CROSS TIMBERS TURKEYS: Research to understand habitat 
needs of a native wild turkey ... on Passport to Texas. 

This is Passport to Texas

Texas Parks and Wildlife is into the fifth year of a long-
term research project in the Cross Timbers ecoregion -- in 
North central Texas -- that explores habitat needs of Rio 
Grande Turkey.

15 -- And the reason we're doing that is because a high priority 
goal of our division, and a very important part of our wildlife 
biologist's jobs in the field, is to work with our landowners 
who want to manage their property for wildlife.

Wildlife biologist, Kevin Mote, says the Rio Grande is the 
largest upland game bird in Texas.

17 -- There's a lot of interest from landowners and definitely 
sportsmen, so it's a high priority species. And not only that, 
when you manage for habitat that is good for wild turkeys, it is 
also managing that habitat for a whole suite of other native 
species.

Data on this bird exist for the SE US and other areas of 
Texas, but not for the Cross-Timbers region, says Mote.

21 -- And so, we were extrapolating concepts, theories, and 
practices developed in other states, if not other parts of Texas. 
And so, sometimes, the devil is in the details. We wanted to 
find out exactly how Rio Grande wild turkeys were making a 
living on the habitat in the cross timbers.

Biologists have been trapping birds and fitting them with 
GPS collars. 

04 -- We do have to trap them every winter and fit them with 
transmitters.

Tomorrow: New radio telemetry technology improves 
data collection. 

The Wildlife Restoration program supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife ... I'm Cecilia Nasti.

Total sound bite time:		 0:57.0
Maximum Script time:		 0:28.0 Suggested show time: 85.0 = 1:25