Caney Mountain Turkey Restoration Story

Thanksgiving includes turkey dinner for most Missourians -- and many put turkeys harvested from the wild on the Thanksgiving dinner table. Conservation efforts have brought back this native game bird from a low of only a couple thousand in the 1930s to more than 400,000 today.
Discover nature close to home or around the state. There are more than 1,000 Missouri Department of Conservation areas to help you pursue your favorite outdoor activity.
Caney Mountain Conservation Area in Ozark County holds a special place in our Conservation history. Here among the rolling hills, the first efforts were made to bring back the wild turkey in Missouri.
Poaching, habitat destruction, over-grazing and other factors had diminished the wild turkey population in our state. Here at Caney Mountain, there was still a wild population that-- although only about a dozen-- were maintaining their numbers.
Working out of this cabin, Master Conservationist Starker Leopold, son of Sand County Almanac author Aldo Leopold, began his work around 1940.
Working with the refuge manager and neighbors, planting food plots for wildlife and other practices brought success. With the addition of Peck Ranch, there was enough habitat to bring back the wild turkey statewide. Many were trapped with canon nets and relocated to other parts of the state. The turkey season re-opened in 1960 after being closed for more than two decades.
From a population low of around 2,000 in the 1930’s, today there are around 450,000 birds and a spring hunting season that pumps millions of dollars into Missouri’s economy.
Today, Caney Mountain Conservation Area offers many recreational opportunities in the Ozark hills including turkey and deer hunting, camping, hiking, bird and wildlife watching, and a driving tour with overlooks featuring spring and fall foliage views. And you can still see the cabin above Caney Creek where the hardy work of wildlife management began.