Gary Helm
"Wild Turkeys" (Explore)
Wild turkeys are powerful fliers, especially for short distances. Speeds of up to 55 mph have been observed. To conserve energy, wild turkeys primarily walk. They spend most of their time on the ground, where they search for acorns, seeds, fruits, insects, leaves, and small vertebrates. They can easily cover several hundred acres in a day.
Wild turkeys are social animals and typically flock together in groups numbering just a few birds to as many as 20 or more. They are extremely wary and will run away or fly to a tree to escape danger. For safety from ground predators, wild turkeys roost at night in trees within thicker forest stands.
Florida is home to two subspecies of wild turkey — the eastern wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) and the Osceola or Florida wild turkey. The Florida wild turkey is best distinguished from the eastern subspecies, which it closely resembles, by the white barring on its wing feathers. On Florida wild turkeys, the white bars on the primary wing feathers are narrower than the black bars and are irregular or broken, which tends to give the wing an overall darker appearance compared to eastern wild turkeys.
The Florida wild turkey is found only in peninsular Florida. North of the peninsula and across the Florida panhandle, it interbreeds with the eastern subspecies.
The wild turkey is a woodlands bird and prefers open forests and forest edges and openings. They are considered a generalist species meaning they do not require specialized food or a particular vegetation community to survive. Consequently, they occur throughout Florida in any suitable habitat.
I found these two in a large group of about 20 just off of Peavine Road In Osceola County, Florida.
"Wild Turkeys" (Explore)
Wild turkeys are powerful fliers, especially for short distances. Speeds of up to 55 mph have been observed. To conserve energy, wild turkeys primarily walk. They spend most of their time on the ground, where they search for acorns, seeds, fruits, insects, leaves, and small vertebrates. They can easily cover several hundred acres in a day.
Wild turkeys are social animals and typically flock together in groups numbering just a few birds to as many as 20 or more. They are extremely wary and will run away or fly to a tree to escape danger. For safety from ground predators, wild turkeys roost at night in trees within thicker forest stands.
Florida is home to two subspecies of wild turkey — the eastern wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) and the Osceola or Florida wild turkey. The Florida wild turkey is best distinguished from the eastern subspecies, which it closely resembles, by the white barring on its wing feathers. On Florida wild turkeys, the white bars on the primary wing feathers are narrower than the black bars and are irregular or broken, which tends to give the wing an overall darker appearance compared to eastern wild turkeys.
The Florida wild turkey is found only in peninsular Florida. North of the peninsula and across the Florida panhandle, it interbreeds with the eastern subspecies.
The wild turkey is a woodlands bird and prefers open forests and forest edges and openings. They are considered a generalist species meaning they do not require specialized food or a particular vegetation community to survive. Consequently, they occur throughout Florida in any suitable habitat.
I found these two in a large group of about 20 just off of Peavine Road In Osceola County, Florida.