10/11/2005
Wild Turkeys Take Flight near Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA — Wild turkeys will spread their wings and fly at a Thanksgiving release near Philadelphia, at the Pennsylvania Game Land 196, Thursday, Nov. 17. Onlookers will witness a slice of wild turkey restoration as the birds are released from transport boxes into suitable wild turkey habitat.
The event, hosted by The Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) and the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF), celebrates the comeback of the wild turkey.
In the early 1900s, due to unregulated commercial and subsistence hunting and massive loss of habitat, the wild turkey almost disappeared from Penn's Woods. The wild turkey's range in Pennsylvania was limited to small, remnant flocks in remote areas of the Ridge and Valley Province of south-central Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania's early wild turkey restoration efforts began in 1915, and a full-scale program was not established until 1956. With the help of NWTF volunteers, the PGC has trapped and transferred more than 2,500 turkeys throughout the state. In fact, restoration efforts have been so successful that wild turkeys from Pennsylvania have been transferred to other states to help with restoration efforts.
"While the agency's turkey management efforts date back to the infancy of the Game Commission, NWTF has been a major presence in the state since the 1970s," said Vern Ross, PGC executive director. "Indeed, all Pennsylvanians should be thankful that the NWTF has remained committed for decades to help support the Game Commission's wild turkey management program, turkey hunting safety, habitat improvement and land acquisitions that have strengthened the wild turkey's presence in the Commonwealth.
"In the early years, the NWTF's Pennsylvania State Chapter helped us keep the restoration program moving when dollars got tight — now we have more than 320,000 wild turkeys in Pennsylvania. Our western counties have the most turkeys, but suburban areas around Philadelphia have turkeys too."
The release is a demonstration of efforts made by wildlife professionals and concerned sportsmen across North America on behalf of wild turkey restoration and wildlife conservation. Since the late 1980s, state, federal and provincial wildlife agencies, the NWTF and many volunteers have donated 135,000 wild turkey transfer boxes and helped move 186,000 birds across North America.
"People get involved in hunting and other outdoor activities for a number of reasons, but it's almost certain that once a person spends time in the woods or on the water, they begin to care about their natural resources and will likely become dedicated conservationists," said Rob Keck, NWTF CEO and a Pennsylvania native. "With the help of conservation-minded hunters, today there are nearly 7 million wild turkeys throughout North America. That's why our hunting heritage is important, not only to hunters, but to all Americans."
A study commissioned by the NWTF in 2003 found that 78 percent of turkey hunters considered conservation projects, such as protecting or enhancing wildlife habitat, to be very important. A longstanding example of hunters' contributions to wildlife management is the Pittman-Robertson Act. Passed by the U.S. Congress at the requests of hunters in 1937, this excise tax established a dedicated revenue stream to aid states in wildlife restoration.
According to data collected by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, sportsmen are among the most prominent and influential of all demographic groups. Sportsmen pour $70 billion annually into the economy and support more jobs nationwide than the number of people employed by Wal-Mart, the country's largest corporation.
For more information about the Philadelphia wild turkey release or the NWTF, call Brian Dowler at (803) 637-3106. For more information about the NWTF, call (800) THE-NWTF.
For more information on Pennsylvania wild turkeys, visit the Game Commission's website at www.pgc.state.pa.us, click on "Wildlife," then choose "Wild Turkeys."
