Thanksgiving has just come and gone from our little piece of coastal paradise known as Ocean Shores. Therefore, it’s likely that many of you had some Turkey for your holiday dinner. It’s also possible that you still have some Turkey left over, which is great for making sandwiches and soup. While the Turkeys you ate were very likely domesticated and grown on poultry farms, there are many Wild Turkeys (scientific name Meleagris gallopavos) out there who must be feeling a sense of relief that this wasn’t their year to become Thanksgiving dinner. And that’s a good thing, because Wild Turkeys are a fascinating species of bird that should be admired and respected.
While you likely won’t see any Wild Turkeys wandering around Ocean Shores, you don’t have to leave our beloved state of Washington to find them. For example, I was north of Goldendale in far South Central Washington this past summer, and saw one wandering along the side of US 97 outside Brooks Memorial State Park, which is up in the hills south of Satus Pass. Chances are, if you’re in the area, you’ll see one as well. That’s because Wild Turkeys make their homes in the mountain forests, lower lying wooded areas, and grasslands that make up the area. If your travels take you outside Washington State, you can also find Wild Turkeys in other parts of the United States, particularly in the Eastern States where they adapting to living in and around the suburbs. Wild Turkeys usually get around by walking or running. However, they can fly very strongly when they want to. In fact, they typically sleep in tall trees.
Wild Turkeys mostly forage by walking on the ground, using their strong feet to scratch in “leaf litter” to find food. However, they will occasionally climb shrubs or trees to eat berries. They do the majority of their foraging in early morning and evening hours when it’s cooler outside. Their diet varies seasonally. However, it is always heavy on plant material, including many acorns (their number one favorite food), leaves, bulbs, roots, seeds, and grains. They also eat snails, spiders, and insects. Occasionally, frogs, snakes, and lizards also become prey for Wild Turkeys.
In the spring, male Wild Turkeys give gobbling calls to attract females. In courtship, the males puff out their feathers, raise and spread their tails, and droop their wings. While in this “exaggerated posture”, they strut, rattling their wing feathers and making humming sounds as they go. Wild Turkeys typically build nests that are on the ground, at the base of a tree, under a shrub, or in a tall patch of grass. The nest is shallow depression that is sparsely lined with leaves and grass.
Wild Turkeys typically lay anywhere from ten to fifteen eggs. Sometimes, they will lay as few as four, while other times will see them lay as many as eighteen eggs. The eggs are white to pale buff in color, and are dotted reddish brown. On occasion, two or more females will lay eggs in a single nest. Incubation is conducted exclusively by females, and it takes about a month to complete the process. The young leave their nest shortly after they hatch. While the females tend to the young, and brood them at night for several weeks, the young must feed themselves. Young Wild Turkeys can make short flights starting at one to two weeks of age, but wait until they are fully grown to make longer flights.
Wild Turkeys are large, plump birds. They have long legs, small heads on slim, long necks, and wide, rounded tails. They are generally 43.3 to 45.3 inches (110 to 115 centimeters) in length, with a wingspan of 49.2 to 56.7 inches (125 to 144 centimeters). They weigh anywhere from 88.2 to 381 ounces (2,500 to 10,800 grams). Wild Turkeys are generally dark colored, with a bronze-green “iridescence” (defined by Merriam-Webster as being “a lustrous rainbowlike play of color caused by differential refraction of light waves (as from an oil slick, soap bubble, or fish scales) that tends to change as the angle of view changes”) to the majority of their plumage. Their wings are dark, and “boldly barred” with white. Their rump and tail feathers are broadly tipped with a rust color or a shade of white. The bare skin of their heads and necks varies from gray to red and blue.
The number of Wild Turkeys in the United States had become “seriously depleted” by the start of the twentieth century as they were hunted to near extinction as they became popular on the dinner tables of people across the United States. Fortunately, they have been successfully reintroduced to most of their former range. They have also been established in new areas. Wild Turkeys are a member of the Pheasants and Grouse family of bird species.
References
- https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/wild-turkey
- https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wild_Turkey/id#
- https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/iridescence
© Ian D. Caldwell, November 2020