Baby wild turkeys: from egg to fledgling
A Wild Turkey lays 4–17 eggs. They hatch after 25–31 days, and the young leave the nest Poults leave within 24 hours later — about 49–55 days from egg to fledgling.
- Eggs per clutch
- 4–17 eggs
- Incubation
- 25–31 days
- Time in the nest
- Poults leave within 24 hours
- Egg to fledgling
- About 49–55 days
- Broods per year
- 1 per season
- Nest
- Shallow ground scrape hidden in grass or brush
- Uses nest boxes
- No
Stage by stage
- Eggs (25–31 days): 4–17 eggs per clutch. Most songbirds start incubating when the last or second-to-last egg is laid, so the young hatch close together; owls and hawks start with the first egg, so their chicks hatch days apart.
- Nestlings (Poults leave within 24 hours): the young hatch with little or no down and their eyes closed. They grow fast on a diet the parents bring in. In the breeding season wild turkeys mainly eat grasshoppers, beetles, seeds and berries.
- Fledglings: after leaving the nest, young wild turkeys are fully feathered but short-tailed and clumsy. They spend days to weeks on low branches or the ground while the parents keep feeding them.
- More broods: 1 per season.
When wild turkeys nest, state by state
Nesting starts earliest in Alabama (Feb) and latest in Maine (Apr). Months are estimates from regional breeding data shifted for latitude.
| State / province | Nesting season |
|---|---|
| Alabama | Feb–Jun |
| Arizona | Feb–Jun |
| Arkansas | Mar–Jun |
| California | Feb–Jun |
| Colorado | Mar–Jun |
| Connecticut | Mar–Jun |
| Delaware | Mar–Jun |
| Florida | Feb–Jun |
| Georgia | Feb–Jun |
| Idaho | Mar–Jun |
| Illinois | Mar–Jun |
| Indiana | Mar–Jun |
| Iowa | Mar–Jun |
| Kansas | Mar–Jun |
| Kentucky | Mar–Jun |
| Louisiana | Feb–Jun |
| Maine | Apr–Jun |
| Maryland | Mar–Jun |
| Massachusetts | Mar–Jun |
| Michigan | Mar–Jun |
| Minnesota | Apr–Jun |
| Mississippi | Feb–Jun |
| Missouri | Mar–Jun |
| Montana | Apr–Jun |
| Nebraska | Mar–Jun |
| Nevada | Mar–Jun |
| New Brunswick | Apr–Jun |
| New Hampshire | Apr–Jun |
| New Jersey | Mar–Jun |
| New Mexico | Mar–Jun |
| New York | Mar–Jun |
| North Carolina | Mar–Jun |
| North Dakota | Apr–Jun |
| Ohio | Mar–Jun |
| Oklahoma | Mar–Jun |
| Ontario | Apr–Jun |
| Oregon | Mar–Jun |
| Pennsylvania | Mar–Jun |
| Quebec | Apr–Jun |
| Rhode Island | Mar–Jun |
| South Carolina | Feb–Jun |
| South Dakota | Mar–Jun |
| Tennessee | Mar–Jun |
| Texas | Feb–Jun |
| Utah | Mar–Jun |
| Vermont | Apr–Jun |
| Virginia | Mar–Jun |
| Washington | Mar–Jun |
| West Virginia | Mar–Jun |
| Wisconsin | Apr–Jun |
| Wyoming | Apr–Jun |
Found a baby Wild Turkey?
- Feathered, hopping, can grip your finger: a fledgling. This is a normal stage. Keep pets and children away and watch from a distance; the parents are usually close by.
- Bare skin or only pin feathers: a nestling that fell. If you can see the nest, put it back. Touching it won't make the parents abandon it — that is a myth.
- Injured, cold, covered in flies, or caught by a cat: contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. In the US and Canada, ahnow.org finds the nearest one.
- Don't give water or food. Baby birds can choke, and the wrong food can kill them.
More about wild turkeys
Frequently asked
How long do baby wild turkeys stay in the nest?
About Poults leave within 24 hours after hatching. Eggs take 25–31 days to hatch, so it is roughly 49–55 days from the last egg to the young leaving.
How many eggs does a Wild Turkey lay?
4–17 eggs per clutch, with 1 per season.
Where do wild turkeys nest?
Shallow ground scrape hidden in grass or brush.
What should I do if I find a baby Wild Turkey on the ground?
If it has feathers and hops, it is a fledgling and its parents are almost certainly nearby — leave it. If it is naked or has pin feathers, put it back in the nest if you can. Call a licensed wildlife rehabilitator if it is injured.