Do Merriam’s truly remain in Texas, or have they blended into hybrid lineages?
Texas has long been considered one of the premier destinations for turkey hunters. Its vast and diverse landscapes hold strong, huntable populations of Rio Grande wild turkeys, drawing hunters from across the country. Yet in the far western reaches of the state lies an unanswered question that has persisted for years: do Merriam’s wild turkeys truly remain in Texas, or have they blended into hybrid lineages that no longer resemble the pure birds hunters expect to find? Additionally, by combining genetic analysis with regional survey data and existing research on survival and reproduction, scientists are working to clarify the trajectory of these turkey populations.
Image courtesy of Clarissa Molina
“Texas Parks and Wildlife Department restocked Merriam’s Wild Turkeys in the Guadalupe Mountains in 1955 and in the Davis Mountains in 1983 from New Mexico and they held on for decades,” said Jason Hardin, wild turkey program coordinator for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. “However, Rio Grande wild turkeys, restocked nearby by TPWD, moved into the landscape and hybridization has been documented.”
This research will give biologists a clearer understanding of the true genetic makeup of wild turkeys in the Trans-Pecos region, while also helping hunters better understand what they may actually be harvesting in this part of the state.
Historical distribution maps have long suggested their presence in the Trans-Pecos region, but when you talk to hunters and biologists who spend their days on the ground, the answer becomes far less certain. Many say they rarely encounter birds with the bright white tail feathers of a classic Merriam’s, while others insist they see them, though perhaps not in the numbers Texas once claimed. After decades of turkey management, translocations and natural range shifts, nobody can say with confidence what subspecies is actually out there.
“You talk to some folks in New Mexico, and they’ll tell you Texas definitely has Merriam’s,” said Andrew Gregory, Ph.D, assistant professor in conservation biology and landscape ecology at the University of North Texas and lead researcher on this project. “Talk to others in Texas, and they’ll say they’re pretty sure what they’re seeing are Rios. The reality is we just don’t know.”
Image courtesy of Clarissa Molina
That uncertainty is exactly what a new research project from the University of North Texas aims to alleviate. Additionally, by pairing genetic analysis with regional breeding bird survey counts and published data on turkey survival and reproduction, researchers aim to better understand the trajectory of the region’s turkey populations.
Supported by the National Wild Turkey Federation and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, this study is taking an innovative approach to answer these questions.
A few years ago, biologists conducted a large-scale effort to trap supposed Merriam’s in West Texas to gather data on population size and genetic purity. Despite weeks of effort, the trapping success was so limited that researchers walked away with almost no usable information. The turkeys simply weren’t showing up at net sites, and without birds in hand, biologists were left with nothing but educated guesses.
Gregory, who leads the new NWTF-funded study, decided to look at the problem from a new angle. Instead of attempting to capture birds, he and his team will collect genetic material left behind naturally on the landscape through scattered feathers beneath roosts, droppings on the ground after fly-down and occasional tissue or blood from samples already in hand. This innovative approach has been used in an additional NWTF-funded research project in Mississippi.