As I looked down one of the trails yesterday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, I spotted a group of large birds sprawled across the entire width of the trail. Having seen Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) a couple of times at this refuge, I correctly identified them, but I couldn’t figure out what they were doing. I later learned from the website of the National Wild Turkey Federation that wild turkeys use dust baths as part of their preening and plumage maintenance.
I tried to be stealthy and moved quietly forward, but the trail was wide and clear and the turkeys became aware of my presence. The flock slowly moved away— several of the turkeys flapped their wings to get a little additional momentum. I was uncertain if wild turkeys can fly and was surprised to learn from one internet source that wild turkeys can fly swiftly, with a maximum speed of 55 miles per hour (88 kph) and can run up to 25 mph (40 kph).
After a brief period of frantic movement, the birds settled down and began to forage. They seemed a little confused and looked around in different directions. When I got a bit closer, they eventually decided to move into the woods and did so in a rather leisurely fashion.
I could not tell for certain, but it looked to me that this flock of turkeys was made up of females and juveniles—I did not see any of the turkeys that look like the stereotypical male turkeys that are featured in the run-up to Thanksgiving. I will be alert for any sign of those males during future trips to this wildlife refuge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Great shots, Mike. Both my wife and I have been stopped by a group of wild turkeys crossing the street in front of us. Some are quite large.
It’s definitely a fun experience to see turkeys in the wild (or at least in the semi-wild). They do look pretty big, though I have not yet been close enough to one to be able to get a relative sense of their size.
The ones that stopped my wife were as tall as her side view mirror. She drives a Kia Soul.
Wow, that’s pretty big. I too drive a KIA Soul, so I know how tall that is.
She was a little scared. There were about a dozen of them, along with an impatient driver behind her. She sat at the stop sign for about 30 seconds.
A wonderful find on your walk, Mike. Enjoyed the photos. Great to see the sunlight shining through the red wattles in the final photo.
Thanks, Jet. I had been told by one of the volunteers at the wildlife refuge that there were wild turkeys, but doubted that I would ever see them. I have now seen them multiple times. It’s interesting that you noted the red wattles–the also caught my eye and I wondered if others would see that detail too.
I love me some wild turkeys! Probably explains why we are friends, Mike. 😉
🙂
I don’t think wild turkeys have much in common with those obese ones people eat.
I think that you are right. The domesticated ones are overfed and overbred to produce a maximum amount of meat, it seems.