US: Timing of turkey nesting may not shift with changing climate

Published 2023년 7월 13일

Tridge summary

A new study conducted in five southern U.S. states found that eastern wild turkeys are unlikely to adjust the timing of their nesting in response to future climate change. Researchers tracked turkey nesting patterns over the span of eight years and found that while temperature and rainfall were weakly associated with slight changes in nesting timing, the changes were minimal and measured in hours rather than days. The study suggests that the inflexibility of turkeys in shifting their reproductive activities could have implications for their ability to successfully reproduce and survive in a changing climate.

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Original content

A new study suggests eastern wild turkeys in five southern U.S. states are unlikely to make meaningful changes in the timing of when they begin nesting, even under significant future climate change. The findings suggest eastern wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) could be vulnerable to shifts in climate, which could threaten the availability of their food sources, the amount of vegetation cover available to protect them from predators, and other factors. "There are implications here for turkey populations if individuals are inflexible in their ability to shift their reproductive activities, as resources are certainly going to change in the future," said Chris Moorman, professor in North Carolina State University's Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology Program. "This could result in 'phenological mismatch,' where the timing of an animal's natural history doesn't match up with the food and cover ...

Source: Phys