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Meet the turkey
Turkeys are sociable birds whose bare head skin changes colour — red, blue, white — depending on how they feel.
🏡 Woodlands of North America, where wild turkeys roost in trees at night.🍽️ Seeds, nuts, berries, insects.⏳ Up to 10 years; farmed turkeys are usually slaughtered at 3–5 months.
Friends and family
Turkeys recognise each other and form friendship groups, often greeting favourite companions.
Mother turkeys care for their poults for months, teaching them what's safe to eat.
How they talk
A gobble can carry over a kilometre. Turkeys also purr, cluck and yelp.
How clever are they?
Turkeys learn the layout of huge home ranges and remember where good food is, season after season.
What they feel
Their head colour is a live mood display: bright red can mean excitement, pale blue can mean calm or fear.
Superpower: Mood-colour skin
Turkeys change the colour of their head and neck depending on how they feel.
🤓 Did you know?
- Wild turkeys can fly up to 88 km/h in short bursts.
- Turkeys purr when they are content.
- A turkey's gobble can be heard a kilometre away.
Living alongside people
Around 600 million turkeys are farmed each year, mostly for meat around winter holidays.