Grundy County Conservation Agent Jeff Berti gave a program on wild turkeys to members of the Trenton Rotary Club during a meeting on Thursday. L.D. Gibson was the program chairman.
Berti said that wild turkeys are abundant throughout the U.S., having 49 states with huntable turkey populations. The wild turkey has five subsets of species, with the Eastern Wild Turkey being the prevalent bird in this area. He said males average between 16 to 24 pounds while females are smaller at 8 to 10 pounds. The largest recorded male weighed-in at 37 pounds.
Berti said males are more colorful than females as their colors are used to attract the female. Males also have spurs on the back of their legs, which can measure up to two inches. The spurs are used for defense.
The wild turkey likes a habitat of grassland, mixed hardwood forest and timbered draws. Their diet includes spring grasses, insects, leftover grains from fields, wild fruit seeds and new growth in agriculture crops. Mating takes place from March to May and a female will lay from 10 to 12 eggs over a two-week period. Hatching begins around 28 days later. The turkey has a field life span of 1 to 2 years, with the longest known life span being 13 years.
Berti said that youth turkey hunting season will be held this weekend for those age 15 years and under. Spring turkey hunting season is from April 21 to May 11.
During the business meeting, it was announced the Rotary Club would be cleaning up Main Street from Ninth to 12th streets as part of the Community Wide Cleanup the week of April 28. Volunteers are being sought to help at the Grundy County Museum on weekends during the season, which begins on Memorial Day weekend and continues through Oct. 19. There are eight applicants for the Charles Holmes Rotary Scholarship to North Central Missouri College.
Next week’s program chairman is Mike Moore, with the program featuring the summer reading program at the Grundy County-Jewett Norris Library.
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