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Today on Animal Fact Files we’re discussing turkeys. There are two living turkey species and they can be found in North and Central America. There are other birds commonly called "turkey", like the Australian bush turkey, however these birds aren't part of the "true" turkey genus. The origin of the common name "turkey" is debated. The prevailing idea of where it came from goes back hundreds of years. Guinea fowl from Africa were traded through Turkish merchants and called "turkey-cocks". When colonizers reached American shores and saw birds similar in appearance, they gave them the same name. So turkeys are named after the county!

The two turkey species are the wild turkey, or the one most people are familiar with as the wild predecessor of the big bird served in the fall season, and the ocellated turkey who has a much smaller range in Central America. The ocellated turkey gets its common name from the eye spots on its tail! It's like a peacock! Ocellated turkeys are smaller than wild turkeys, and males are larger than females in both species. Male wild turkeys stand about 40 inches (102cm) tall and weigh about twenty pounds (9kg), though this can fluctuate drastically depending on the season. Female wild turkeys stand about 30 inches (76cm) tall and weigh around ten pounds (4.5kg). 

Turkeys are distinguishable for their relatively feather-free heads and necks. In wild turkeys, females have banded chests while males are solid; both sexes in ocellated turkeys have solid colored chests. Male turkeys display bright colors and fleshy bits on their heads and necks. These become more prominent during the breeding season. 

Turkeys breed from February to June. Males are known as gobblers for the gobbling sounds they make during this time. Their gobble is used to attract females and contest other males. Male turkeys also strut during this time. They puff up their feathers and walk with an erect tail to show off their stuff to the ladies. Males mate with multiple females and the ladies raise the kids on their own. Having drab colors helps them hide while they incubate their eggs. Turkeys lay between four to seventeen eggs in a nest on the ground and incubate them for about a month. The chicks are able to walk and eat on their own within their first 24 hours of life. Baby turkeys stay with their mother until the following year's breeding season. During the winter, they form flocks with other females and their young and travel together.

Turkeys are active during the day and they roost in trees at night. They can move quickly on the ground reaching speeds over fifteen miles per hour (24km/h) and they can fly even faster for short distances. Young turkeys almost exclusively eat invertebrates. This helps them gain weight quickly. As they get older, they take more vegetation like nuts, seeds, and leaves. They're most vulnerable to predation when they're young, and many turkeys don't survive their first few weeks of life. Turkey predators include crows, raccoons, skunks, bobcats, hawks, owls, and more. If they can survive their first year, turkeys average about five years of age in the wild, however, the oldest known individuals have made it to more than fifteen years of age!

These birds live in forested areas and prefer places with patchy open spaces like meadows, marshes, pastures and more. 

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