The wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) is a large bird native to North America. Known for its distinctive plumage and gobbling call, wild turkeys are a popular game species. Most people are familiar with the classic reddish-brown and metallic sheen of a male wild turkey’s feathers. However, wild turkeys actually display an amazing diversity of plumage colors and patterns. Let’s take a closer look at the possible color variations of this iconic American bird.
The Classic Wild Turkey Look
The standard or “classic” coloring seen on wild turkeys consists of rich, brownish-red body feathers with an iridescent, greenish-bronze sheen. The feathers can range from chestnut to a deeper mahogany hue. The wings have alternating bars of glossy bronze and black. The tail feathers are tipped with a chestnut brown and are boldly banded with black.
Male wild turkeys, known as toms or gobblers, are more vibrantly colored than females, known as hens A tom’s head and neck appear nearly featherless and can vary from blue to pinkish-red depending on his mood and activity level. Hens are duller overall, with feathers in muted shades of brown, gray, and bronze Their heads are usually blue-gray.
This classic wild turkey look provides camouflage in their preferred wooded or brushy habitats across North America. It allows them to blend into the browns, reds, and golds of the autumn landscape. Their coloration matches dried leaves, pine needles, and dirt.
Rare Wild Turkey Morphs
While the rich red-brown wild turkey is the most common, approximately 1 in every 100 wild turkeys exhibits an unusual or “morph” plumage. There are four main color morphs seen in wild turkeys: smoke, red, black, and white. Some morphs are rarely observed in the wild.
Smoke Morph
The smoke morph is the most common color variant though still quite rare. About 1 in 100 wild turkeys is a smoke morph. These birds have feathers in shades of light gray charcoal, and black instead of the usual reddish-brown. Smoke morphs retain some of the standard pink and blue facial skin. They can disappear like ghosts into fog and snow. Most smoke morph adults appear to be hens. The pale coloration likely makes them more vulnerable to predators.
Red Morph
The erythristic or “red” morph is extremely uncommon. These wild turkeys have plumage saturated in various rusty red hues instead of gray, brown, or bronze. It can be difficult to positively identify a red morph turkey since even normal individuals have reddish feathers. However, bright red tail feathers help distinguish these unique birds. Not much is known about the red color phase in wild populations.
Black Morph
Black morph or “melanistic” wild turkeys are caused by a surplus of melanin Their feathers are deep black all over These goth turkeys provide ideal camouflage in burned or charred forests. However, their darker color is a disadvantage in other habitats. The black morph is relatively scarce compared to other color variants.
White Morph
Pure white wild turkeys are incredibly rare, likely occurring only once in every 100,000 birds. True albino turkeys have pink eyes and white plumage with no melanin. These brightly-colored birds struggle to survive against predators. More often, off-white or leucistic turkeys are seen. While mostly white, they have some small patches of normal coloration and dark eyes.
What Causes Wild Turkey Color Morphs?
These unique color morphs in wild turkeys arise from genetic mutations. The traits are passed down from one generation to the next. Certain color variants may become prevalent within regional populations wherever the genes spontaneously emerge. Interbreeding between wild and domestic turkeys plays only a minor role in explaining morphs.
The colors and patterns we see in wild turkeys are still not completely understood. Ongoing research investigates if factors like camouflage needs, mating preferences, or predator avoidance shape the distribution of morphs over time. Tracking rare variants provides one more fascinating glimpse into the lives of these engaging birds.
Smoke Morphs: Camouflage Specialists
Since smoke morph turkeys make up over 1% of wild individuals, let’s take a closer look at these enigmatic birds. Smoke morphs have two unique genetic quirks. First, they completely lack the brown pigment that produces the rich red, chestnut, and mahogany tones on classic wild turkeys. Second, their melanin production is also lowered, resulting in diluted black and gray coloration.
The overall silvery gray plumage provides camouflage in certain environments. Smoke morphs can practically vanish into fog, heavy snow, burned forests, and open granite bluffs. Their muted colors match weathered wood, concrete, pale lichens, and old bones scattered on the forest floor.
