Wild Turkey CEDARCREEK Meleagris gallopavo

Eyes on the Wild Description Males are mostly dark brown with a red head, neck and wattle. Their faces can be blue and their feathers are iridescent in the sunlight. Females are brownish-gray with a light gray head. Size (on average) Height:3.25 – 3.75 ft. Weight:10-25 lbs. Wingspan: 4-5 ft. Habitat Preference Turkeys are commonly seen in open grassland areas and along the edges of woods. Cedar Creek’s turkeys also travel throughout the deciduous forests of the property, particularly outside of breeding season. Diet Omnivorous. Turkeys are generalists and will eat almost anything they can catch. Common food items include acorns, berries, ferns, insects and frogs. FUN FACTS ▪ In 1782, the turkey lost by a single vote to Common behaviors and things to look the bald eagle to become the national bird for in camera images of the United States. Turkeys can be seen on many of Cedar Creek’s trail cameras. Males often display for the camera, and it is ▪ Although they are most commonly seen on common to see flocks of hens feeding in the prairies the ground, turkeys are able to fly and roost with a smaller number of males patrolling around them. in trees at night. Look for a large, round bird with a small head walking on the ground. Phenology Turkeys mate in April and May. Hens lay 10 to 15 eggs, which hatch in about a month after being incubated by the female. The young are called poults and are able to fly in 1-2 weeks, but they stay with their mother through the summer.

Status at Cedar Creek Since the reintroduction of the species by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources in the 1970s, turkeys have become a common sight at Cedar Creek. Records at Cedar Creek date back to the 1980s and large flocks can be seen throughout the reserve and the © Cornell University 2017 adjacent farms and homesteads. References: Eyes on the Wild Field Guide https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wild_Turkey/id Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve is a University of Minnesota https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/birds/wildturkey.html biological field station. Photos are from the Cedar Creek field cameras. https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/wild-turkey