TRANSCRIPT

FLASHBACK OF PREVIOUS EPISODE

I'm Marty Stouffer. Last time, we met a bird that played a major role in America's history. We found this symbol of Thanksgiving to be amazingly adaptable. We explored its turbulent past and discovered its restoration to be one of wildlife management's greatest achievements.

Now let's experience its fascinating mating ritual, one of Nature's most colorful pageants. Let's explore the lifestyle of the "WILD TURKEY".

TRANSITION TO TITLE / DAYBREAK

At daybreak wild Turkeys fly down from their roost. Assembly calls echo through the woods. The calls inform those still roosting of the flock's location. Turkeys still in the tree may yelp back as, one by one, they join the flock.

This hen's clucking is one of eight basic calls in the Turkey's substantial
vocabulary.

A young male, called a "Jake", a hen and a gobbler, use a variety of calls to communicate with one another. They're especially vocal in spring.

After spending the Winter in separate flocks, away from the females and young, the Toms gobble to attract the hens. The dominant Tom, has established his position through a series of fights.

COURTSHIP DISPLAY BY TOMS / MATING

In the presence of the females, the males puff, strut, fan their tails and drag their wing tips. A padding of fat on their chest sustains the Toms through weeks of display.

The Jakes and subordinate gobblers are not allowed to mate in the presence of the dominant gobbler. A hen, when ready to be bred, crouches in front of the Tom. Invited with purring sounds, the dominant Tom struts closer. He performs a position dance before beginning fertilization. The gobbler will mate each hen many times, as often as once a day. After each breeding, the hen goes to her nest and lays one egg. This continues until their clutch of ten to twelve is complete. A lesser Tom wants to join in, but all he can do is watch and masturbate.

Monogamy, the taking of a single mate, is the rule for the vast majority of birds, only about ten percent of all bird species are the like the Turkey, polygamous, having several mates.

The Tom Turkey takes no part in rearing the brood. That's the hen's job. The Tom's work is in the intense competition with the other males, and in the simple act of mating. The ceremony, which continues for weeks, is repeated each day at dawn.

When each of the hens has a nest full of eggs, they leave the Toms on the strutting ground and begin incubation.

TRANSITION TO FLOWERING TREE BUDS

Springtime, here in the Ozark Mountains, brings a subtle orchestration of colors. First to bloom are the Oaks. Later, the Dogwoods and the Redbuds come alive.

A small flock of Turkeys lives near this lake. The Turkeys sometimes come here to drink, but morning dew and succulent vegetation supply most of the water they need.

EASTERN WILD TURKEY / RED FOX

These are Eastern Wild Turkeys the most widespread of four similar types.

One of the four types of wild Turkeys is found almost everywhere in the country where there is a wooded area offering food, cover, roosting sites and water.

A Red Fox is foraging nearby. Foxes are quick enough to be the Turkey's major wild predator.

This hen separated from the flock, is now far more vulnerable. Her "putting" call indicates that she's nervous.

A Fox might be driven off by a large gobbler, but a solitary hen presents a good opportunity for a meal.

The Turkey's ability to fly almost straight up has left the Fox hungry, and allowed the hen to live another day.

MAN BUYING TURKEY HUNTING LICENSE / TURKEY HUNTER

Spring is Turkey hunting season. The sale of licenses supports Turkey management. The great success of transplanting Turkeys has dramatically
increased their numbers. This adaptable bird has moved into the parks of some of our cities. Some states even worry about a wild Turkey glut. Turkey hunting is allowed in forty-four states and is second in popularity only to deer hunting. There are an estimated 1.5 million Turkey hunters in the US. That's about one hunter for every two birds.

USING A TURKEY CALL

The Turkey hunter must be fully camouflaged and stay perfectly still. A Turkey call is essential equipment. It imitates the "yelp" which a hen uses to attract a Tom. Since most states only allow hunting for gobblers, the idea is to sound like a hen and lure a Tom into gun range.

The box call is one of the most popular of the many types of calls, but a gobbler might see the hunter's hands moving. So a diaphragm call, held in the mouth, is another favorite.

The wild Turkey is the most prized game bird in America. Though a novice hunter might get lucky, successful Turkey hunting requires skill and practice.

Contrary to what some believe the Turkey does not have a high level of intelligence. It does have extraordinary hearing and eyesight.

We are the primary predator of the Wild Turkey. And even though man was once its major limiting factor, he's now restoring it far beyond its original range. Since man has taken the Wild Turkey under his wing, its future looks bright.

TRANSITION TO FARM MEADOW / FIGHTING BETWEEN FLOCKS

Almost any noise, from thunder to a car horn, can cause a Turkey to gobble.