However, smoke morphs may be more vulnerable in lush, colorful autumn forests. Without the classic russets and bronzes, they can stand out to predators against brightly-colored leaves. There is also speculation that their unusual appearance makes them preferential targets for hunters. Fortunately, their relative rarity means plenty of smoke morphs still survive each year to pass on their singular genes.
Regional Differences in Wild Turkey Morph Frequency
Certain color morphs appear more regularly in some locations versus others. For example, throughout the southeastern United States, melanistic black morph individuals are observed somewhat frequently. The dense, mature forests of this region provide an ideal backdrop for all-black turkeys to disappear against shadows and charred tree trunks.
Conversely, white and smoke morphs occur with higher frequency in more open habitats like the prairie states. Their lighter colors blend into open snowy fields and pale grasslands. Across the Rio Grande River in northern Mexico, pale grayish-blue wild turkeys are common. This suggests localized natural selection for more effective camouflage.
Impacts of Hunting on Morph Frequency
There is controversy around whether hunting alters the occurrence of morphs over time. Harvest rates likely increase for morphs that contrast sharply with typical plumage in a given habitat. All-white turkeys often get targeted first by hunters in an area. Some claim that excessive hunter interest in rare variants like smoke morphs reduces their numbers and future genetic representation.
However, research by state wildlife agencies indicates that hunting does not dramatically alter regional morph frequencies year to year. Rigorously controlled hunting seasons prevent over-harvest of any particular morph. The naturally low frequency of most color variants makes accelerated declines unlikely except in special cases like all-white turkeys.
Whether glossy black, ghostly gray, or cinnamon red, color morphs add diversity to the wild turkey clan. Next time you observe a flock strutting through a field or forest, take a moment to appreciate their subtle beauty. Like expert chameleons, wild turkeys come in a spectrum of colors adapted to their surroundings. We can admire both the classicrich hues and rare morphs that have emerged over eons of evolution. Saving space in the gene pool for a variety of plumage palettes will keep wild turkeys captivating for generations to come.
Turkey Basics-Gobblers and Hens
Let’s begin with the basics of distinguishing male wild turkeys (gobblers) from females (hens).
Gobblers are larger-bodied birds, with a darker coloration, at times appearing almost black. In bright sunlight, their feathers cast a brilliant bronze or metallic iridescence. Gobblers have a featherless, red head (sometimes with blue and white coloring, too) with prominent wattle and fleshy, red growths (called caruncles) on their neck. They also have a “beard”—a tuft of black, hair-like strands—protruding from their chest.
On adult gobblers (called toms), the beard can be 7-9 inches or more in length, but on young gobblers (called jakes) the beard is <6 inches long. Typically, gobblers hang out away from hens during the summer since they take no part in raising young.
Hens are more brown in coloration and smaller in size than gobblers. They have a head that is more blue-gray in appearance, often with feathers continuing up the back of the head.
Occasionally hens will have a beard, but it is thinner than on gobblers and is quite often kinked. Hens can also have some feather iridescence, but not to the same extent as gobblers.
How many gobblers and hens do you see in this picture?
2 gobblers (both jakes, note the larger size, less-feathered red heads, and tiny stubble of a beard protruding from the chest of the jake on the right), 4 hens (one mostly hidden behind a jake, but you still can clearly see the typical head of a hen turkey poking out), 1 unknown. If we were here in person live, the birds would move about and we could probably determine that the unknown is another jake, but given what we can see in this photo, it’s best to just call this partially obstructed bird an unknown.
Poults develop very quickly (they must in order not to be eaten!) and feather types, appearance, and body size change rapidly as they age. Based on these characteristics, we can estimate the age of poults. For simplicity, we divide poults into three age classes.
1 week old or younger. Poults that are no more than about a week old are still covered with downy feathers and are very small (<5-6 inches tall). They look like little puff balls about the size of your fist.
