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Wild Turkey Sounds

Overview
ID info
Life History
Maps
Sounds

© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay Library Texas, May 01, 1998

Song
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California, May 24, 2020Recorded by Brian Sullivan / Macaulay Library
Calls
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New York, April 12, 2020Recorded by Chris Wood / Macaulay Library
Calls
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California, October 19, 2019Recorded by Paul Fenwick / Macaulay Library
Calls
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New York, March 10, 1996Recorded by Mary Hirshfeld / Macaulay Library
Calls
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New York, June 13, 2020Recorded by Jay McGowan / Macaulay Library
Calls
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Nebraska, April 14, 1990Recorded by Geoffrey A. Keller / Macaulay Library
Juvenile calls
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New York, June 13, 2020Recorded by Jay McGowan / Macaulay Library
Juvenile calls
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New York, June 13, 2020Recorded by Jay McGowan / Macaulay Library

Sounds provided by Macaulay Library.
Listen to more sounds of this species from the ML archive.

Calls

Male turkeys are called “gobblers” because of their famous call, which is their version of a rooster’s crow. It’s a loud, shrill, descending, throaty jumble of sound that lasts about 1 second. Males often gobble from their treetop roosts, where the sound carries better than on the ground. They use it to attract females and in response to other males—sometimes one male’s call can lead to a group of others joining in. Both males and females cackle as they fly down from roosts, give very short, soft purring calls while traveling on foot, and give a long series of yelps to reassemble a flock after it has become scattered. Young turkeys whistle three or four times to their flockmates when they’re lost.

Other Sounds

The strutting male periodically gives a chump sound followed by a low hum. The source of these sounds is not well understood.

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