Ma. Rumble et Sh. Anderson, FEEDING ECOLOGY OF MERRIAMS TURKEYS (MELEAGRIS-GALLOPAVO MERRIAMI) INTHE BLACK-HILLS, SOUTH-DAKOTA, The American midland naturalist, 136(1), 1996, pp. 157-171
We studied the feeding ecology of Merriam's turkey (Meleagris gallopav
o merriami) in the Black Hills, South Dakota, between 1986 and 1989. A
dult birds consumed 78 kinds of food, of which four food categories co
nstituted >79% of winter diets and six food categories constituted >75
% of summer diets. Ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) seeds were the pre
ferred winter food and birds selected habitats where pine seed abundan
ce was highest. During drought, ponderosa pine produced fewer seeds an
d winter turkey diets were predominantly kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos
uva-ursi) fruits and herbaceous foliage and seeds. Merriam's turkeys c
onsumed more green foliage from late winter through spring. Summer die
ts were mostly grass seeds and foliage. Arthropods comprised >60% of t
he poult diets. Poults less than or equal to 3 wk old consumed more ar
thropods than poults >7 wk old. Grasshoppers (Orthoptera) and beetles
(Coleoptera) were the primary arthropods eaten by poults. Brood hens s
elected macrohabitats where arthropod abundance was highest. Poults se
lected arthropods with large mass/individual and disregarded some arth
ropods that were abundant but with low mass/individual.