1. WILD TURKEY

2. Objectives At the end of today’s lesson, students will be able to:
Identify characteristics of both sexes of the Wild Turkey.
List the food sources of the Wild Turkey throughout the year.
Define the habitat of a wild turkey.

3. LATIN NAME & SIZE LN: Meleagris gallopavo MALE SIZE:
WEIGHT: 16 LBS - UP TO 25 LBS
LENGTH: FT
HEIGHT: 2 1/2 - 3 FT
FEMALE SIZE:
WEIGHT: 10 LBS
LENGTH: 1 1/2 - 2 FT
HEIGHT: /2 FT

4. FEMALE COLOR Not iridescent Brown or buff tipped breast feathers
Chestnut brown tail feathers
Bluish gray head

5. MALE COLOR Brown - iridescent green copper, blue, mahogany
Black tipped breast feathers
Chestnut brown tail feathers
Head varies
Light blue cheeks

6. SEX ID MALE HEAD: Red, blue, or white depending on bird's emotional
status and on season
No feathers
MALE TRACK: 4 1/4 in. back of heel to tip of middle toe
FEMALE HEAD:
Bluish gray
Hair + fine feathers
FEMALE TRACK: 3 3/4 in.

7. MALE ID WATTLE: Early spring
Fleshy skin hanging down from chin or throat
Bright red
Fade away by fall
CARUNCLE:
Wart-like projections of skin
Attached to upper part of forehead between eyes

8. CARUNCLE/SNOOD/DEW BILL

9. MOSTLY MALES MESOFILOPLUME: Beard
Rough black hair like feathers on breast
Not a good indication of age *wears
Grows rapidly for years
12 inches long
SPUR:
Sharp bony spike on back of leg
Defense or fighting

10. MESOFILOPLUME:

12. ID LONG NECK LONG LEGS SMALL HEAD MIDDLE TAIL FEATHERS:
LONG: Up to 1 yr old
CURVED LINE: Adult

13. FOOD SPRING: Green vegetation, shoots, tubers, nuts, insects
SUMMER: Green vegetation, insects & larvae, seeds,
flowers, fruits, tubers, roots, bulbs, stems, buds
FALL: Mast, seeds, grass, sedges, corn, weeds, oat,
fruit
WINTER: Seeds, mast, + insect larvae, fruit, & green
vegetation around spring seep

14. HABITAT PREFER: Mature forest with adequate water source &
grassy opening
IMPROVE:
Maintain mature forest with mast trees
Cut non-mast producing trees to create opening
Protect spring seeps

15. PREDATORS ADULT: Mainly female is prey Fox, bobcat, great horned owl
NEST:
Eggs & young
Fox, bobcat, great horned owl, mink, raccoon, skunk,
opossum, blacksnake, crows, red squirrel

16. Bell Ringer:
Write three characteristics of a male wild turkey and two characteristics of the female wild turkey.

17. Objectives
After the completion of today’s lesson, students will be able to:
Define characteristics of wil turkey reproduction.
Describe three reasons the wild turkey was close to extinction.
Compare the wild turkey to the domesticated turkey.

18. REPRODUCTION WHEN: Late March - early April
GESTATION: Up to 4 weeks *sperm stored in oviduct
#YOUNG/LITTER: (average 12)
#LITTERS/YR: 1
WHERE:
Leaf lined nest in wooded or brushy area
Near water
Near forest clearing or old field

19. REPRODUCTION GALLINACEOUS 28 DAY INCUBATION RENEST
MALE COLLECTS HAREM OF 8 -12
MALE HEAD: Red during mating season
PRECOCIAL

20. POULT

21. MALE COURTSHIP DISPLAY
HEAD + NECK: Blue, purple, white
STRUT WITH PLUMMAGE ERECT
TAIL FANNED
CARUNCLE/SNOOD SWOLLEN
WINGS DROOPED
GOBBLE

22. MALE COURTSHIP DISPLAY

23. MALE STRUTTING

24. LIFE SPAN & OTHER INFO LS: CAPTIVITY: 10 YRS WILD: 5 YRS
ORIGINATED IN NORTH & CENTRAL AMERICA
HAVE EXISTED 10 MILLION YEARS
6 SUBSPECIES IN NA: Pa has Eastern
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN > NATIONAL EMBLEM

