[BCNnet] Reintroduce Turkeys Cook Forest Preserves?
Marihahn@aol.com
Marihahn@aol.com
Mon, 2 Feb 2004 22:14:35 EST
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February 2, 2004
Fellow BCN supporters:
At the January BCN meeting, I prefaced my remarks about Wild Turkeys with
the statement that I had only recently heard about the possible
reintroduction of them into the Forest Preserves of Cook County and that I did not have
much time to adequately research the topic. Nonetheless, I recommended that the
group oppose the reintroduction for several reasons, which I will explain
below.
My memory of Father Marquette's Journal was flawed. I was so
impressed by his marvelous description of bison and the fact that he lived on prairie
chickens when he spent the winter in the Chicago region that I forgot about
his mention of turkeys. I apologize for the misinformation.
With Wild Turkey populations increasing in Illinois, it is probably
inevitable that they will repopulate the oak woodlands of Cook County eventually.
Indeed, a Wild Turkey was flushed from a low branch on an oak tree in
Jurgensen Woods (South Cook County) about three years ago by Mary Anne McLean and her
Thorn Creek Audubon friends as they did a breeding bird survey of the area.
Last spring and again in the fall, Wanetta Elliott saw a single bird at Bartel
Grasslands. So why not reintroduce the Wild Turkey to the forest preserves of
Cook County?
I maintain that doing so could be a big mistake that we will not be able
to undo. We cannot stop turkeys from wandering in on their own, but we can
make a conscious decision not to reintroduce them because of the havoc they can
wreak on the ecosystem. Is that likely to happen? Without hunting, it very
well could, just as the white-tailed population has exploded in the preserves.
According to Fran Harty, retired Illinois DNR Regional Director, the DNR
traps and removes Wild Turkeys from an Illinois Nature Preserve on the west
side of the state because, with hunting forbidden in the Nature Preserves,
turkeys have become a problem. They are large omnivores that require large amounts
of food. Besides acorns, they scratch in the leaf litter for anything
edible. To mention but one species, spring beauties disappeared from the Preserve
because the birds dug up and ate the bulblets. Mike Redmer, Field Biologist
and herpetologist with the USFWS, Chicago Field Office, says that the birds
will eat young snakes, and there are two Illinois-endangered reptiles in the Cook
County Preserves that could be affected by turkeys. Salamander populations
could also suffer.
The potential for turkeys becoming a nuisance species is high, especially
if the birds are reintroduced. If they come in on their own, the process is
likely to be slow. It may take years before any adverse effects on the
ecosystem will be seen. However, reintroductions usually involve bringing in a
large number of individuals to one or more good sites so that they will "take",
i.e., reproduce without the need for bringing in more birds. With hunting in
the Forest Preserves forbidden and the penchant of people for feeding wildlife,
the likelihood for the introduced population to get out of hand very quickly
is high. Then what do we do?
Finally, the Wild Turkey may not be a benign and wonderful animal to have
around. See Outdoor Illinois magazine, February 2004, page 12, for a story
about how aggressive turkeys can be. Ed Harris had a flock coming to a bird
feeder in his Franklin County yard, and "for a while, we'd have to carry a stick
every time we went outside." One close look at the long, sharp spurs on the
legs of a male Wild Turkey should make one cautious about an encounter with a
bird that's bigger than a young child.
I hope this serves as food for thought. Mr. Bylina is doing a great job
as General Superintendent of the FPDCC. He's like a breath of fresh air!
Let's hope he continues with an ecosystem-based management approach for our
wonderful preserves.
Sincerely,
Marianne Hahn
Marihahn@aol.com
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<HTML><FONT FACE=3Darial,helvetica><HTML><FONT SIZE=3D2 PTSIZE=3D10 FAMILY=
=3D"SANSSERIF" FACE=3D"Arial" LANG=3D"0">February 2, 2004<BR>
<BR>
Fellow BCN supporters:<BR>
At the January BCN meeting, I prefaced my remarks about Wild Turkeys wit=
h the statement that I had only recently heard about the possible reintroduc=
tion of them into the Forest Preserves of Cook County and that I did not hav=
e much time to adequately research the topic. Nonetheless, I recommend=
ed that the group oppose the reintroduction for several reasons, which I wil=
l explain below.<BR>
My memory of Father Marquette's Journal=
was flawed. I was so impressed by his marvelous description of bison=20=
and the fact that he lived on prairie chickens when he spent the winter in t=
he Chicago region that I forgot about his mention of turkeys. I apolog=
ize for the misinformation.<BR>
With Wild Turkey populations increasing in Illinois, it is probably inev=
itable that they will repopulate the oak woodlands of Cook County eventually=
. Indeed, a Wild Turkey was flushed from a low branch on an oak tree i=
n Jurgensen Woods (South Cook County) about three years ago by Mary Anne McL=
ean and her Thorn Creek Audubon friends as they did a breeding bird survey o=
f the area. Last spring and again in the fall, Wanetta Elliott saw a s=
ingle bird at Bartel Grasslands. So why not reintroduce the Wild Turke=
y to the forest preserves of Cook County?<BR>
I maintain that doing so could be a big mistake that we will not be able=
to undo. We cannot stop turkeys from wandering in on their own, but w=
e can make a conscious decision not to reintroduce them because of the havoc=
they can wreak on the ecosystem. Is that likely to happen? With=
out hunting, it very well could, just as the white-tailed population has exp=
loded in the preserves.<BR>
According to Fran Harty, retired Illinois DNR Regional Director, the DNR=
traps and removes Wild Turkeys from an Illinois Nature Preserve on the west=
side of the state because, with hunting forbidden in the Nature Preserves,=20=
turkeys have become a problem. They are large omnivores that require l=
arge amounts of food. Besides acorns, they scratch in the leaf litter=20=
for anything edible. To mention but one species, spring beauties disap=
peared from the Preserve because the birds dug up and ate the bulblets. =
; Mike Redmer, Field Biologist and herpetologist with the USFWS, Chica=
go Field Office, says that the birds will eat young snakes, and there are tw=
o Illinois-endangered reptiles in the Cook County Preserves that could be af=
fected by turkeys. Salamander populations could also suffer.<BR>
The potential for turkeys becoming a nuisance species is high, especiall=
y if the birds are reintroduced. If they come in on their own, the pro=
cess is likely to be slow. It may take years before any adverse effect=
s on the ecosystem will be seen. However, reintroductions usually invo=
lve bringing in a large number of individuals to one or more good sites so t=
hat they will "take", i.e., reproduce without the need for bringing in more=20=
birds. With hunting in the Forest Preserves forbidden and the penchant=
of people for feeding wildlife, the likelihood for the introduced populatio=
n to get out of hand very quickly is high. Then what do we do?<BR>
Finally, the Wild Turkey may not be a benign and wonderful animal to hav=
e around. See Outdoor Illinois magazine, February 2004, page 12, for a=
story about how aggressive turkeys can be. Ed Harris had a flock comi=
ng to a bird feeder in his Franklin County yard, and "for a while, we'd have=
to carry a stick every time we went outside." One close look at the l=
ong, sharp spurs on the legs of a male Wild Turkey should make one cautious=20=
about an encounter with a bird that's bigger than a young child.<BR>
I hope this serves as food for thought. Mr. Bylina is doing a grea=
t job as General Superintendent of the FPDCC. He's like a breath of fr=
esh air! Let's hope he continues with an ecosystem-based management ap=
proach for our wonderful preserves.<BR>
<BR>
Sincerely,<BR>
<BR>
Marianne Hahn<BR>
Marihahn@aol.com<BR>
</FONT></HTML>
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