The sleeping habits of a young turkey, known as a poult, change fundamentally during its first weeks of life. This shift in nocturnal behavior is tied directly to the poult’s physical development and its ability to survive in the wild. Because poults are highly vulnerable, the location they choose for rest is a matter of life and death. The mother hen guides this transition, ensuring her brood has the best chance against threats.
The First Weeks: Sleeping on the Ground
For approximately the first two weeks after hatching, baby turkeys are restricted to sleeping on the ground. This necessity stems from their physiological immaturity, as newly hatched poults lack the strength and feather development required for sustained flight. They rely entirely on their mother for warmth and protection during the night.
The mother hen selects a sheltered location, often within dense cover like thick grass or brush, where she settles down. The poults gather closely, often tucking themselves directly underneath her wings. This behavior, known as brooding, is primarily a mechanism for thermoregulation since their down feathers do not efficiently regulate body temperature.
The hen’s body heat is crucial for survival, especially on cold or damp nights, as poults are susceptible to chilling. While this arrangement keeps the young concealed and warm, it leaves the entire brood vulnerable to terrestrial predators like skunks and raccoons. The mother’s presence is the only line of defense during this phase.
Moving Up: The Transition to Roosting
The sleeping location changes dramatically around two to four weeks of age, marking a major developmental milestone. At this time, the poults have grown juvenile flight feathers, which allow them to fly short distances and gain vertical lift. This newly acquired ability allows the family unit to abandon sleeping on the ground.
The transition involves the poults moving from the forest floor to the safety of tree branches, a behavior known as roosting. Initially, they may select the lowest, most accessible branches of a tree to practice this new skill. The entire brood, led by the hen, flies up just before dusk to settle in for the night.
As the poults grow and become more confident flyers, they ascend to progressively higher branches. Roosting off the ground offers a significant advantage by placing them out of the reach of many ground-based predators. This change in elevation signals an increase in the poult’s overall survivability and independence.
Safety in Numbers: Nocturnal Protection Strategies
Whether on the ground or in a tree, the poults employ collective strategies to maximize their nocturnal safety. The primary defense mechanism is the group huddle, which serves a dual purpose for warmth and security. Huddling together on a branch or under the hen conserves body heat, minimizing energy expenditure throughout the night.
The mother hen acts as a vigilant sentinel, using her senses to detect any approaching danger. If the brood is roosting in a tree, the height provides a strong deterrent against common ground predators like foxes, coyotes, and bobcats. The transition to roosting is a highly effective strategy to evade these threats.
However, the elevated position introduces a new risk from aerial predators, such as great horned owls. Even in the trees, the poults remain tightly clustered with the hen. They rely on the collective size of the brood to deter attack and the natural camouflage of the tree canopy. Their stillness and silence throughout the night help them remain undetected until dawn.