Turkey Season Summary - Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
Turkey Season Summary - Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Turkey Season Summary - Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
T U R K E Y C O N S E R V A T I O N I N A R K A N S A STurkeys require openareas as well as timberland.Photo courtesy ofJan Self.*Turkeys are aforest species,so proper timbermanagementis vital to theirsurvival.Habitat managementis a year-round jobIdeal turkey habitat can be described as aseveral thousand-acre area with permanentwater sources and about 50 percent matureforest, 30 percent grassy openings, 15 percentold fields or brushy areas and 15 percent smallgrain fields. Turkeys thrive in areas where thesepercentages vary, such as zone 17 along theMississippi River, but ideal habitat usually hasall four of these components. These areas areactually rare in Arkansas because most habitatsare too heavily wooded or too open. AGFCbiologists and technicians stay busy year-roundworking on these lands to improve the habitatfor turkeys and other game species.Wildlife openingsWithin days of receiving approved budgetsin mid-summer, wildlife management areamanagers begin working long hours maintainingopenings on virtually all upland wildlife managementareas in the state. In most cases, plots ofcereal grain and clover mix are planted, fertilizedand limed. For example, Muddy CreekWMA in the Ouachita National Forest has 160wildlife openings totaling 320 acres, plantedon a two-year rotation. These openings providecritical late-winter food for turkeys and deer, aswell as insect-rich feeding grounds for broodsduring summer. Suitable sites also are plantedwith native warm-season grasses for bobwhitequail and turkey nesting habitat during spring.The AGFC devotes more than $500,000 tomaintaining thousands of acres of openings everyyear.Timber managementTurkeys are a forest species, so proper timbermanagement is vital to their survival. MostAGFC and USDA Forest Service cooperativeWMAs are heavily forested with second growthforests, many the result of “high-grading” fromhistorical timber harvests. While spring turkeyhunters like to hunt these stands, these matureforests are generally in decline, are lacking indiversity and are relatively poor year-roundhabitats for deer and turkey.The AGFC uses a variety of scientificmanagement techniques to enhance wildlifehabitat and promote long-term forest health.These techniques include tree plantings,thinnings, selective harvests, clear cuts and oakregeneration.2 6 2 0 0 6 - 0 7 T U R K E Y S E A S O N S U M M A R Y
T U R K E Y C O N S E R V A T I O N I N A R K A N S A SStand inventory, marking, tree planting andharvest are all on-going habitat managementpractices on state and federal lands. Revenueis generated from the sale of harvested timber,helping offset costs associated with these timberprescriptions. The Forest Service recentlyadopted a new program, Forest Stewardship,that allows them to reinvest timber revenue inwildlife habitat enhancements on federal lands(See Page 30).Prescribed firePrescribed burning is the most economicaltool in the manager’s toolkit to enhance turkeyhabitat. Vigorous herbaceous growth afterprescribed fires creates excellent brood habitat inheavily timbered areas.Recent catastrophic wildfires in Western stateshave resulted in federal legislation letting theForest Service increase prescribed fire on federallands. Frequent, controlled burns eliminate thebuild-up of leaves and other fuels and reduce thechances of major fire events. This increase in fireuse has been welcomed by wildlife biologists, butsome changes have been made to accommodatethe new goal. Prescribed fires are now largerand the burning season is longer, sometimesextending into the early portion of turkeyseason and turkey nesting activities. Biologistsand habitat managers work hard to accomplishprescribed fire objectives while minimizingconflicts.Private lands programsThe AGFC has about a dozen private landsbiologists on staff to assist private landownerswith habitat enhancement projects. Byproviding free, sound management strategies tolandowners, the AGFC has been able to increasethe public’s knowledge of the habitat needs ofgame and non-game animals.In the 1970s, the AGFC started with aflagship private lands program, Acres forWildlife, but biologists now deliver morethan 30 programs as well as informal habitatmanagement advice to landowners. Mostof these programs benefit wild turkeys, butthe Arkansas Forestry Commission’s ForestStewardship program and Farm Bill programsthat result