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Wild Turkey Science

Extreme winter and the wild turkey | #171

Wild Turkey Science

Charlotte Nowak

Natural Sciences, Science

5.0 • 584 Ratings

🗓️ 16 February 2026

⏱️ 49 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this episode, we explore the impacts of extreme cold weather on wild turkey populations. 

 

Resources:

 

Acorn production post (DrDisturbance IG)

 

Austin, D. E., & DeGraff, L. W. (1975). Winter survival of wild turkeys in the southern Adirondacks. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 1975, 55-60.

 

Brooke, J. M., et al. (2019). Effects of fertilization and crown release on white oak (Quercus alba) masting and acorn quality. Forest Ecology and Management, 433, 305-312.

 

Gonnerman, M., et al. (2023). Dynamic winter weather moderates movement and resource selection of wild turkeys at high‐latitude range limits. Ecological Applications, 33(1), e2734.

 

Gray, B. T., & Prince, H. H. (1988). Basal metabolism and energetic cost of thermoregulation in wild turkeys. The Journal of Wildlife Management, 133-137.

 

Haroldson, K. J. (1995). Energy requirements for winter survival of wild turkeys. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 1995, 9-14.

 

Lashley, M. A., et al. (2009). Masting characteristics of white oak: implications for management. In In: Proc. Annu. Conf. Southeast. Association Fish and Wildl. Agencies. 63: 21-26. (Vol. 63, pp. 21-26).

 

Lashley, M. A., et al. (2025). Decreased female survival may explain wild turkey decline. bioRxiv, 2025-05.

 

Lavoie, M., et al.  (2017). Winter and summer weather modulate the demography of wild turkeys at the northern edge of the species distribution. Population Ecology, 59(3), 239-249.

 

Lavoie, M., et al. (2025). Wildlife Management and Climate Change: How to Adapt Harvest Rates of Wild Turkey According to Extreme Weather Events. Environmental Management, 1-13.

 

Porter, W. F., et al. (1983). Effects of winter conditions on reproduction in a northern wild turkey population. The Journal of Wildlife Management, 281-290.

 

Seminar: Wild Turkey Management Academy

 

Our lab is primarily funded by donations. If you would like to help support our work, please donate here: http://UFgive.to/UFGameLab

 

Don't miss out on a chance to win a custom Benelli Super Black Eagle 3! This 28-gauge shotgun features a 28' barrel, 3" chamber, and is exclusively dipped in Mossy Oak Full Foliage not available to the public. Enter the online raffle below for a shot at owning this one-of-a-kind gun! This is literally a one-of-one collectable item. https://e.givesmart.com/events/Nqy/

 

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

 

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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

 

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Welcome to Wild Turkey Science, a podcast made possible by Turkeys for Tomorrow.

0:14.5

I'm Dr. Marcus Lashley, Professor of Wildlife Ecology at the University of Florida.

0:20.3

And I'm Dr. Will Gulsby, Professor of Wildlife Ecology and Management at Auburn University.

0:26.1

We're both lifelong hunters and devoted scientists who are passionate about hunting,

0:30.8

managing, and researching wild turkeys.

0:33.5

In this podcast, we'll explore turkey research, speak to the experts in the field, and address the difficult questions related to wild turkey ecology and management.

0:43.3

Our goal is to serve as your connection to wild turkey science.

0:52.4

Have you ever heard the saying that's as cold as a well diggers?

0:59.4

I've heard that one and several others too.

1:03.1

But, I mean, it was here a couple weeks ago, but it's short sleeve weather again now.

1:08.1

I know.

1:09.6

Yeah, it's been, you know, it never gets below freezing here.

1:15.5

Yeah.

1:15.7

That's just such a rare thing, you know.

1:17.6

It was only a handful of days a year.

1:19.8

And we had an extended period where it got down into the 20s, several nights in a row.

1:26.9

And then we finally got it back into a warm spurt.

1:31.8

And I was like, oh, I can put all my pokeweed plants back out.

1:35.3

And I looked at the weather.

1:37.2

That's the first time that anyone has ever said that.

1:41.4

Well, I'm growing them for the Pult facility.

1:47.2

Yeah. So that's one of the Forbesbs yeah i just happened to be obsessed with that plant so i just was i was like i'll grow that one i'll see what

...

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