Number 5

HABITAT REQUIREMENTS
In the Southeast, wild turkeys
require extensive forest lands.
Three basic habitat types are
required: 1) winter, 2) nesting, and
3) brood range. Good turkey habitat
contains mature stands of mixedhardwoods,
relatively
open
understories, scattered clearings
with distributed water, and freedom
from disturbance.* Wild turkeys
use
intensivly
managed
timberlands; however, there are
some attributes of the undisturbed
forest which should be retained or
managed to keep wild turkeys on
large forested tracts.

Food
Turkeys eat almost anything they
can swallow. About 90% of a wild
turkey's diet is plant matter, and the
remaining 10% is animal matter.
Clearings produce grass seeds,
insects, fruits, and forage and serve
as breeding, nesting, and broodrearing areas. Planted clearings can
supplement native food supplies.

Disturbances such as vehicles,

free-running dogs, and humans
can adversely affect wild turkey
populations.
Wild Turkey

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of the acts of Congress of
May 8 and June 30, 1914.
Employment and program
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all people regardless of
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North Carolina State
University, North Carolina
A & T State University, US
Department of Agriculture,
and local governments

Fall
Hard Mast
Grain
Insects
Grass Seeds
Weeds

Winter
Hard Mast
Forage
Seeds
Soft Mast
Seeds

Spring
Hard Mast
Forage
Insects
Grass Seeds

Summer
Hard Mast
Forage
Insects
Soft Mast

Food
North Carolina
Cooperative Extension Service
North Carolina State University
College of Agriculture & Life Sciences
College of Forest Resources

Page 2

Habitat
Openings

Moist Bottomland

Mixed
Pine/Hardwood
Stands
Mature Hardwood

Foods
Grass/ Seeds

Insects

Clovers
Grasses
Sedges

Grasshoppers
Millipedes
Insect Larvae

Snails

Insects

Worms

Soft Mast
Dogwood
Blackberries
Huckleberries
Blackgum
Spice Bush

Seeds
Grapes
Dewberries
Blackhaw
Cherries

Longleaf Pine
Sweetgum
Magnolia

Hard Mast
Acorns

Cover
Brooding and nesting cover consist of the
woodland margins of grasslands, sparse
brushlands, recent regeneration areas, and open
fields. Hens occasionally use open woodlands
with low ground cover for nesting, particularly in
extensive bottomland hardwoods.
At night, small flocks of wild turkeys roost in trees.
In the Mountains, conifers sheltered by terrain
provide wintering and roosting cover. I n the Coastal
Plain dense pine stands, large hardwoods, gum,
and cypress meet these needs.

N.C. Cooperative Extension Service

Forage

Paspalums
Panicums
Legumes

Beechnuts

Pecans

Water
Two or more sources of permanent open
water per square mile of range are
necessary, and are usually available
throughout the Southeast.
Home Range
The home range of many wild turkeys
may be 1,000 acres or more and is
generally irregular in shape.

Working With Wildlife # 5 - Wild Turkey

Page 3

Tips For Improving Wild Turkey Habitat

General:

Prescribed Burning:

Create large stands (50 to 100 acres)

Distribute stand ages
Maintain travel corridors of hardwoods
Establish long rotations in hardwoods
(80 to 125 years)

Burn frequently (3 to 5 years) to encourage

herbaceous growth
Limit burns to winter months

Direct Habitat Improvements:

Regeneration:
Regenerate pine types by clearcut or
seed tree methods
Encourage up to 50% of hardwood
types as hard mast species
Do not convert bottomland hardwoods
to conifers
Retain cypress ponds and gum stands

Provide openings planted with clover

Eliminate fall tillage of crops and leave some
grain unharvested
Avoid nesting and brooding areas from March
through June

Species That Benefit From Wild Turkey Management

Numerous game and nongame species with habitat requirements similar to wild turkeys benefit from
wild turkey management. Rather than focusing solely on wild turkeys, management plans should
emphasize the communities of which wild turkeys are a part. Since wild turkeys require both early and
late successional habitats, a wide variety of wildlife are associated with wild turkey management:
Open Fields
American Kestrel
Meadow Lark
Indigo Bunting
Marsh Hawk
Bobwhite Quail
Red Fox
Cottontail Rabbit
Field Sparrow

Early Regeneration
Yellow-breasted Chat
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Rufus-sided Towhee
Cottontail Rabbit
Ruffed Grouse
Gray Fox
White-tailed Deer

Mature Timber
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Pine Warbler
Wood Thrush
Acadian Flycatcher
Black Bear
Raccoons
Gray Squirrel

Prepared by:
Mark A. Megalos, Extension Forestry Specialist,
Michael S. Mitchell, Graduate Research Assistant,
Edwin J. Jones, Department Extension Leader

N.C. Cooperative Extension Service

Working With Wildlife # 5 - Wild Turkey

Page 4

Other Wildlife Notes Available:

No. 1 - Endangered Species
No. 14 - Snags and Downed Logs
No. 2 - Eastern Gray Squirrel
No. 15 - Managing Edges for Wildlife
No. 3 - White-tailed Deer
No. 16 - Building Songbird Boxes
No. 4 - Songbirds
No. 17 - Woodland Wildlife Nest Boxes
No. 5 - Wild Turkey
No. 18 - Low Cost Habitat Improvements
No. 6 - Wood Duck
No. 19 - Pools for Amphibians
No. 7 - Cottontail Rabbit
No. 20 - Hummingbirds and Butterflies
No. 8 - Bobwhite Quail
No. 21 - Bats
No. 9 - Ruffed Grouse
No. 22 - Owls
No. 10 - Black Bear
No. 23 - Managing Beaver Ponds
No. 11 - Raccoon
No. 24 - Herbaceous Plants for Wildlife
No. 12 - Mourning Dove
No. 25 - SIP Wildlife Opportunities
No. 13 - Wildlife Terms

FOREST STEWARDSHIP
a cooperative program for
improving and maintaining all of the
resources on private forestland

N.C. Cooperative Extension Service

9-94-4M-WWW-5

Working With Wildlife # 5 - Wild Turkey