in reforestation of row crop farmlandsare particularly important. The AGFC assistswith the wildlife portion of management plansin Forest Stewardship. Farm Bill reforestationprograms such as the Wetland Reserve Program,Conservation Reserve Program and ContinuousConservation Reserve Program have resulted inseveral hundred thousand acres of reforestationin the Delta region of Arkansas. Many of theseareas are now mature enough to support turkeypopulations, and many more acres will reach thisstatus soon.nnnnnn2007 highlights17,500 acres of prescribed burns on AGFC land525,000 dollars spent on wildlife openingson AGFC land5,500 acres of timber management activitieson AGFC landMore than 200,000 current acres of WRP reforestationin ArkansasTwo part-time prescribed fire bosses hired63 WMAs with wildlife opening projectsnnn93 Forest Stewardshipplans with wildlife asan objective.More than 1.5 millionacres enrolled in Acresfor Wildlife40,000 dollars spenton Acres for WildlifeseedMore than $500,000 is devoted tomaintaining wildlife openings onWMAs annually. Photo courtesy ofthe NWTF.2 0 0 6 - 0 7 T U R K E Y S E A S O N S U M M A R Y 2 7
- Page 1 and 2: 2006-07Turkey Season Summary2 Natur
- Page 3 and 4: C O N T E N T STurkey Season Summar
- Page 5 and 6: Figure 1. Arkansas spring turkey ha
- Page 7 and 8: Figure 2. Spring 2007 turkey harves
- Page 9 and 10: 2 0 0 6 - 0 7 H A R V E S T S U M M
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- Page 23 and 24: 2007 spring turkey regulationsThe T
- Page 25: 2007-08 fall turkey regulationsFall
- Page 29 and 30: The National Wild Turkey Federation
- Page 31 and 32: T U R K E Y C O N S E R V A T I O N
- Page 33 and 34: T U R K E Y C O N S E R V A T I O N
- Page 36: 2 Natural Resources DriveLittle Roc
T U R K E Y C O N S E R V A T I O N I N A R K A N S A S<strong>Turkey</strong>s require openareas as well as timberl<strong>and</strong>.Photo courtesy ofJan Self.*<strong>Turkey</strong>s are aforest species,so proper timbermanagementis vital to theirsurvival.Habitat managementis a year-round jobIdeal turkey habitat can be described as aseveral thous<strong>and</strong>-acre area with permanentwater sources <strong>and</strong> about 50 percent matureforest, 30 percent grassy openings, 15 percentold fields or brushy areas <strong>and</strong> 15 percent smallgrain fields. <strong>Turkey</strong>s thrive in areas where thesepercentages vary, such as zone 17 along theMississippi River, but ideal habitat usually hasall four of these components. These areas areactually rare in <strong>Arkansas</strong> because most habitatsare too heavily wooded or too open. AGFCbiologists <strong>and</strong> technicians stay busy year-roundworking on these l<strong>and</strong>s to improve the habitatfor turkeys <strong>and</strong> other game species.Wildlife openingsWithin days of receiving approved budgetsin mid-summer, wildlife management areamanagers begin working long hours maintainingopenings on virtually all upl<strong>and</strong> wildlife managementareas in the state. In most cases, plots ofcereal grain <strong>and</strong> clover mix are planted, fertilized<strong>and</strong> limed. For example, Muddy CreekWMA in the Ouachita National Forest has 160wildlife openings totaling 320 acres, plantedon a two-year rotation. These openings providecritical late-winter food for turkeys <strong>and</strong> deer, aswell as insect-rich feeding grounds for broodsduring summer. Suitable sites also are plantedwith native warm-season grasses for bobwhitequail <strong>and</strong> turkey nesting habitat during spring.The AGFC devotes more than $500,000 tomaintaining thous<strong>and</strong>s of acres of openings everyyear.Timber management<strong>Turkey</strong>s are a forest species, so proper timbermanagement is vital to their survival. MostAGFC <strong>and</strong> USDA Forest Service cooperativeWMAs are heavily forested with second growthforests, many the result of “high-grading” fromhistorical timber harvests. While spring turkeyhunters like to hunt these st<strong>and</strong>s, these matureforests are generally in decline, are lacking indiversity <strong>and</strong> are relatively poor year-roundhabitats for deer <strong>and</strong> turkey.The AGFC uses a variety of scientificmanagement techniques to enhance wildlifehabitat <strong>and</strong> promote long-term forest health.These techniques include tree plantings,thinnings, selective harvests, clear cuts <strong>and</strong> oakregeneration.2 6 2 0 0 6 - 0 7 T U R K E Y S E A S O N S U M M A R Y
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