Wild Turkey
Wild TurkeyWild TurkeyWild TurkeyWild Turkey

Wild Turkey

Meleagris gallopavo

Silhouette: T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
at Tongariro National Park
3 Verified sightings at Tongariro National Park From 2019 to 2026
12,457 Verified sightings across all 26 parks From 2019 to 2026
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Wild Turkey

The wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) is an upland game bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey (M. g. domesticus), which was originally derived from a southern Mexican subspecies of wild turkey (not the related ocellated turkey).

The wild turkey was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under its current binomial name Meleagris gallopavo. The type locality is Mexico. The genus name Meleagris is from Ancient Greek μελεαγρις/meleagris meaning "guineafowl". The specific epithet gallopavo is a late Medieval Latin word for a wild turkey: it combines Latin gallus meaning "fowl" and pavo meaning "peacock". The word was used in 1555 by the Swiss naturalist Conrad Gessner in his Historiae animalium.

Six subspecies are recognised: An adult male (tom or gobbler) normally weighs from 5 to 11 kg (11 to 24 lb) and measures 100–125 cm (39–49 in) in length. The adult female (hen) is typically much smaller at 2.5–5.4 kg (5.5–11.9 lb) and is 76 to 95 cm (30 to 37 in) long. Per two... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Tongariro National Park

Ring-necked Pheasant
LC

Ring-necked Pheasant

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Phasianus colchicus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
Common Peafowl
LC

Common Peafowl

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pavo cristatus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
California Quail
LC

California Quail

🌅 Crepuscular Bird

Callipepla californica

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Point Pelee National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~60%
2 Acadia National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
3 Big Cypress National Preserve 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
4 Shenandoah National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
5 Congaree National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
6 Los Haitises National Park 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic
<5%
7 Yosemite National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
8 Everglades National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
9 Saguaro National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
10 Flinders Chase 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
11 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
Insufficient data
12 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
Insufficient data
13 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data
14 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
Insufficient data
15 Nahuel Huapi National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
Insufficient data
16 Abel Tasman National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
Insufficient data
17 Snowdonia National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Insufficient data
18 Cañón del Sumidero National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
Insufficient data
19 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
Insufficient data
20 Galápagos Islands 🇪🇨 Ecuador
Insufficient data
21 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data
22 Tongariro National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
Insufficient data
23 Ciénaga de Zapata 🇨🇺 Cuba
Insufficient data
24 Fiordland National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
Insufficient data
25 Gros Morne National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
Insufficient data
26 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
Insufficient data
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