Wild turkey numbers are falling in some parts of the US, the main reason may be habitat loss

Birdsong is a welcome sign of spring, but robins and cardinals aren't the only birds showing off for breeding season. In many parts of North America, you're likely to encounter male wild turkeys, puffed up like beach balls and with their tails fanned out, aggressively strutting through woods and parks or stopping traffic on your street.Wild turkeys were abundant across North America when European settlers arrived. But people killed them indiscriminately year-round—sometimes for their meat and feathers, but settlers also took turkey eggs from nests and poisoned adult turkeys to keep them from damaging crops. Thanks to this unregulated killing and habitat loss, by 1900 wild turkeys had disappeared from much of their historical range.Turkey populations gradually recovered over the 20th century, aided by regulation, conservation funding and state restoration programs. By the early 2000s, they could be found in Mexico, Canada and every U.S. state except Alaska.Now, however, the trend ...