Food availability influences population demographics and harvest of wildlife species throughout the Appalachians. Various combinations of hard- and soft-mast indices were compared to white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), eastern wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), and black bear (Ursus americanus) statewide harvests in West Virginia, USA, 1980-2002. Hard-mast conditions had a negative relationship with total white-tailed deer (r=-0.5774, P=0.004), archery white-tailed deer (r=-0.5979, P=0.003), antlerless white-tailed deer (r=-0.5065, P=0.014), wild turkey (r=-0.6193, P=0.002), and black bear archery (r=-0.6065, P=0.002) harvests. Hard-mast conditions had a positive relationship with black bear gun harvests (r=0.6975, Pless than or equal to0.001). Negative nonsignificant (P>0.05) relationships were measured between mast conditions and buck white-tailed deer and muzzleloader white-tailed deer harvests. Hard mast+black cherry (Prunus serotina) had the strongest negative relationship with wild turkey (r=-0.6497, Pless than or equal to0.001) harvest, whereas oak (Quercus spp.) had the greatest negative relationship with total white-tailed deer (r= -0.6238, P=0.002), archery white-tailed deer (r=-0.6133, P=0.002), and antlerless white-tailed deer (r=-0.5648, P=0.005) harvests. Total hard mast had the greatest positive relationship with black bear gun (r=0.6975, Pless than or equal to0.001) and greatest negative relationship with black bear archery (r=-0.6065, P=0.002) harvests. Soft-mast conditions did not relate to harvest of any big-game species (P>0.05). Our results supply wildlife biologists with data that may be used in setting seasons or predicting harvests for the public.

t Distributing and supporting wildlife modeling software is difficult and expensive, and can be burdensome to the user who tries to install and run it. We developed a population dynamics model for the eastern wild turkey (Meleagris galapavo) that requires only access to the Internet. Users can select either a deterministic or a stochastic version of the model. Model output provides projections of population size and harvest at the start of spring and fall, and information about population growth rate and age/sex structure. This should enable managers to address questions related to setting seasonal harvest levels, and also to compare various strategies to rehabilitate declining populations.

Knowledge of reproductive parameters and assessment of the relative importance of factors affecting reproductive success are essential for effective management of eastern wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris). We determined reproductive parameters of 599 radiomarked hens (293 for >1 yr), and the effects of age. year, region, condition (winter weight), incubation chronology (periods), land-ownership, and weather on their reproductive success in 3 Appalachian Mountain regions of Virginia and West Virginia. Average first nest incubation initiation was May 5 +/- 0.6 days ((x) over bar +/- SE, n = 629). Production rate (poults alive 4 weeks post hatch/female alive 1 Apr) averaged 1.46 +/- 0.09 (n = 863). Nesting rates were lower than studies in other regions and may be limiting reproduction. Production rates increased with age (juv: 0.4 +/- 0.14, 2+: 1.40 +/- 0.14, 3+: 2.55 +/- 0.25), but did not differ among regions, years, or weight classes of winter-trapped juvenile or adult hens. Reproduction was evaluated by quintiles (periods) of the first incubation dates by year. Hens that began incubation in the second or third periods had higher (>67%) incubation completion rates than other periods (less than or equal to 50%), but potential production rates (poults alive 4 weeks post hatch/female completing incubation) were not different among incubation periods. Potential production rates were higher on private lands (3.93 +/- 0.30) than public lands (2.67 +/- 0.43). Nest incubation dates in Virginia were correlated with mean March temperatures (p = -0.53) and snow depth (p = 0.52). Managers should cautiously implement or increase fall either-sex hunting seasons in populations with survival and production rates similar to those we studied. Older hens play a critical role in reproductive success in the Appalachians. In areas with fall either-sex hunting, season timing and length that reduce adult vulnerability may lessen hunting impacts on reproduction and population growth.

Hunting can have potentially significant impacts on wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) populations. We developed a 2-sex Leslie-type matrix model that predicts wild turkey population size for spring-summer and fall-winter periods to understand the effects of hunting on the dynamics of wild turkey populations in Virginia and West Virginia. A base model incorporates parameters derived from a large-scale radiotelemetry study (n = 1,543 hens radiotagged) conducted over areas with different fall hunting seasons in Virginia and West Virginia fi om 1989 to 1994. These data made it possible to, evaluate the effects of season length, season timing, and 1- versus 2-sex kills on population growth and future harvests. A sensitivity analysis confirmed that fall hunting has the strongest negative effect on the population growth rate. For the range of parameters explored, population growth I ate appeared to decrease linearly with increases in fall hunting. Also, the proportion of males in the population was more sensitive to fall rather than spring hunting. These results were invariant to a wide variety of different model calibrations.