In the Ozarks of Missouri, flocks sometimes gather on the open meadows of farmland.

Every flock has a hierarchy which is determined by fighting mainly among the gobblers. Hens can fight, though rarely do. The flocks are loose and often exchange birds. Fighting may occur between flocks, or when a stranger arrives. Flock members cooperate; three Toms confront the newcomer.

This could be either an initiation or an invitation to leave, it's too early to tell.

Turkeys have a social order but they're not territorial. They may or may not let the stranger join their flock, but they will let him remain in their home range. Some Turkeys are never accepted by a flock and wander on the fringe. This Jake is forced to display on his own little strutting ground.

The start of mating time comes later farther north. Mating has been finished for a week or so in Arkansas, but is just coming to an end here in Missouri.

CLOSE-UP OF PAIR BREEDING / TIME-LAPSE SUNSET / SUNRISE

The other males forage nearby, while the dominant gobbler of this flock fertilizes one final hen. The bred female slips away to her nest to lay a final egg and begin incubation.

RED FOX / CROW

The brown feathers of a hen keep her well camouflaged from the Red Fox and other predators.

In a dense thicket near a clearing the hen has scratched out her shallow nest. She relies on the tangled growth to help protect her eggs.

A crow would eat the eggs, if it could find them.

CLOSE-UP OF TURKEY EGGS / WILD HOGS

Turkey hens lay an average of eleven eggs -- cream colored- with tiny spots of reddish brown and lilac. They're born with all the eggs they'll ever lay partially formed in their bodies. While laying, this hen was off the nest for a day at a time, so she covered her eggs with leaves. She nested close to water and leaves her eggs uncovered for a quick drink. She'll stay on the nest almost continuously for the twenty-five days of incubation. But if flushed off the nest, she'll sometimes desert it.

An incubating hen enters a trances like state and may go three days without food or water.

Another predator of Turkey eggs is the Wild Hog. Imported by hunting clubs, these animals are found in many areas.

Even more widespread, the Raccoon, Opossum and Skunk take even more eggs usually before the defensive hen begins sitting. Sometimes a predator will take eggs one by one, so the hen won't notice any missing. But if fewer than five eggs remain, she'll probably never start sitting.

Time flows by.

SLOW-MOTION OF EGGS HATCHING / POULTS

On the twenty-fourth day, the young begin to make noises inside their shells. This stimulates the other poults and speeds up the hatching process. On the twenty-fifth day they start to hatch.

After struggling to escape its shell, this wet newborn will soon be dry and fluffy.

Hatching takes about thirty hours and, once it starts, will continue regardless of weather. When the last few eggs are hatching, some poults are already a day old and are becoming restless.

Should the poults venture out too soon, the hen will call them back. This is the stage of life when young Turkeys learn their mother's voice and imprint on her.

When the time comes, the hen stands, signals with a special call, and walks away from the nest. Those hatched first follow. Those last are less bonded and linger at the nest. The hen moves a few more feet and gives the "assembly call." The others finally follow, all except one. There's always a slowpoke.

The hen leads her poults to the creek for their first drink.

POULTS DRINKING AT STREAM

The hen's voice is their major guiding element. At any sign of danger, she calls to the young, which then crouch motionless. The poult left behind gives the "lost call." The hen answers. The straggler calls again and her response guides its safe return.

In a few weeks, the young will have an elaborate vocabulary. They'll instinctively strut and fight and be able to fly. But on this first day out of the nest the poults stay close to the hen.

Tonight they'll roost on the ground under the brooding hen. They'll spend each night under her wings until they can fly well enough to roost in a tree.

POULT EATING GRASSHOPPER

Insects especially grasshoppers are the main food of young Turkeys.

Not far from the hen, they start to investigate the world. They're curious birds and will approach anything unfamiliar. Sometimes curiosity pays off in a meal if one is persistent though the right technique may take awhile to learn.

This is the most dangerous stage of their life. By September, half the chicks will have been killed.

But by next spring the poults that survive will be Jakes and Jennys ready to join the flock of our most distinctive American bird.

CONCLUSION

From feast to famine to feast again. Nature can recover well with a little help. In the comeback of this adaptable creature, we see an exhibition of Nature's innate will to survive.

We can be thankful for the pioneering spirit of the wildlife agencies and biologists who, through trapping and transplanting wild stock, helped restore our traditional symbol of Nature's abundance. A fitting return for a bird whose character is as unique as this nation we live in, the "WILD TURKEY".

I'm Marty Stouffer. Until next time enjoy our WILD AMERICA!