Turkey Poult Class 1
2-5 weeks old. Poults in this class have grown longer wing feathers, but still are mostly covered with downy feathers on their body and still lack long tail feathers. They are about 6-10 inches tall, similar in size to a Blue Jay. In appearance, they look to be all wings (which is good because it means now they can fly into low trees to escape ground predators). Poults on the older end of this age class will have started to grow some juvenile plumage on their bodies, but still have short tail feathers.
Hen with class 2 age group poults
Hen with older class 2 age-group poult (borderline class 3)
Hen with class 2 age group poults
6-8 weeks or older. Poults early in this stage still have some down feathers occurring on the neck and head, but their body is covered with juvenile type contour feathers. They have visible tail feathers now, black-and-white barred wing feathers are emerging, and they stand about 10-12 inches tall, similar in size to a crow or a chicken. By about 8 weeks of age, poults are beginning to grow new “adult” looking body feathers and will have a mixture of juvenile feathers and adult feathers on their body. They are about half the size of the hen and will continue to grow to almost the same size as the hen by the end of the summer. Turkey Poults
Because they are very similar in size, late in the summer it can be very challenging to determine if a group of similar-sized turkeys is a flock of hens without poults or a hen and her older-age-class brood. If you’re unsure, it’s best to mark them as unknowns.
Ask Dr. Tom : Color Variations in Wild Turkeys
FAQ
What is the color of a wild turkey?
Wild Turkeys have the deep, rich brown and black feathers that most people associate with turkeys. In completely opposite fashion, domestic turkeys are normally white in color, an intentional product of domestication because white pin feathers are less noticeable on the carcass.
How do you identify a wild turkey?
Their wings are dark, boldly barred with white. Their rump and tail feathers are broadly tipped with rusty or white. The bare skin of the head and neck varies from red to blue to gray. Turkeys travel in flocks and search on the ground for nuts, berries, insects, and snails.
What are the rare colors of turkeys?
Genetic mutations can give a variety of rare colorations to the Wild Turkey, a beloved North American icon. Their additional four limited-edition colors, or morphs, include smoke, red, black, and white. Want to learn more about these rare turkey varieties?
What looks like a turkey but isn’t?
What are the characteristics of birds similar to turkeys without large back feathers? The Turkens are not half chicken and half turkey, they are a unique chicken with a bare neck like the turkey and with very little feathering around the breast and wing areas.
What color is a wild turkey?
Smokey Gray “Probably the most common wild turkey color phase is the smoke phase,” Hatfield said. “Its mutation is based on the fact that it has no brown pigments within its feathers. Coloration varies, but white is typically the dominant tone with black and dark gray contrasting tones, especially on the back, wings and tail feathers.” Erythristic
What does a male wild turkey look like?
Gray to blue skin covers the head and neck. Bright red wattles dangle from the throat. Iridescent green, purple and bronze show on the feathers of males during courtship displays. The beautiful range of wild turkey feather colors and patterns provides camouflage from predators while also attracting mates. What Colors are Male Wild Turkeys?
How do you know if a Turkey is a wild turkey?
A good example is to look at each subspecies of wild turkey’s rump feathers and tips of their tail feathers. Eastern and Osceola turkeys, in the heavily wooded areas of the East and South show relatively dark, chestnut colors. Rio Grande turkeys have buff tail feather tips that match the plains and shrub areas they inhabit.
Do turkeys have white feathers?
Turkeys with white colored feathers are most common and widely raised for meat production. Like domesticated turkeys, wide variety of colorful feathers can also be seen in wild turkeys. The wild male turkeys are banded with iridescent feathers that shine in colors of bronze, copper, gold, green and red.
What color are turkey feathers?
Actually turkey feathers colors vary depending on the breed. Wild turkeys have the deep, rich brown and black feathers that most people associate with turkeys. While the domestic turkeys are normally white in color, and intentional product of domestication because white pin feathers are less noticeable on the carcass.
Why do turkeys look white from a distance?
They go on to speculate that since domestic turkeys originated from wild stock, the genes responsible for such plumage types are probably found in wild populations as well. One of the most common color variations is the “smoky gray” color phase. Turkeys with this variation appear white from a distance.