from four legged & winged predators by their living in close proximity to humans & housing. a perfect situation for the turkeys. birds living in the wild year round of course face a quite different situation & their population will always likely remain fairly small & scattered though it is supplemented yearly by out migrations of semi-wild birds spreading from farms & suburban yards. like the govt, I can't see much to worry about the continued survival & even expansion of 'wild' turkeys in se BC unless some sort of disease comes in & spreads through the flocks...
We talked with Bio Harris years ago about turkeys in the Okanagan, Gov't position was they didn't want to manage them, that they were non-native species
therefore would not condone releases a or relocations.
I asked him why then was there a gos season on the regs with a bag limit and the reply was 'because that's what Reg. 4 does and we try to harmonize'
So are the open seasons about managing the birds or the hunters
Tags would be about managing the hunters
Last edited by boxhitch; 02-08-2021 at 10:53 AM.
Never say whoa in the middle of a mud hole
Roger those suburban areas with high populations would be prime stock for releases in other areas that want to establish a new population someplace else.Or would they be to tame that the predators would just kill them off i wonder ? Maybe in the future the CWTF will gain strength and support to do more releases. I would like to hear the Bio's take on this. As an Albertan its a big deal to get that one draw tag.
lots of these birds spend the winter & very early spring prowling around backyards, barns & urban parks then disperse to surrounding forests, fields, etc. so they are never truly tame. even the ones that hang out year round in & close to towns know the difference between a friendly glance & a hunters hopeful stare. they share that exquisite ability to instantly separate friend from foe with urban whitetail deer it seems to me.
it is a wonder with all the predators out there, none seem to have mastered the routine hunting of wild turkeys such that they really set back the population. lots of eagles, owls, big hawks, cougars, wolves, coyotes, wild dogs & cats, lynx, bobcat all over the area yet lots of turkeys too. the importance of a relatively safe haven hanging close to humans I guess.