Are you interested to know How fast can a Turkey Run?. In this article, let’s discuss about it.
How Fast can a Turkey Run?
If you’ve ever been around a turkey, you know that they move at an excruciatingly slow pace. They take ages to get from point A to point B, and you can easily out-walk them even if you are just heading to the kitchen to grab some food.
But despite their underwhelming slowness, turkeys actually can move pretty fast when they need to.
What Is the Average Running Speed of a Turkey?
A guesstimate would be to look at chickens, which are smaller and run around 10 miles per hour. They’re also much faster than turkeys.
To learn more about what there is, check out videos of wild turkeys chasing down cars on YouTube – yes, they really do that! But, those videos don’t show how quickly turkeys could reach that speed.
What we do know is that male turkeys (aka gobblers) have an average weight of over 20 pounds and can weigh as much as 30 pounds.
When it comes to quickness, lighter-weight animals will move faster than heavier ones; just take a look at greyhounds compared to Doberman Pinschers for proof of that!
Read this – How to Call a Turkeys
Turkey and Predators
Wild turkeys live in flocks of about 20 birds and take part in group defense against predators. They also are wary of potential attackers, especially when approached during mating season (October through March).
On average, adult male turkeys will weigh between 16 and 24 pounds, but some may weigh up to 30 pounds or more.
Wild turkeys don’t migrate very far—usually around one mile per year—and they tend to stay close to places where they feel safe.
However, males rarely travel with flocks; instead, they establish their own territories and become extremely territorial.
Female turkeys tend to be less aggressive than males because they do not try to protect territory year-round; instead, they only fight during the breeding season.
Fighting Off Predators
While turkeys are gobblers and do indeed gobble, they’re also very protective of their hens and young.
At just seven weeks old, baby turkeys (called poults) can fly away from their nests when threatened by intruders such as dogs, coyotes, or humans.
Meanwhile, adult males will let out long gobbles to signal other males in their area that danger is nearby. When threats arrive on foot, turkeys will instead use their wings to flap at intruders in an attempt to scare them off.
If you think they look like they’re having fun while doing it, that’s because they are—it’s all part of the mating season!
Can a Human Outrun a Turkey?
This depends on whether you’re going by time or distance. And we’re only talking about wild turkeys here—domesticated turkeys would almost certainly win in any race.
According to Clemson University, most adult male wild turkeys are between 2 and 2.5 feet tall and weigh 8 to 10 pounds.
That makes them pretty big birds! If a human sprinted flat out, they could probably clock a 5-minute mile, which comes out to 16 mph (26 kph).
This means that humans are capable of running slightly faster than wild turkeys in terms of top speed.
However, if you were looking at average speeds over distance (aka endurance), it’s hard to beat an adult male turkey running for his life!
What About Domesticated Turkeys?
Domesticated turkeys are larger than wild turkeys, with males weighing 15–20 pounds. Their breast meat is also more tender and juicy, making it preferred by most chefs and consumers.
Because of their size, domesticated turkeys are less agile than wild turkeys and cannot easily fly away from danger.
That said, if given enough time to run (wild turkeys can fly at speeds up to 55 miles per hour), they will escape predators (like humans) by flying upwards before quickly flapping their wings downward to crash back into the earth at high speed in an attempt to outrun them.
When Do Wild Turkeys Run?
Wild turkeys have been known to reach speeds of up to 25 miles per hour for short distances. However, most wild turkeys will slow down and fly away when threatened.
In fact, an adult male wild turkey that runs is probably very afraid and is trying to escape something!
When in doubt, the flight is always an option for wild turkeys and should be encouraged by all means if possible.
If you’re wondering just how quickly these birds can actually move it may surprise you—the world record speed clocked in at roughly 18 miles per hour (some believe they can top out at as much as 30)!
But do keep in mind that although they are capable of such incredible speeds, it’s pretty rare for them to actually sprint like that.
Interesting things about turkey
Turkeys have three eyelids to protect their eyes while they’re awake. They sleep in piles and when they walk, they step with both feet on one side together.
Time.com estimates that Americans will eat approximately 46 million turkeys on Thanksgiving Day.
Turkeys are members of the order Galliformes which also includes pheasants, grouse, guineafowls, and chickens.
Adult male turkeys are called toms or gobblers or jakes, adult females are known as hens or hens. Some people call them all turkeys though.
Also Read: Can you eat turkey eggs ?
Closing Thoughts about How fast can a Turkey Run :
Turkeys are very inquisitive and curious birds.
They are excellent at climbing trees, hiding, and disguising themselves by their markings, even if it is to make themselves look like a rock or fallen branch, but they still need to be wary of predators.
It is believed that most wild turkeys have been hunted out because of their delicious meat.
The male turkeys known as gobblers have long spurs on their legs that can inject venom into an attacker when it kicks out at them.
Most turkeys will remain fairly stationary in one area unless frightened or looking for food.
Even with all of these fascinating facts about turkeys, you may not know how fast a turkey could really run if it needed to get away from danger as soon as possible.
