These New Residents of Utah Came in From Texas and Some People Aren’t Happy

There are two kinds of wild turkeys that make Utah their home. The Merriam's wild turkeys were native to Utah but were reintroduced in 1952. The Rio Grande turkeys were brought to Utah in 1984.

Tracking the Movement: Conservation Efforts for Wild Turkeys

Some of these Rio Grande Turkeys were transferred to Utah from Texas this past spring. Conservationists are tracking the birds to learn more about their nesting habits and how many survive getting relocated.

These birds will hopefully make the turkeys in Utah more resilient, but there are problems when the population grows to large for the area. Wild turkeys can become a nuisance when they crowd into neighborhoods.

This year a group of students from Utah State University Eastern helped the DWR trap some of these turkeys and relocate them to the central part of the state.

Human-Wildlife Interaction: Relocating Problem Turkeys

In the article it talks about how the Division of Wildlife Resources traps problem birds every year and moves them to a wilderness area. Sometimes there are hundreds of turkeys that need to be moved.

There is a complaint on Facebook about turkeys bothering homes in Provo and attracting coyotes to the area. The post claims the problem comes from some of these turkeys imported from Texas.

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Wild turkeys can be fun to see in the wild and hunting the birds is growing in popularity in the state. However, when they start showing up in backyards by the hundreds, they can leave a big mess.