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| Wild Turkey |
The bird has a storied past. The Wild Turkey was a very important food to Native Americans, but it was eliminated from much of its range by the early 1900s. Introduction programs have successfully re-established it in much of its original range, and even extended it into areas where it never occurred before.
A native of North America, the turkey is one of only two domesticated birds originating in the New World. (The Muscovy Duck is the other.) Wild Turkeys are found in hardwood forests that have open areas. They also are found in swamps, grasslands, ponderosa pine forests as well as the chaparral.
Wild Turkeys are large, dark colored ground-dwelling birds with long, powerful legs; large fan-shaped tails; and bare heads and necks. The male has breast feathers tipped in black. Its head and neck are a blue-gray with pink wattles. During springtime display, the male's forehead is white, his face is light blue and his neck is scarlet. The female's breast feathers are tipped with brown, gray or white; her head has small feathers and, if present, the beard is small.
The male will "gobble" to attract a female. He then struts around her with his tail feathers fanned and held up vertically, then he lowers his head back and inflates his crop. He will make occasional deep sounds followed by a "humm," all of which is accompanied by rapid vibration of his tail feathers.
Only the female is involved in raising the chicks. A small depression in dead leaves or vegetation on the ground is the "nest." Four to 17 eggs are laid and incubated for about 28 days. Poults are downy covered when hatched and are able to follow the mother. In a few days they are eating on their own. Turkeys feed on acorns, nuts, seeds, insects, fern fronds and salamanders.
Wild Turkeys are strong fliers and can fly straight up and then away. During the night, they roost in trees. Their eyesight is three times better than a human's. Their hearing is excellent; they are able to hear another turkey a mile away.
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