Relationships of Gobbler Population Size to Harvest Characteristics on a Public Hunting Area in Mississippi
Wildlife managers on public hunting areas are accountable for hunter success rates, annual harvest, and wildlife population size. Understanding the effect of changes in numbers of wild turkey gobblers (Meleagris gallopavo) on harvest characteristics is needed. Population size and harvest characteristics were studied for 9 years on a 14,140-ha public hunting area in central Mississippi. Male wild turkey population size averaged 82, hunter effort averaged 455 hunter-days per season, and an average of 35 male turkeys was harvested per season. Hunter success rates averaged 7.7%, 2.1%, and 5.6...
