Vermont turkey brood survey starts July 1

July 5, 2024  |  By Waterbury Roundabout

Vermont Fish & Wildlife asks  people who see wild turkey broods during July and August to report their sightings using an online survey. VTF&W photo by John Hall

Have wild turkeys in your neighborhood or see them in your daily travels? 

The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department wants to know where you spot them, especially groups with broods. 

Since 2007, Fish & Wildlife has run an annual online survey in August for reporting turkey broods. Beginning in 2021, it was expanded to include July. Help from citizen scientists allows state wildlife biologists to collect important turkey population and productivity data from all corners of the state.

What to do: If you see a flock of turkeys in Vermont during July and August, go to the turkey brood survey online which opens on July 1. Report your observations, including where and when you observed the turkeys and the number of adult and young turkeys you observed. 

The more reports, the better the data will be for the experts to gauge long-term trends. “It also helps us assess the impacts of spring weather on the survival of poults and adult turkeys which is an important consideration in the management of turkeys,” said  Chris Bernier, Fish and Wildlife’s turkey biologist. “We monitor and manage wild turkey numbers annually in order to maintain a healthy, abundant and sustainable population of these iconic and ecologically significant birds throughout the state.”