Spring turkey seasons are underway in some states and right around the corner in most others. Where I live, in western Montana, the gobblers are flocked up in groups of 10 or more, and they’re strutting and gobbling as soon as they fly down from the cottonwoods in the morning. In anticipation of the April 15 opener, I’ve been researching the differences between various wild turkey subspecies—from the Merriams of the Rocky Mountain West to Florida’s Osceola and the classic Eastern birds that I cut my teeth on in the Midwest. For an expert’s perspective on the topic, I reached out to Mark Hatfield, Director of Science and Planning at the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF). Here’s what I've learned.
Eastern
Of the 5 different subspecies, the Eastern wild turkey has the largest geographical footprint, and it's the bird that most hunters east of the Mississippi River are after when they hit the hardwoods each spring. According to NWTF, Easterns inhabit 38 U.S. states and multiple Canadian provinces. “Easterns are primarily woodland birds that live in both deciduous and pine forests,” said Hatfield. “They have a deeper, louder gobble. And they tend to be larger than other subspecies.”
Aside from its larger size, the Eastern can be distinguished by the chestnut brown tips on its tail feathers. This stands in stark contrast to the Merriams, for example, which sport white or cream-colored tail feather tips. According to NWTF, Easterns are wilier and harder to call than some of the other subspecies, second only in calling difficulty to the Osceola of Florida. They have the longest beards as well, and a full grown tom can weigh up to 30 pounds.
Osceola
The Osceola subspecies, as recognized by NWTF, is confined to a portion of the the Sunshine State south of Taylor and Dixie Counties on the Gulf to a line between Nassau and Duval Counties on the Atlantic. It's similar in coloration to an Eastern but smaller in size. One difference between Easterns and the Osceloas are the white bands on the birds primary wing feathers. In Easterns, those white bands are unbroken across the feather, but Osceolas have broken bands of white on their primaries. Their coloration is well suited to their habitat, which includes flat pine woods, oak and palmetto hammocks, and swampy flats. According to Hatfield, the biggest difference between an Osceloa and an eastern hunt is the type of terrain you'll be hunting in. Osceolas are also said to be a bit harder to call in than Eastern birds.
Merriams
The Merriam's wild turkey is a true mountain bird. Named for the prolific taxonomist and zoologist C. Hart Merriam, these birds range from higher-elevation ponderosa pine forests in winter time to more open grassland and prairie-type habitat during warmer months. Scientists suspect that the Merriams true historic footprint is isolated to parts of Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona, but it's been widely introduced to other regions, and there are now huntable populations in California, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Washington, Utah, and Wyoming.
Most of those seasons start in April, with the exception of California's and Utah's, which begin in March and May respectively. Tell-tale characteristics of the Merriams include its light-colored tailfeather tips, a weaker gobble than its Eastern cousin, and the shortest beards and spurs of all the subspecies. They're similar in size to Easterns, though, with mature toms sometimes weighing as much as 30 pounds.
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande turkey lives west of the Mississippi with high concentrations in central Texas, most of Oklahoma (outside the panhandle), and the western third of Kansas. There are also substantial populations—introduced in the 1970s during the height of the "trap-and-transfer" era—in Oregon and California. The Rio thrives in arid climates, but you'll need to pinpoint water in order to hunt it successfully. They're often concentrated near rivers and streams where abundant vegetation provides forage and cover.
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Physically, these birds are a bit smaller than Easterns and Merriams, but they have longer legs, Hatfield said. "Rios are tied to cottonwood drainages with fewer trees and at lower elevations than you'd typically find Merriams," he continued. "They've got buffier colored tailfeathers and their beards are shorter and spurs less pronounced than Eastern birds."
Goulds
The Goulds is the largest of all the turkey subspecies, but it has the smallest range. "They're completely confined to southeast Arizona and southwest New Mexico," Hatfield said. "They live in what's known as a 'sky island geography', and they range quite a bit through the high elevation terrain they call home."
Like the Merriams, the Goulds is at home in the mountains and its tailfeather tips tend to have a pure-white appearance. It's body plumage is what really sets it apart, though. In the sun, the Goulds turkey shines with a blue-ish green hue. According to Hatfield, there are less than 3,000 of these turkeys in the United States today. Consequently, hunting opportunity for this interesting subspecies is scarce at best. New Mexico Game and Fish only gives out two tags per year while Arizona typically issues 50-75. Hunters looking for a better chance of getting a Goulds often head to Mexico.
