Eastern Wild Turkey

Species Overview

The Eastern Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) is the most widespread and abundant subspecies of wild turkey in North America. Native to eastern Canada and the United States, it inhabits mixed hardwood forests with open fields and clearings. Eastern Wild Turkeys are large, ground-foraging birds known for their intelligence, strong social structure, and adaptability.

Adults display dark, iridescent plumage with bronze, copper, green, and gold tones. Females are smaller and less ornamented than males and lack the prominent beard often seen on toms. Wild turkeys roost in trees at night and forage during the day on a varied diet of seeds, nuts, berries, grasses, and insects.

Once severely reduced by overhunting and habitat loss, Eastern Wild Turkey populations have rebounded significantly due to coordinated conservation, habitat restoration, and wildlife management programs. Today, they are considered one of North America’s great conservation success stories.

Grub - Our Eastern Wild Turkey

Grub is our sole Eastern Wild Turkey and holds a special place on the farm as a non-breeding resident and mascot. She represents the native wildlife that shares the landscape with domestic and heritage livestock and serves as a living connection to the region’s natural history.

As an individual bird, Grub is observant, alert, and quietly confident, displaying many of the natural behaviours typical of her species while remaining accustomed to daily farm life.

Her Role on the Farm

Grub is not part of a breeding program. Instead, her presence is educational and symbolic. She helps highlight the importance of respecting native species, understanding the balance between agriculture and wildlife, and recognizing the role conservation plays in restoring once-threatened populations.

As our resident wild turkey, Grub serves as a reminder that farms and wildlife can coexist, and that stewardship extends beyond domestic animals to the ecosystems around us.