How to Attract Wild Turkeys to a Yard

Wild turkeys look for a variety of open space and shelter when choosing a place to live.

Attracting wild turkeys to a yard is fairly simple, if you make your yard hospitable to the animals. Turkeys generally like to roost in tall trees, away from the ground. However, they enjoy mating and eating out in open areas. Therefore, you need to have a variety of wooded or brushy areas and open areas in order for wild turkeys to have an interest in living in your yard.

Things You'll Need

• Plot of land
• Birdseed
• Fruit
• Brush
• Tall trees
• Water

Instructions

1. Create a living space that wild turkeys will enjoy. Wild turkeys like open space for mating and eating, so ensure there is plenty of open space in your yard that can be filled with items wild turkeys enjoy eating, including fruit, vegetables, birdseed, nuts, insects and roots. Turkeys are foragers, so they enjoy pecking around to find food. Therefore, you can sprinkle your yard with birdseed, grow trees that produce nuts, and grow fruits and vegetables that turkeys enjoy eating.

2. Ensure your yard has flowing water, or water that is frequently changed. No animal enjoys drinking stale water, and a wild turkey is no exception. If you have standing water in your yard for the turkeys to drink, make sure you change it frequently. If you have a stream running through your property, the turkeys will likely drink from that.

3. Keep a section of the yard covered with brush so the wild turkeys have a place to hide if an animal tries to attack them. Wild turkey hens like to nest on the ground in brush or tall grass. Make sure this is available if you want the wild turkeys to stay in your yard.

4. Plant tall trees around the yard. Wild turkeys like to roost in tall trees at night, so they are away from nocturnal predators. Make your yard turkey-friendly by ensuring the turkeys have a high spot to roost that is away from ground-lurking animals.

Tips & Warnings

• If you plan on hunting the turkeys, make sure you have a valid state hunting license.

• The more varied the yard, the more likely wild turkeys are to come live in that yard. If your yard has brush, high trees and open spaces with plenty of food, you will attract wild turkeys in no time.

• Turkeys can become aggressive during mating season. Wild turkeys have even been known to threaten humans during mating season.

• Wild turkeys may damage your garden or any vegetables you have growing in your yard. They will also try to roost on the roof of your home, and leave droppings on your patio. Some people have reported wild turkeys roosting on top of their cars and scratching the paint with their talons.

Resources

• National Wild Turkey Federation
• Wild Turkeys in California