Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Location
Jackson, Mississippi
Start Date
5-11-1995 12:00 AM
Description
Reduced trapping and hunting of predators has led to concerns that increased predator densities may affect game species populations. Therefore, we investigated effects of predation on the wild turkey population on Tallahala Wildlife Management Area (TWMA), Mississippi, from 1984-94. We also determined trends in raccoon trapping and hunter harvest in Mississippi. Predation of nests (eggs), nesting hens, and poults caused a population decline on TWMA. Most (88%) nest failures were caused by predation from 1984-94; raccoons were the dominant predator. Declining raccoon hunter harvest from 1980-94 was correlated with declining hunter effort. Trapping license sales and trapping harvest also declined. On TWMA, declining hunter effort was correlated with declining raccoon harvest, reflecting the statewide trend. Further reduction of predator harvest, particularly of raccoons, may negatively impact wild turkey populations in Mississippi. Future research should investigate wild turkey/predator dynamics, effects of natural controls (e.g., disease) on predator densities, and possible trapping incentives to reduce predator densities.
Recommended Citation
Lovell, C. D., Miller, D. A., Hurst, G. A., & Leopold, B. D. (1995). Relationships between wild turkeys and raccoons in central Mississippi. In Armstrong, J. B. (Ed.), The Seventh Eastern Wildlife Damage Control Conference (pp. 118-129). Jackson, MS: Mississippi State University.
Included in
Relationships Between Wild Turkeys and Raccoons in Central Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi
Reduced trapping and hunting of predators has led to concerns that increased predator densities may affect game species populations. Therefore, we investigated effects of predation on the wild turkey population on Tallahala Wildlife Management Area (TWMA), Mississippi, from 1984-94. We also determined trends in raccoon trapping and hunter harvest in Mississippi. Predation of nests (eggs), nesting hens, and poults caused a population decline on TWMA. Most (88%) nest failures were caused by predation from 1984-94; raccoons were the dominant predator. Declining raccoon hunter harvest from 1980-94 was correlated with declining hunter effort. Trapping license sales and trapping harvest also declined. On TWMA, declining hunter effort was correlated with declining raccoon harvest, reflecting the statewide trend. Further reduction of predator harvest, particularly of raccoons, may negatively impact wild turkey populations in Mississippi. Future research should investigate wild turkey/predator dynamics, effects of natural controls (e.g., disease) on predator densities, and possible trapping incentives to reduce predator densities.