From Near Extinction: The Remarkable Comeback of Wild Turkeys

Fri Nov 28 2025 08:20:22 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Once struggling to survive, wild turkeys have made a comeback thanks to innovative wildlife management techniques, including trading for other animals. Discover how these efforts have led to a thriving population across North America.

Wild turkeys faced near extinction in the late 1800s due to habitat loss and unregulated hunting. Creative wildlife management, including inter-state trades of various animals, has facilitated their recovery. From a mere few thousand, their population has surged to about 7 million across the US, thanks to effective conservation strategies.

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — While nobody dreams of having a weasel on their Thanksgiving table, the historical exchange of turkeys for other animals has played a pivotal role in wildlife conservation efforts.

Once dwindling to a mere few thousand in the late 1880s, the wild turkey population has remarkably rebounded to around 7 million individuals across 49 states and Canada, as reported by the National Wild Turkey Federation.

In fact, trading turkeys for other wildlife was instrumental in this success story. For example, Oklahoma once swapped walleye and prairie chickens for turkeys from other states, while Colorado exchanged mountain goats for Idaho turkeys. In Ontario, Canada, over 274 turkeys were acquired from states like New York and Vermont in exchange for moose and river otters.

Wildlife biologists don’t suffer from a lack of creativity,” remarked Patt Dorsey, conservation director for the National Wild Turkey Federation's western region.

Notably, West Virginia displayed generous efforts in sharing its excess turkeys, sending flocks across state lines. In 1969, the state traded 26 turkeys to New Hampshire for 25 fishers, a small mammal prized for its fur. Other exchanges included the transfer of otters and bobwhite quail.

According to Holly Morris, a project leader at the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, these exchanges were like currency for restoring wildlife populations. “It’s just a way to help out other agencies. We’re all in the same mission,” she explained.

The population of wild turkeys plummeted due to unregulated hunting and habitat loss during the mid-1800s. Initial restoration efforts in the 1940s focused on raising turkeys on farms, but those attempts proved unsuccessful. “Turkeys that had been raised in a pen didn’t do very well in the wild,” Dorsey noted. It was only through capturing wild turkeys and relocating them that their numbers began to rise.

In New Hampshire, where wild turkeys hadn’t been spotted for over a century, the introduction of flocks from West Virginia and later from New York has led to a current population of around 40,000 turkeys, exceeding earlier expectations for reintroduction efforts.

“These birds are incredibly adaptive,” said Dan Ellingwood, a biologist with the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, emphasizing the vital role turkeys play in the ecosystem as both predators and prey.

Dorsey echoed the sentiment, highlighting that turkey restoration projects have also bolstered populations of other species, showcasing that successful conservation can yield benefits across the wildlife spectrum. A lot of good work gets done on the back of the wild turkey,” she remarked.