Mar 22, 2023 · While it’s easy to dismiss the snood as a vestigial appendage on a turkey’s face, studying it can be a key indicator of a tom’s body language and current mood. Between dramatic color changes and changing snood length, a male turkey wears his emotions on his head.

Another striking feature of male turkeys are the lumpy caruncles that wrap around the base of their neck like a red scarf. These are called the major caruncles. All the mottled coagulation of shiny, leather-like skin that wraps around the turkey’s head like a hood and runs down their necks are also considered caruncles.

Male. Very large game bird with small, unfeathered head covered with blue and red wattles. Displaying males give a throaty, jumbled call known as a "gobble."

Mar 29, 2022 · “Head color changes in males occur as birds become excited, agitated or otherwise change moods,” Chamberlain said. “We don't fully understand what each color means, but there's a fairly broad consensus amongst hunters that see birds often that red colors often signal irritation or fear.

Dec 29, 2023 · Male turkeys, called toms or gobblers, have bright plumage with red, green, copper, and bronze hues. Their heads are red and blue with fleshy wattles hanging from their necks . Female turkeys, known as hens, have more muted brown-black feathers for camouflage .

Gobblers have a featherless, red head (sometimes with blue and white coloring, too) with prominent wattle and fleshy, red growths (called caruncles) on their neck. They also have a “beard”—a tuft of black, hair-like strands—protruding from their chest.

A turkey has a wattle under its beak and fleshy growths on the head and neck called caruncles. A male turkey, or a Tom, has a tuft of long, bristle-like fibers attached to the breast, as shown in Figure 2.

Nov 21, 2016 · When male turkeys are aroused, the caruncles around the head and neck turn bright red, while those on the face turn a brilliant aquamarine blue. Female turkeys also have caruncles, but all three are smaller and remain a less noticeable fleshy pink color.

Aug 20, 2023 · The male turkey, also known as a tom, has a fleshy wattle and caruncles on its head and neck that can turn bright red when the bird is excited or agitated. Both male and female turkeys have a dewlap, a flap of skin that hangs from the neck.

Nov 26, 2014 · The heads of male wild turkeys are featherless and colorful, with odd sounding structures: the snood, caruncles, and wattle. Their head can even change color depending on the turkey’s mood. Blue means “Hey, good lookin’!”