The zoo staff gets asked lots of questions about the animals and recently, one of the more frequent has been about Tom, the male turkey. As you can see from the video, he puffs himself up and puts on quite the display, complete with sound effects. Many people ask what he's up to or will proffer their own theories, but it comes down to one thing: springtime.
The mating season for the Wild Turkey begins in March or April. Normally, a male would gobble to attract a female but Tom is fortunate in that Rose and Blanche, the two female turkeys at the Science Center, stay pretty close. He gets to skip straight to the strutting.
His tail is held vertically and fanned out while he raises the feathers on his back and lowers his wings so that wingtips drag the ground. He pushes his head back and his beak down, and can make the colors of his neck and facial skin more intense. This display makes him seem much larger and intimidating, but fear is not the emotion Tom is going for.
Tom's visual display is accompanied by sound effects. He vibrates his feathers, making a deep thumping sound that's followed by a low hum as the vibrations slow. He will also periodically take a few steps forward to drag his wingtips along the ground, creating a rustling sound in the natural area. The film has had the audio taken out because of the loud wind.
All in all, feel free to stop and watch Tom display. Don't touch him though. Remember, it isn't that he's being aggressive; he's an actor on a stage. He just wants his audience to watch and to be impressed.
-Trent
**I found all of this information and much more from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at allaboutbirds.com and the National Wild Turkey Federation at nwtf.com.
I like the actor on a stage analogy. perfect!
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