The point of today's research was to understand the most basic aspects of the turkey "lifestyle". The following will simply be a summary of what I find important to this class. Some of what I am going to be discussing may be quite obvious but I will be adding it to ensure that everyone reading this can understand what it is I am trying to say in the future.
There are 6 recognized subspecies of turkeys, the most popular of these, the Eastern Turkey, lives here in Iowa. There is a huge difference between male and female birds. Males are called toms or gobblers while females are known as hens. Toms are known for the bright colors on their head and neck area while hens simply have very dull brown colors which is used for camouflage. Two other major differences that set the tom apart is the beard and fan that the hens do not have. The beard is simply a number of thick hairs that extend from a couple to a dozen inches from the chest. Toms also have tail feathers that expand to create a fan to make the bird appear larger. Another difference is size. Toms can grow to four feet tall and over 20 pounds, while hens generally are 8-12 pounds.
Here in Iowa the mating season begins around April. This is when toms are most likely to pierce the air with their shrill gobble. During the mating season the most dominant males strut their turf, extending their fans in an attempt to attract a temporary mate. Throughout the late spring months the hens lay around 12 eggs and by summer the eggs become hatchlings. During the time that the hen is raising her young she stays away from other turkeys focusing most of her time on her poults (very young hatchlings). When fall comes around the young turkeys are ready to enter their community of turkeys and the birds begin to join flocks once again which will last until the following mating season.
http://www.nwtf.org/conservation/bulletins/bulletin_1_9-9-09.pdf
Do we have any estimate on how many wild turkeys there are in Iowa? Has your research given any idea? The research from this post will help you know what to look for in April. I wonder if weather conditions effect when mating season starts?
ReplyDeleteOne estimate that I've seen shows about 220,000 turkeys in our state. Depending on what the overall climate looks like over the next couple months will certainly change when the mating season will start. If the weather is unusually cold the turkeys would take later to begin the process. If the weather is warmer it would be the opposite.
ReplyDeleteTurkey were all but gone from the state not so long ago. Due to restocking efforts by the DNR, which started in Lucas County, the numbers have rebounded significantly across the state. The bird can now be found in all four corners of Iowa, a real success story. The story was quite similar for Whitetails as well. The state re-introduced deer at Ledges State Park in Boone County and look at them now!
ReplyDeleteThe DNR has certainly done wonders in growing these two populations, really quite remarkable!
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