Wild Turkey Facts

Wild Turkey Facts

1. The adult male turkey is called a gobbler.  A male bird less than a year old is called a jake.  An adult female turkey is called a hen and a female turkey less than one year old is called a jenny.  Young turkeys (male and female) less than a few months of age are called poults.

2. Wild turkeys are covered with dark feathers that help them blend in with their woodland homes.  The bare skin on the throat and head of a turkey can change color from flat gray to striking shades of red, white, and blue when the bird becomes distressed or excited.

3. Tom Turkey's Tale of a Tail Peacocks aren't the only birds who use their fancy tails to attract a mate.  

4. Each spring male turkeys try to befriend as many females as possible.  Male turkeys, also called "Tom Turkeys" or "Gobblers" puff up their bodies and spread their tail feathers (just like a peacock).  They grunt, make a "gobble gobble sound" and strut about shaking their feathers.  This fancy turkey trot helps the male attract females (also called "hens") for mating.

5. The wild turkey we usually see in photos or pictures is not the same as the domestic turkey that was served at Thanksgiving Day. Domestic or tame turkeys weigh twice what a wild turkey does and are raised on farms for profit. 

6. Most domestic turkeys are so heavy they are unable to fly.

Image Source:  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Yathin_sk
7. The heaviest turkey ever raised weighed in at 86 pounds-about the size of a large German Shepherd.

8. Mature turkeys have 3,500 or so feathers. The Apache Indians considered the turkey timid and wouldn't eat it or use its feathers on their arrows. 

9. Domesticated turkeys (farm raised) cannot fly. Wild turkeys can fly for short distances at up to 55 miles per hour. Wild turkeys are also fast on the ground, running at speeds of up to 25 miles per hour.

10. The fleshy growth from the base of the beak, which is very long on male turkeys and hangs down over the beak, is called the snood. Turns bright red when the turkey is upset or during courtship.

11. Wattle-the flap of skin under the turkey's chin. Turns bright red when the turkey is upset or during courtship.

12. Spurs on hens are very uncommon, and if they occur, the spur is very small, poorly developed and usually rounded. Young turkeys are called “poults” and both sexes resemble the hens in color up to 10 weeks of age. 

13. Around 14 weeks, the different sexes can start to be recognized by their size and plumage.

14. Wild turkey populations were almost eliminated by the 1930s (less than 30,000 birds) due to habitat destruction and unregulated shooting.  Today, there are over 7 million wild turkeys in the United States.  In fact, there are now spring turkey seasons in 49 states (Alaska does not have any wild turkeys).  Hunters annually harvest over ½ million turkeys a year; wild turkey numbers are still increasing.

15. There are 5 subspecies of the wild turkey; Eastern, Osceola, Rio Grande, Merriam’s and Gould’s.  The Gould’s is the only subspecies not hunted in the United States.  The Ocellated turkey of Central America is actually a different species.

16. Insects are the young turkey’s (poults) primary food item during the spring and early summer.  For this reason, wildlife openings (grass fields) provide important habitat for young turkey broods because the openings provide an abundance of grasses that attract large numbers of insects (the insects feed on the grasses).  Insects make up over 90% of a poult’s diet during their first month of life.  Insects are rich in protein and provide turkey’s a high-energy food source.

17. During the spring, a male (gobblers and jakes) wild turkey’s physical appearance changes; his head turns a brilliant red, white, and blue color.  He can often be seen puffed up, tail feathers fanned out and his wings dragging on the ground.  This display is called strutting and the purpose of this display is to attract hens for breeding.

18. During the winter, hard mast such as acorns, are the primary food sources for wild turkeys.  Planting soft-mast bearing trees and shrubs, such as hawthorn, crabapple, and dogwood, are important additions to a turkey’s winter habitat, especially during years when acorns are in short supply.

19. Hens can also grow beards, but less frequently than gobblers.  From 0% to 15% of a turkey population may contain bearded hens.  These bearded hens can reproduce normally.

20. Prescribed burning of the forest is an important habitat management technique for the wild turkey. Prescribed burning removes much of the woody shrubs, that can choke out the forest understory (plants growing at ground level) and promotes the growth of grasses and forbs.  The removal of fire from our landscape has severely hurt turkey populations in many areas.

21. Wild turkeys are very strong flyers and can attain speeds up to 50 mph.  Although turkeys usually fly only 100 to 200 yards, they can easily fly several miles at a time.

22. An adult gobbler will weigh approximately 21 pounds.  An adult hen will weigh between 8 and 11 pounds.

23. The eastern wild turkey, as its name implies, inhabits the eastern half of the United States.  It is the most widely distributed, abundant and hunted turkey of the five subspecies found in the United States.  The subspecies’s name of the eastern wild turkey is silvestris, which means “forest” turkey.

24. Benjamin Franklin considered the native wild turkey such a noble bird that he proposed it as the symbol of the United States.