Wild Turkey

Beautiful colors!

what you have here is actually a subspecies of the Meleagris Gallopavo. It's scientific name is M.g. merriami. They are smaller and more compact than the Eastern Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris). Their habitat includes but not limited to mountainous to semi wooded prairie terrain. One way to tell the different species apart is the coloration of the tail feathers. Merriam's turkeys often have pale buff to white banding along the smaller tail feathers as well as the outer ring of the main or primary tail feathers. Great spotting!