Wild turkey

Turkeys feed on the ground by day and fly up to roost in trees at night. In spring, males gobble at dawn and strut with fanned tails and puffed feathers to court females.

Females raise the young alone, and several hens and their poults often travel together in summer.

By the early 1900s wild turkeys had been hunted out of much of their range, with only scattered flocks left in Georgia. Protection and restocking brought them back, and today they live in every county in the state. They spread acorn and seed crops through the woods and scratch up leaf litter in ways that turn over the forest floor.

Nest — A shallow scrape on the ground, hidden in brush or tall grass
Eggs — Usually 10 to 12
Incubation — About 28 days, by the hen alone
Poults — Leave the nest within a day and feed themselves; they can fly up to low roosts at about two weeks
Family — Young stay with the hen through their first autumn
Lifespan — Usually a few years; some over ten

• Turkeys cross roads in flocks; slowing down for the rest when one crosses saves lives.
• Mowing hayfields in May and June destroys nests; a later first cut helps.
• A turkey that sees its reflection in a car or window may peck at it; covering the reflection ends it.

• Wild turkeys cannot fly. They fly well in short bursts and roost high in trees.
• A poult alone has been abandoned. Poults scatter and hide when disturbed; the hen calls them back.

• Northern bobwhite
• Ruffed grouse