how can i help calif?

[californiacoyotes]

reading ithica's article got me wondering how i could get california dept. fish and game to transplant more turkeys in southern california. can anybody help? there are a couple spots were turkeys have been planted but fires have spead them out and their population is sparse here in souther n california. i want more! i have not taken a turkey here in s. cal but have gone the past three years. the first time was the most memorable. even though i had no clue what i was doing i was/am hooked!! but how can i motivate fish and game to transplant more birds?

 

[Ithaca 37]

Cal, Are you a member of a NWTF chapter? It usually takes encouragement and help from a sportsman's group to motivate a F&G Department to do some transplanting. The first thing they'll look at is whether the places you want to transplant to are actually good habitat with a chance of supporting a good population. Then the question is why the turkeys aren't thriving there if they've been there in the past. Sometimes if there just aren't enough of them in an area they can be very successfully "jump started" by adding just a few dozen to each known flock. Then from that flock you start tranplanting to the next closest good looking habitat, which might only be five or ten miles away. Then you start "leap frogging" transplants from one drainage to another, trying to keep adding new genes to the pools. If the habitat is any good at all it should only take three or four years befor you start seeing good results. NWTF and most state F&G Depts. usually have experts that can evaluate habitat potential. What it usually comes down to is pressure and help from a NWTF chapter. And when I say "help" I mean money, too, which the Nat'l NWTF can sometimes be persuaded to help with if they think areas have potential. Good luck!

 

[Nut]

CC it always starts with one person. Ithaca gave ya some good advice. In my part of the state we have gotten 2 spring seasons in. These were the first 2 on record in ages if at all. I am waiting to hunt the turkey around here in a few yrs just to hopefully let the population build up.

Go for it!

 

[canadian turkey hunter]

i agree with ithaca....100% well said!

 

[californiacoyotes]

well this morning i called the NWTF to get membership info and a placed a call the the dept. of fish and game here in california. the person i need to talk to is on vacation but i was told that more turkey tranplants are on hold because some enviromental group threatened to sue because they say that the birds may harm some species of plants! so anymore transplants are on hold until the DFG completes an envirmental impact report. so it seems even if i had the support of a national org. i wouldn't get very far at all i am still going to call the guy i need to talk to at the DFG next week but i'm not to sure what to ask or say, other then to ask about the status of the envirmental impact report. any suggestions?

 

[Nut]

Stay strong and determined. Get with other local members.(Maybe a local chapter). Prove to the DFG that there is a presence in your area. Keep in contact every week.