About Wild Turkeys

The North American Wild Turkey is represented in six different subspecies that inhabit different regions ranging from Mexico through America and into Canada. Visit the links below to read about the different subspecies, their preferred habitat and locations within the North American continent.

• Eastern Wild Turkey
• Gould's Wild Turkey
• Merriam's Wild Turkey
• Osceola (Florida) Wild Turkey
• Rio Grande Wild Turkey
• Ocellated Wild Turkey

Characteristics unique to male wild turkeys are shown on the image below (Click image to view larger version). The female wild turkey usually lacks these adornments and is duller in colour than the male.

Scoring a Trophy Tom: To learn how to score a trophy follow this link.

What is the difference between a Tom and Jake?

You can usually tell the difference between an adult male (a tom) and a juvenile male (a jake) turkey by looking at a turkey's tail when he struts. All tail feathers of adult males are the same length. The feathers forming the center of a jake's tail are usually longer than the rest of the feathers in the tail.