Similar Species
Ring-necked Pheasant
Female
Ring-necked Pheasants are smaller and more slender than Wild Turkeys, with a longer neck, longer tail, and shorter legs.
© Charles Gates | Macaulay LibraryOregon, January 22, 2017Similar Species
Sooty Grouse
Female
Sooty Grouse are smaller than Wild Turkeys with shorter legs and tail, and usually a more upright posture.
© Alex Lamoreaux | Macaulay LibraryWashington, July 31, 2015Similar Species
Dusky Grouse
Female
Dusky Grouse are smaller than Wild Turkeys with shorter legs and tail, and usually a more upright posture.
© Angus Wilson | Macaulay LibraryColorado, May 22, 2016Similar Species
Ruffed Grouse
Adult
Ruffed Grouse are much smaller and more compact than Wild Turkeys, with shorter legs, neck, and tail. They are less than one-quarter the size of Wild Turkeys.
© Alix d'Entremont | Macaulay LibraryNova Scotia, April 06, 2013Similar Species
Ruffed Grouse
Male
Displaying male Ruffed Grouse are much smaller than male Wild Turkeys, without the turkey's bare blue-and-red head.
© Lucas Bobay | Macaulay LibraryMinnesota, March 05, 2017Main Species
Wild Turkey
Male
Very large game bird. Displaying males look almost spherical, with naked, red-and-blue head and fanned tail.
© Brian McKenney | Macaulay LibraryBritish Columbia, May 11, 2017Female
Very large game bird with long neck and legs. Females are dark brown overall with even darker barring.
© D. Bruce Yolton | Macaulay LibraryNew York, April 22, 2017Male
Very large game bird with small, unfeathered head covered with blue and red wattles. Displaying males give a throaty, jumbled call known as a "gobble."
© Tim Laman | Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, April 18, 2009Female
Often roosts in trees. These heavy birds fly short distances to take cover. Takes flight with a flurry of loud, labored wingbeats.
© David Turko | Macaulay LibraryGeorgia, March 23, 2017Male
Male has a relatively small, bare head with blue skin and red wattles.
© Jeremiah Trimble | Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, April 20, 2017Female
Very large game bird. Females have bare skin on the head and are dark brown overall, with a coppery sheen to the rump and tail. When open, the wings show white barring.
© Ryan Schain | Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, March 03, 2012Juvenile
Juveniles can leave the nest upon hatching, but mothers care for their young into the first fall.
© Vern Wilkins | Macaulay LibraryIndiana, July 03, 2015Habitat
Occurs in woods mixed with open country; often forages by scratching in leaf litter. Females and adult males typically form separate flocks; female flocks can be up to 30 in summer, larger in winter.
© Michael J Good | Macaulay LibraryMaine, December 28, 2016