Wild Turkey Facts to Share This Thanksgiving

Contrary to popular belief, Thanksgiving did not become a traditional celebration because of the Massachusetts Pilgrims; nor was the turkey for a fact the main dish at the famous 1621 meal.

There is speculation that the turkey only became a regular addition to Thanksgiving dinners around the year 1800.

Additionally, Benjamin Franklin did not propose the wild turkey as America's symbol. Although he spoke about the turkey's significance, he never formally advocated for it to be a national symbol. In a letter to his daughter, Franklin compared the turkey favorably to the bald eagle, describing it as "a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America...He is besides, though a little vain and silly, a Bird of Courage."

There are five distinct subspecies of wild turkey in North America and a distinct species known as the Ocellated turkey.

Eastern wild turkeys are the most widely distributed subspecies east of the Mississippi River. They are also the most abundant. In fact, you can find them in 38 states and numerous Canadian provinces.

The Florida wild turkey (also referred to as the Osceola) gets its name from its location. It’s only found in Florida. There are about 100,000 of them in Florida today.

The Rio Grande wild turkeys are concentrated in western desert regions of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and other western states. Mexico also harbors a healthy population.

The Merriam’s wild turkeys are most abundant in the mountainous regions of the West. The Rocky Mountains are considered the central hub of the population.

The Gould’s wild turkey can only be found in Arizona, New Mexico and northern Mexico, and its population is few in numbers.

The Ocellated turkey is a species unto itself and can only be found in a 50,000 square mile area in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, northern Belize and the El Petén region of northern Guatemala.

By 1920, the wild turkey was lost from 18 of the original 39 states where it was once abundant.

As the fledgling nation grew, the once-thriving wild turkey populations rapidly dwindled. Pioneers heavily relied on wild turkeys as a vital food source, hunting them throughout the year without the safeguards of regulated hunting laws. Facing relentless hunting pressure from market hunters striving to feed the growing colonial population, the wild turkey began disappearing from much of its original range. Exceptions existed in isolated and inaccessible areas, primarily in the southeastern United States.

As settlers gradually tamed the wilderness, cleared woodlands, and pushed westward, fewer wild turkeys remained. Connecticut lost its wild turkeys by 1813, and Vermont held out until 1842, with other states following suit. By 1920, the wild turkey had vanished from 18 of the original 39 states.

Turkey droppings can help you determine the sex of the bird.

A male turkey’s poop forms a “J” shape, while a female turkey’s poop is shaped like a spiral. Additionally, the bigger the poop, the older the bird. 

A wild turkey’s gobble can be heard up to a mile away.

During the spring, male wild turkeys frequently emit gobbles from their treetop roosts, where the sound carries further than on the ground. This vocalization serves the dual purpose of attracting females and responding to other males, who may be perceived as potential rivals.

An adult wild turkey has approximately 5,000 to 6,000 feathers.

A wild turkey's wings typically have 8 to 10 sturdy primary feathers and 14 to 16 secondary feathers on each side. Male turkeys, in particular, boast an impressive fan of 18 large quill feathers.

Wild turkeys have keen vision and hearing.

Their vision is five times better than that of humans, allowing them to see colors accurately. Likewise, their hearing is estimated to be four times better than humans. However, wild turkeys do not have a strong sense of smell, which often leads to jokes from hunters who believe that if turkeys could smell, it would be nearly impossible to harvest them!

By 1991, spring wild turkey hunting seasons were, for the first time, open in each of the 49 states with turkey populations.

Following World War II, dedicated restoration programs and research initiatives led by state agencies and the NWTF resulted in the re-establishment of wild turkey populations in all states except Alaska.

The capture of large numbers of wild turkeys for relocation efforts became possible with the development of the cannon net, originally designed for capturing waterfowl.

This capture technique allowed more states to move wild–trapped birds into restored habitats. The cannon–net technique involves concealing an on-the-ground net that would be remotely propelled over turkeys by a trapper from a nearby blind.

The first wild turkeys known to be captured using this method were in the Francis Marion National Forest in South Carolina in 1951.

Since 1973, the National Wild Turkey Federation has invested over half a billion dollars into wildlife conservation and has conserved or enhanced over 22 million acres of critical wildlife habitat.

The organization continues to drive wildlife conservation, forest resiliency and robust recreational opportunities throughout the U.S. by working across boundaries on a landscape scale.