Interesting Facts About Turkeys
- Turkey gather in the fall and spend the winter in large flocks which then break into smaller flocks of similar gender in the spring and summer.
- Mature males are known as Gobblers or Tom, while the young males are Jakes.
- Mature females are known as Hens, while the young females are Jennies.
- A turkey's gender can be determined by the shape of its poop. The males poop is shaped like a j, while the female has been described as looking like popcorn.
- Turkeys are opportunistic eaters and will eat everything from grains and seeds, to insects and even mice.
- Turkey are related to domestic fowl and Grouse.
- Typically the male turkeys have thorns on the back of their legs called spurs, but some females do as well. They use these to fight and can cause great damage if they hit a person.
- The Males typically grow beards but some females do as well. Females have also been seen to strut like males.
- Baby turkeys - Poults - cannot fly for the first 2 weeks of their lives. During this time the mother turkey will not roost at night and will instead stay with them on the ground keeping them warm and safe until they can all roost together.
- The Jake, young male turkey, have uneven tail feathers and can be identified when strutting by the two middle feathers being longer than the rest.
- Turkeys have great eyesight, being able to see 270 degrees and can see in color.
- Although turkeys have no external ears, they can hear 7 times greater than people can.
- The color of a Turkey's will change depending on it's mood.
- A turkey must swallow tiny stones and keeps them in its Gizzard to help with digestion.
- Turkeys sleep in trees away from Predators. This in known as roosting and even domestic turkeys will attempt to do it.
- Turkeys can become what is known as fence dumb. They spend their days walking from location to location during the day and if they come to a fence or obstruction, even though they could easily fly up and over it, they will pave back and forth looking for a way around it.
- A wild turkey's gobble can be heard from a mile away.
- Turkeys can run as fast as 25 mph and fly up to 55 mph.
