Wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) begin their nesting cycle in spring. This highly secretive process is a solitary act for the female, or hen, who must prioritize concealment above all else. Her ability to choose a secure location and successfully incubate her eggs directly determines the survival of the next generation.
Selecting the Nest Site
Turkey hens are strict ground-nesters, placing their clutch in a location that offers maximum visual obstruction from overhead and terrestrial predators. Nest sites are found within dense vegetative cover, such as thickets, downed timber, brush piles, or dense clumps of tall grasses. The hen’s primary selection factor is the presence of ground-level cover thick enough to hide her body while she is sitting.
Hens often choose a spot near an edge, like a field margin or a forest opening, which allows for easier movement to foraging areas once the poults hatch. They also select drier, higher ground to avoid areas prone to flooding. The chosen spot must provide sufficient screening cover, but hens often select a location that allows them to raise their head slightly to scan for danger without exposing the nest itself.
Building the Nest and Laying the Clutch
The physical construction of a wild turkey nest is quite rudimentary, reflecting the hen’s focus on concealment. The hen creates a shallow depression in the soil by squatting and scratching, forming a bowl-shaped “scrape” that is 8 to 13 inches long. This simple depression is minimally lined with debris immediately available, such as dry leaves, pine needles, or grass present at the site.
Once the site is prepared, the hen begins laying her clutch, depositing one egg approximately every 24 to 32 hours. The average clutch size ranges from 9 to 13 eggs, taking the hen about two weeks to lay the full complement. The eggs are a pale yellowish-tan or creamy color, marked with reddish-brown or pinkish speckles that help them blend into the leaf litter.
Incubation and Early Brood Rearing
Incubation begins only after the final egg has been laid, ensuring that all the poults hatch at approximately the same time. The hen is solely responsible for this 26- to 28-day process. During this period, the hen remains on the nest day and night, leaving only briefly each day to feed on insects and drink water.
The young turkeys, known as poults, are born precocial, meaning they are covered in down, have their eyes open, and are capable of movement shortly after hatching. This rapid development is a survival adaptation, as the nest site is a high-risk location. Within 12 to 24 hours of hatching, the hen leads the brood away from the nest and into nearby brood-rearing cover, which consists of grassy openings rich in the insects that make up the poults’ initial diet.