The effect of fall either-sex hunting on eastern wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) populations is a common concern of wildlife agencies. We examined the effect of fall either-sex hunting on survival of radiotagged female wild turkeys from 1989 to 1994 in Virginia and West Virginia. We tested the hypothesis that survival of female wild turkeys did not differ among areas closed to fall hunting, open to a 4-week fall season, or open to an 8- or 9-week fall hunting season. Mean annual survival rates were higher in the area closed to fall hunting than in regions where fall hunting occurred (P = 0.05). Mean annual survival rates varied within years (P less than or equal to 0.05). Differences in annual survival rate among areas were attributed to legal hunting (P less than or equal to 0.01). Poaching was a major mortality factor. Juvenile, yearling, and adult hens had similar survival rates in the areas closed to fall hunting and with 4 weeks of fall hunting (P = 0.39), but survival rates of juveniles were lower (P = 0.03) than those of yearling and adult females in the area with an 8-9-week fall hunting season. Harvest rates of female turkeys averaged 4.3% in the 4-week fall hunted area and 12.3% on the 8-9-week fall hunted area. Higher harvests were achieved on the study area opened only to spring hunting than the combined fall-spring harvests on the other study areas. Total harvest was negatively associated with survival (r(s) = -0.90, P = 0.04) on the 8-9-week fall hunted area and positively associated with survival (r(s) = 0.90, P = 0.04) in the area closed to fall hunting. Spring gobbler-only hunting is suggested for maximum growth in a wild turkey population. Guidelines are presented for fall harvest programs.

We studied efficiency of the rocket, rocket box, and cannon-net trapping techniques and the effects of the techniques on the physical condition of eastern wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris). We trapped 1,168 wild turkeys during a 5-year period (1989-1994). There were no differences in trapping efficiency (P > 0.05) among techniques. Fall (Sep-Oct) and winter (Jan-Apr) trapping efficiencies were not different (P > 0.05). Trappers with 21 year of experience had higher trapping efficiency (P < 0.0002) than trappers with no prior experience. There were differences in trapping efficiency by year (P < 0.006). Techniques used averaged < 2% severe injuries or mortalities. Training of new trappers appears warranted to improve trapping efficiency.

Little is known about effects of selective harvesting on home range and habitat use of wild turkeys. Such knowledge is needed to develop sound wild turkey management plans. Thirty-two eastern wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) hens were monitored by telemetry in Wetzel County, West Virginia, from 15 April to is August 1990-1992. Spring home range (N = 24) averaged 532 ha; hens (N = 6) nesting in selectively harvested habitats had significantly smaller (344 ha) home ranges than hens (N = 18) nesting in unharvested forest (609 ha) (P = 0.01). Summer home range averaged 631 ha with no significant difference (P = 0.59) between hens using unharvested (N = 11) or harvested (N = 5) stands. Although hens nested in 5 habitat types in proportion to their availability, during nesting (15 April to hatching) and brood-rearing (hatching to Is August), unharvested chestnut oak (Quercus prinus) and bottomland hardwood and nonforest habitats were used more than expected. Laying-incubation ranges had significantly higher (P = 0.01) average (rt SD) percent understory cover in harvested (N = 7) (59 +/- 6.6%) than unharvested (N = 20) (36 +/- 4.3%) areas. Percent herbaceous understory cover in brood-rearing habitat was significantly higher (P = 0.01) in harvested (N = 6) (72 +/- 1.9%) than unharvested (N = 12) (60 +/- 2.1%) areas. Selective timber harvesting may have increased food availability and structural heterogeneity of understory vegetation, thus improving quality of wild turkey nesting and brood-rearing habitats.

To determine the effects of 17 access, cover, relief, and game variables, we interviewed hunters as they left a 9,500-ha area of national forest and private land in West Virginia. Hunters were classed as hunting for deer (Odocoileus virginianus), turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo), or squirrels (Sciurus carolinen- sis, S. niger). The area was divided into 166 blocks of 64.8 ha or less, and each block was rated on the 17 variables. The number of hunters that visited a block decreased with distance from a trail, camping or parking site, road, or wildlife clearing, and with decreases in length of public land boundary and amount of game seen. In regressions of data from 3 years, all variables accounted for 33 to 44 percent of the variation in visits to the blocks and the 6 most important variables accounted for 26 to 30 percent. These were trails (all hunters), camping or parking sites (deer and turkey), wildlife clearings (turkey), pub- lic boundary, roads, and game seen (squirrel hunters). Proximity of trails accounted for much more vari- ation in hunter visits than cover type did, but game distribution related more to cover type than to trails. Hunter-game contact could be increased least expensively by trail management. The findings suggest limits of the effectiveness of management alternatives, and that hunters were influenced by factors other than site characteristics and game-seeking efficiency.

Forest type was used as a basis for classifying observations of turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo), gray squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) on an 8,100-ha study area. For three years, sightings of game were recorded in each April and November, deer-pellet groups were counted in each April, and leaf nests were counted in each November; then, data for the three years were pooled. The sightings of turkeys, deer, and grouse differed between spring and fall. However, we pooled the spring and fall counts to illustrate use of such data in habitat management. Among seven forest types, all game counts differed from counts that would be expected if locations of game or sign were independent of forest type. Counts for each game species in each forest type were converted to ratios, and comparisons were made directly between all pairs of forest types for any species, and all species/type combinations. Use of the ratios is demonstrated in a hypothetical management analysis. Such comparisons can help define management alternatives and resolve trade-offs among them. J. WILDL. MANAGE. 39(4):762-768 This paper reports on the relative use of seven forest types by turkeys, gray squirrels, white-tailed deer, and ruffed grouse. We show how measures of game occurrence can be converted to ratings and used to compare forest types for different wildlife species. The methods used may provide guidance for preparing economic analyses or for resolving multiple-use conflicts. Timber management commonly provides the most practical means for managing habitat of forest wildlife. Shaw (1970:272) asserted that over 90 percent of the vegeta- tive manipulations needed for forest wild- life can be achieved through well-planned timber programs.