Mike Chamberlain

This Turkey Tuesday is about the benefits of occupying the high ground. Wild turkeys roost on elevated perches at night as a way to avoid predators, but the use of above-ground perches is not a behavior restricted to nighttime. For instance, perching above ground to preen allows the bird to focus entirely on self-maintenance rather than having to constantly scan for danger. Alternatively, when turkeys feel threatened or are uncertain about a potential nearby threat, they may fly up to perch where they have an expanded field of view. This strategy makes sense, because perching above ground allows the bird to see farther, and since the bird has already examined the potential for danger from ground-level, perching offers a much-improved understanding of what the playing field looks like on the ground. Ongoing research continues to show that many behaviors in wild turkeys vary dramatically from one individual to the next, and in my own experience, use of perches is one. I once radio-tracked a hen that would fly up to roost during the day on almost a daily basis, and rather than loafing on the ground during the day, she would roost as she would at night. I also once hunted a tom that folded the strategy of using perches into his routine, and it served him well based on my failures to get him within gun range. Each time we worked him towards us, he’d get within ~ 75 yards before flying up to perch above ground. From there, he’d walk around in the tree, scan the ground all around us, and even hop into adjacent trees to improve his field of view. He’d eventually pick us out and fly down in the opposite direction before leaving the area. The take home is the use of perches during the day is a strategy that offers wild turkeys ways to improve their perspective on potential dangers on the ground. Pic by Monte Loomis. #wildturkey #wildturkeys #turkey #turkeyhunting #perch