Wild
of New Mexico
“... the wild turkey is more respectable than
the eagle and a true American native.”
Benjamin Franklin
Turkeys
Merriam’s
THE OTHER NATIONAL BIRD
According to Benjamin Franklin, the wild
turkey was “ more respectable than the eagle and a
true American native.” Although the bald eagle
already had been chosen years before as the na-tional
symbol, Franklin’s sentiment continues to be
shared by many naturalists and hunters who know
the wild turkey ( Meleagris gallopavo) to be a
beautiful wildlife species. Once rare and nearly
extirpated across much of the United States, New
Mexico currently enjoys a healthy population of
wild turkeys that roam the river corridors and
mountainous terrain found throughout the state.
Three subspecies of wild turkey live in New
Mexico. The Merriam’s turkey, predominantly a
mountain and coniferous forest species, has the
widest distribution and is the most numerous
turkey subspecies in the state. The Rio Grande
turkey can be found along watercourses in central
and northeastern New Mexico. The rare Gould’s or
Mexican turkey is found in the extreme southwest-ern
corner of the state. The Gould’s turkey is
considered an endangered species in the United
States and may not be hunted, though larger
populations are found south of the border in
Mexico.
The three subspecies can be readily distin-guished
by the coloration of their tail feathers. The
Rio Grande
Merriam’s has an ashy- white tail band, the Rio
Grande a darker, chocolate- brown band, and the
Gould’s an almost pure white band on its tail. The
breast and neck of all the subspecies have a
bronze sheen, while their backs are mostly black.
Wing feathers are barred with white and brown.
Females or hens are generally lighter colored than
the males, that are called gobblers or toms. Toms
also sport red, white and blue coloration on their
nearly featherless heads. Beards, the hair- like
feather clusters that protrude from a male’s breast,
often are used to distinguish the sexes although
this is not a reliable characteristic due to the fact
that females also can grow beards. Hens average
8 to 10 pounds, while fully- grown toms average
17 to 21 pounds.
CULTURAL IMPORTANCE
Even before the arrival of Spanish explorers
in the mid 1500s, wild turkeys were highly valued
by New Mexico’s Native Americans. Ancient
turkey bones have been found in caves and
streambeds used by American Indians throughout
the Southwest. There is archaeological evidence
that the Anasazi and other Indian cultures in New
Mexico and the Southwest traded for domesti-cated
turkeys from Mexico and Central America.
Merriam’s
These domesticated turkeys are possibly the
forerunners of today’s Merriam’s wild turkey
who escaped domestication and likely became
feral ( wild) long before the first Spanish colo-nists
arrived.
Turkeys were used by the Indians as food and
as a supply of feathers for clothing, blankets and
arrow fletching. Bones and spurs were used to
make awls, beads, spoons and arrow points. In
later years, the Spanish, Mexican and Anglo
settlers of New Mexico hunted the wild turkey to
supplement a sometimes sparse food supply. The
Hopi Indians of Arizona and other tribes in New
Mexico still use turkey feathers to decorate
prayer sticks or other ceremonial items.
Today, wild turkeys are a popular game
species for hunters and a welcome sight to
birders, hikers and others who spend time in
turkey country.
Rio Grande
LIFE
HISTORY
Wild
turkeys put
on a spec-tacular
show
during their yearly mating season. Each spring,
the male turkey presents a brilliant display of
color, sound and movement to establish territory
and attract females. The red, white and blue
coloring of the male’s head intensifies during this
period. The tom spreads his tail feathers in an
upright fan, droops his wing tips to the ground
and performs a strutting dance to attract the
attention of the surrounding hens. The toms also
produce a deep- throated “ gobbling” sound,
which is why they are so often referred to as
gobblers.
After mating in March or April, the hens
make their shallow nests on the ground and lay
nine to twelve eggs. Because the hens do not
initially protect the eggs, freezing or wet weather
in late spring can kill many young before they
are hatched. Hens begin to incubate the eggs in
mid to late May and, after approximately 28
days, the young poults hatch. Hens and their
broods often join together in groups to forage for
insects, berries, grasses and other food items.
These large groups roost and forage together
throughout the winter until the adult hens leave
in spring to nest.
Turkeys eat a variety of foods throughout the
year, including pine and pinon nuts, acorns,
berries, grass, insects and fruits. Foods, such as
juniper berries and tall grasses that protrude
above the snow, carry turkeys through winter in
many parts of New Mexico. The birds typically
forage and roost at lower elevations during the
winter. Harsh weather and predators can take a
Rio Grande
large toll on turkey populations. Coyotes, bobcats,
bears, skunks, and raccoons all prey on turkeys
and young poults often fall prey to hawks and
owls in the first few weeks
of their life.
MANAGEMENT
Wild turkey manage-ment
has come a long way
since the days of the
turkey’s near extinction in
the early 1900s. Turkey
populations today are stable
or increasing across most of
the United States, including
New Mexico.
This success is
due to the
concerted
efforts of sports-men,
conserva-tionists
and state
and federal
wildlife man-agement
agen-cies.
Although
early efforts to
stock pen- raised
turkeys failed
due to disease
and inbreeding,
trapping and transplanting wild turkeys has proven
successful. The Department’s long- range manage-ment
plan focuses on trapping wild turkeys from
areas with large, healthy populations and then
relocating them to areas with smaller populations
or areas where turkeys were previously extirpated.
Most recently, the New Mexico Department of
Game and Fish has worked with conservation
organizations, hunters, naturalists and private
landowners to transplant Rio Grande turkeys along
portions of the Rio Grande in southern New
Mexico. Merriam’s turkeys also have been trans-planted
from northeastern New Mexico to areas in
the southwest corner of the state that provide good
habitat but have few resident turkeys.
Habitat improvements are another tool that
wildlife managers have used successfully in New
Mexico and elsewhere. Habitat management
strategies to increase turkey food production,
vegetative cover and water availability have helped
to boost populations of wild turkeys throughout the
state. The New Mexico Department of Game and
Fish’s long- range turkey management plan will
Rio Grande
Published by:
The Department of Game and Fish,
PO Box 25112,
Santa Fe, NM 87504.
( 505) 827- 7911
On the web at http:// www. gmfsh. state. nm. us/
Operation Game Thief takes a lot of the
thrill out of poaching. Many of those caught
by OGT thought they had gotten away with
their crime, but alert citizens brought them to
justice. To report a violation call:
1- 800- 432- GAME
STOP
POACHING
Rio Grande
help the Department more effectively to perpetuate
turkey populations and habitat throughout the
State. By coordinating wildlife management tools
to promote turkey populations, the Department and
concerned citizens have made the wild turkey one
of the great success stories of wildlife management
in New Mexico.
All photos by Don MacCarter
