Eastern Turkey

As the shot can be heard round the world, the turkey's distinctive gobble can be heard over a mile away.  Found from Florida to Texas and then to New England, the Eastern turkey was a favored food of the Native American Indians.  Because of their introduction of a food source to the arriving Pilgrims,  this unique bird was Benjamin Franklin's choice as the United States's national bird instead of the eagle.


The wild turkey population was dimenished so severely that in the 1940's, major effects were put into place relocating them back to areas of natural habitat bringing back their numbers.  The Eastern turkey is very adaptable living in many diverse types of habitat, from forests and pastures, to the northern forests and woods, to grasslands and swamps.  The Plantation offers this breed of turkey a variety of different habitats and places for the turkey population to continue to increase. 

Feeding on forest floors to swampland, Wild turkeys diet include nuts, seeds, berries, acorns, grains, insects such as grasshoppers, and beetles, and salamanders.   Being the largest of the 5 species of turkey, the males grow to 4 feet in height and 25 pounds.  Jakes, or male juveniles, are about half the size.   Hens, female turkeys, growth to the same height  but weigh only up to 14 pounds.. During mating season, the Gobblers fan their feathers in a beautiful array attracting ready females.  After the eggs are hatched, the females feed their poults only several days before they learn to feed on their own.


The Eastern Wild Turkey is characterized by their brown tail feathers that have a light brown area and then turn back to a  dark brown tail feather tip.  The body feathers radiate an iridescent color of copper and bronze.





Spring Turkey Season is a time of fun, hearing the distinctive Gobble and seeing the Toms strut their fans attracting the Hens for all to see.



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