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Turkeys may be “the most recognizable bird in North America”, but few of us appreciate them for who they really are: gentle, curious, attentive, caring, intelligent, courageous, respectable individuals, who deserve to be celebrated!
Our focus here is on wild turkeys — wild, as we believe all turkeys should be! It is important to understand, however, that “domestic turkeys” raised for “meat production” are the same species as the wild turkeys native to North America” (though they have been robbed of their freedom and, through selective and intensive breeding, many of their natural abilities).
Toms, hens, jakes, oh my!
Male turkeys are called “toms” or “gobblers”; females are called “hens”; adolescents are called “jakes”; youngsters and babies are called “poults”; and groups of turkeys are called a “rafter”, “gaggle”, “flock”, “crop”, “dole”, “gang”, “posse”, or “raffle”.
They are chatterboxes!
Turkeys are “very talkative” (and mother turkeys begin communicating with their babies even before they hatch by “vocalizing through the egg”). Turkeys use at least 28 distinct calls (with “varying delivery and intensity”) – including purrs, yelps, kee-kees, “alarm call[s] to warn others of danger”, whistles, cackles, clucks, chirps, and, for males, gobbles (which are their “version of a lion’s roar” and can be heard for “up to a mile away”) – and they “can recognize each other by their voices”!
They change colors!
Turkeys’ heads change color based on their emotions (the more “intense the colors”, the more “intense their emotions”!), “what they’re doing or who they’re trying to impress”! They may also “blush when they are scared or mad”!
They have a culture all their own!
Turkeys “learn complex behaviors from each other”. They also “enjoy listening to music and often loudly sing along”!
They see and hear everything!
Turkeys have “excellent eyesight”, seeing three times more clearly than [human] 20/20 vision”; have a nearly 360-degree field of vision (compared to humans’ approximately 180-degree); can use each of their eyes “independently from one another”; can see a “broader spectrum” of colors than humans; and can see light on the ultraviolet spectrum. Turkeys also have “acute hearing”. They can hear lower sounds and from a greater distance than humans” and can likely “hear in infrasound” (which “would allow them to hear storms or earthquakes approaching”)!
And they remember everything, too!
Turkeys can not only “visualize a map of their territory”, but “they can remember the detailed geographic content of 1,000 acres”!
They are “natural detectives”!
Turkeys are “extremely curious”, enjoy exploring, and “are always checking out interesting sights, sounds, and [others]”!
They are social butterflies!
Turkeys “rely on social interactions” for their well-being! They form “tight knit” and complex social groups” built upon “close social relationships”. They live in groups of up to 100 turkeys, play together, show affection towards one another, and “forage together . . . over distances of up to 500 acres”. (Turkeys may also bond with humans, and, when they do, they follow humans around “just like dogs” and seek cuddles!)
They are tenacious mama bears!
Female turkeys “shoulder 100% of child-rearing duties”, “form their own society with their chicks”, “have been known to ‘adopt’ or take care of hatchlings beyond their own, and “fiercely protect [their babies] from danger”!
They are dancers!
Turkeys “dance and strut around each other” during mating season.
They have very . . . um . . . telling poop!
Poops of male turkeys are “shaped like the letter J”, while female turkeys’ are “more spiral-shaped”. Older turkeys have larger poops than younger turkeys (“the bigger the poop, the older the bird”).
They transcend realms!
Air, land, and water are all turkey havens. Turkeys can run up to “25 miles per hour – about the same as a human track star” or “a charging elephant” – and fly 55 miles an hour. They are also “skilled swimmers” and arboreal, sleeping together in trees to protect themselves and one another from predators. (When they wake up, turkeys “call out a series of soft yelps before descending to make sure that the rest of their roosting group is okay after a night of not seeing or hearing one another.”)
They recognize us!
Turkeys recognize and remember faces of individual humans.
Turkeys are among the species of animals used in research and testing in the U.S.
At Rise for Animals, our mission is to end the exploitation of all animals in the research industry, in favor of ethical, human-relevant science that’s better for everyone. Our work is fueled by donations from people like you. You can help us throw the cage doors open now.