I was in an After Action Review of turkey season here at APG. We were discussing numbers and such and we all concurred that the numbers were down, even the number of hens. We discussed what was causing this decline and all stated above was included in the debate. One thing the added to the mix, at least for me, was Black Head. I had never heard of Black Head and was curious. Some of the game wardens said they had seen some turkey's with the disease and that it could be part of the problem. So today I got into a little research and found out what it actually is. Black head is a bacteria that is 80 to 100% fatal to turkeys. They believe it came to the U.S. in the late 1800s when ring neck pheasant were introduced to the wilds. It appears that pheasant and chukka are pretty much immune to it, but turkey and other birds, no.

As I read the info on the disease I think I see it as a contributor to the demise of some turkey populations. I have a couple reasons for this. I read that Chicken's can also be affected by this bug but it is only 10% fatal to chickens, their cecum and liver recover faster than a turkey avoiding death. However, chickens do carry other intestinal worms and such and deposit their eggs with their fecal matter. With the onset of more and more people raising chickens at their homes it is possible that they are spreading the disease through their chicken poop and this is what's causing a decline in turkey numbers. I don't have a ton of evidence to support this conclusion but it does make some sense.

Someone else mentioned that West Nile Virus, which is tough on black birds and other birds could be an issue too. Studies are in process to see if turkeys are affected by West Nile. It could also explain number drops if turkeys are afflicted.

Here are a couple other reason's the turkey numbers are in decline. I think the ones mentioned in the thread do say parts of why numbers are down, but these two diseases could explain a lot too.

Regards,
V