25. EARLY 1900’S ALMOST EXTINCT
1930’s ONLY 30,000 ALIVE ON EARTH
WHY - AXE, PLOW, GUN
4 REASONS
SETTLERS USED FOR FOOD
MARKET HUNTING = SHOOT TO SELL
CLEARCUTTING REDUCED SUITABLE HABITAT
WILDFIRES DURING NESTING SEASON
1930’S RAISE & RELEASE - BIRDS DIDN’T ADAPT
PGC TRAP & TRANSFER INCREASED POPULATION

26. ESCAPE
HIDE CLEVERLY
RELY MAINLY ON FEET: Male stride = 4 ft at 18 m.p.h.
FLY m.p.h.
GOOD SWIMMERS

27. OTHER INFO MALE ADULT: Tom or gobbler IMMATURE MALE: Jake
FEMALE ADULT: Hen
IMMATURE FEMALE: Jenny
RANGE = 1000 ACRES/YR
DISTURBED OFTEN = LEAVE AREA PERMANENTLY

28. EATING TERMS CROP: Located in neck Flexible bag with juices
Stores acorns when swallowed whole
Juices + body heat soften acorn
GIZZARD:
Acorn passed from crop
Enlarged, thick walled section of food canal
Muscular stomach
Contains grit

29. EATING TERMS GRIT: Small stones & gravel Grind soft acorn shell
SCRATCH: Use feet to search for food

30. EATING AN ACORN SCRATCH LEAVES & DUFF PICK UP ACORN WITH BEAK
STRAIGHTEN NECK & SWALLOW
ACORN STORED IN CROP
ACORN PASSES TO GIZZARD
STRONG MUSCLES USE GRIT TO GRIND SHELL

31. HOW HUNTERS USE SCRATCH
WHEN FLOCK PASSED THRU AREA
SIZE OF FLOCK
DIRECTION OF TRAVEL

32. FLOCK

33. Objectives
Describe the function of each part of the bird’s digestive system.
List similarities and differences of the wild turkey and the domesticated turkey.
Identify different wild turkey sounds and define them.

34. COMMON VS DINNER GENETICALLY SAME BIRD DON’T HAVE SAME COLORING
DOMESTIC: BRED FOR LOTS OF MEAT
DOMESTICATED 500 YEARS AGO BY AMERICAN INDIANS
SHIPPED TO & BRED IN EUROPE THEN RAISED IN NORTH AMERICA

35. COMPARISON

36. OTHER INFO SLEEP IN TREES 6 - 40 SLEEP IN SAME TREE OR NEARBY TREES
DUST BATHING:
Rolls in loose soil - ant beds & sandy spots
Fluff up feathers so soil penetrates skin
MAKE 2 DOZEN DIFFERENT CALLS
MOST HUNTERS ONLY NOTICE 10

37. CALLS YELP: basic turkey sound, variety of meanings TREE YELP:
Hen Assembly Call: series of loud yelps in order to assemble her flock or young poults.
TREE YELP:
First sound heard in morning
Only made at daybreak from roost
Greeting call to check if everyone is OK
Slow, soft nasal sound made of 3 or 4 yelps
CLUCK:
Get another turkey’s attention to regroup
Short, soft, single-syllable, non-musical tone

38. Objectives Identify different wild turkey sounds and define them.
Discuss the issues of wild turkeys on suburban areas

39. MATING CALL:
In the spring
Three yelps rising in volume, a pause, then two soft clucks
CUTTING:
Excited hen
Series of 12 or more yelps - rise in pitch & gradually decline
FLY DOWN CRACKLE:
Associated with movement
KEE KEE RUN:
Lost call of young turkeys

40. PURR: Soft call used when communicating
GOBBLE:
Male attracts female
Male proclaiming territory
PUTT:
Single Note, associated with alarm, danger
To study sounds, go to:  

41. ANY QUESTIONS?? Review Questions:
Name two differences between the wild turkey and domesticated turkey.
Are the wild turkey and domesticated turkey genetically the same?
What call do turkeys make to alert others of danger?
What call do turkeys make at daybreak to check to make sure everyone is ok?