Role of kinship in sociality of female eastern wild turkeys

Abstract Female eastern wild turkeys ( Meleagris gallopavo silvestris ) exhibit seasonal variation in gregarious behaviors, forming larger winter flocks that dissolve into smaller social groups prior to the onset of reproductive activities. Information quantifying relatedness within social groups formed prior to breeding would allow an improved understanding of flock dynamics and the mating system of wild turkeys. We used a matrix of contact rates generated from high‐resolution global positioning system data for 155 female wild turkeys across the southeastern United States to quantify interactions and contact rates based on genetic relatedness. By plotting contact rates for social groups temporally, we demonstrated how winter flocks dissolved as they transitioned to pre‐laying harems and subsequently, into laying and incubation ranges. Social groups primarily dissolved during the laying phase. We observed substantive variation in cohesion among females within social groups. We found that 67% of all contacts between females within a social group occurred when they were in the pre‐laying phase, 29% were between females who did not attempt a nest, but only 2.9% occurred during the laying phase. Using 3,789 single‐nucleotide polymorphism variants per female to calculate genetic relatedness within and among social groups, we determined that 94% of all contacts occurred between unrelated females. Additionally, we noted that 60% of females with genetic relatives in their winter flocks did not join a social group that included those relatives. Our findings suggest that female wild turkeys identify a cost to associating with kin during the reproductive season.