Common Name:
Wild turkey
Scientific Name:
Meleagris gallopavo
Appearance:
- Bill: Short and thick, pale color with a red skin flap on top
- Size: 35-50 inches long with 55-inch wingspan, plump round body, long legs
- Colors: Pink and blue head, dark iridescent plumage, pale legs
- Markings: Head is bare and the male’s neck is covered with thick red wattles. The distinctive male tail fan is dark brown with lighter colored tips, and males have a long tuft of breast feathers. Female birds are smaller with less iridescent plumage. Wings of both genders are speckled or barred with white.
Foods:
Insects, frogs, lizards, fruit, grain, seeds, nuts
Habitat and Migration:
Wild turkeys are fairly common throughout the continental United States but are rarer in the high Rocky Mountains and desert areas as well as extreme northern locations in Minnesota, North Dakota and Montana. The birds prefer woodland and rural habitats with nut-bearing trees and shrubs. Wild turkeys do not migrate.
Vocalizations:
The most distinctive call of the wild turkey is the fast “gobble-gobble-gobble” males use during the spring breeding season. Other calls by both males and females include “cluck” and “yelp” sounds to indicate movement or nest warnings.
Behavior:
Wild turkeys live in medium to large flocks with one dominant male “tom” and up to 20 or more female “hens.” The birds have superb hearing and eyesight and are powerful fliers. They forage almost continuously on the ground but roost in trees at night. During the breeding season, males will strut and display their broad tail feathers for courtship rituals and will use similar behavior throughout the year to show dominance or aggression.
Reproduction:
Male wild turkeys are polygamous and will mate with several hens in the same year. Hens incubate one brood of 8-18 eggs per year in a ground nest for approximately 27 days. After hatching, females lead the fledgling birds to food within 10 days and young birds quickly learn to forage for themselves.
Attracting Wild Turkeys:
Wild turkeys are large game birds with little to fear from most predators. They will be attracted to rural areas with oak trees and scrub brush that can provide secure ground cover. Birders can offer corn and other grain as supplemental food and may be able to attract nearby wild turkeys with artificial turkey calls.
Similar Birds:
- Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido)
- Blue Grouse (Dendragapus obscurus)
- Ring-Necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus)
