Featured Researcher: Hannah Butkiewicz

One of the remarkable elements of the Snapshot Wisconsin program is our ability to work closely with University collaborators across the state. When trail camera hosts upload and classify their photos, they provide valuable data for our program. Research collaborators can then use this data to answer critical questions about our state’s wildlife.

Hannah Butkiewicz is one of Snapshot Wisconsin’s current collaborators. Growing up in rural Wisconsin, Hannah became interested in wildlife during a high school internship. From monitoring Karner Blue butterflies, to tracking wolves, planting prairies, and sampling fresh-water mussels, Hannah describes that summer as “life-changing.” Thanks to the mentorship of one of her teachers, she went on to pursue her interests in wildlife research. Hannah is currently working towards her M.S. at UW-Stevens Point’s Natural Resources program under the supervision of Professor Jason Riddle.

Hannah is investigating three main questions that will provide important information for wildlife management decision support:

1. What are the estimated ratios of poults (young turkeys) to hens (adult female turkeys), and what is the average brood (group of offspring) size?
2. Is there a difference in wild turkey reproduction and population growth between habitats that are more than 50% forested or less than 50% forested?
3. What is the effectiveness of using Snapshot Wisconsin trail camera images to assess wild turkey reproduction and population growth?

A hen and her brood of poults captured on a Snapshot Wisconsin trail camera.

In order to answer these questions, Hannah’s research will use two different data sources. First she will analyze wild turkey data that our volunteers have collected from all over the state. These turkey photos are from April through August of 2015-2020. So far, Hannah and her research assistant have reviewed nearly 50,000 of these photo triggers. When they look at each photo, they document the number of hens, poults, toms (adult males), and jakes (juvenile males). This information will help her answer her first research question relating to hen-to-poult ratios and average brood size. It will also help her determine if there is a difference in reproduction and population growth between habitats that are more than 50% forested or less than 50% forested.

The other side of Hannah’s research involves working with a select number of Snapshot Wisconsin volunteers to place additional cameras and sound recording equipment near existing Snapshot trail cameras. A single trail camera is limited in how many animals it can capture because it only detects what passes directly in front of its view. In order to better compare the Snapshot Wisconsin trail camera triggers to the turkeys present outside of the camera’s range, three additional cameras were placed around several deployed Snapshot cameras to form a 360-degree view of the surrounding area (see Figure 1). The automated recording unit will be used to record any turkey calls from individuals that are not within view of the trail cameras, either due to foliage or distance. Hannah plans to check these extra cameras and recording units once a month for the rest of this summer. Having additional trail camera photos and sound recordings of turkeys will help her determine the efficiency of using Snapshot Wisconsin trail camera images for monitoring wild turkey reproduction and population growth. It will also allow her to adjust her hen-to-poult ratio estimates.

Figure 1. Created by Hannah Butkiewicz.

When describing her experience as a graduate student working on this project, Hannah said, “The overall experience so far has been great! I am enjoying all my classes and have developed professional relationships with my advisers, graduate students, campus professors and other professionals. Graduate school requires a lot of hard work and dedication, but it sure helps to have a great team!”

Hannah plans to finish her research in August of 2021 in order to have time to write her thesis and graduate by December of next year. We wish Hannah the best of luck in continuing with her graduate studies and we look forward to providing updates on final research findings in the future!