# White Turkeys!



## Brock (Oct 27, 2000)

Hi fellow turkey hunters. Just wanted to let you guys know that today I saw a group of about 30 turkeys, 2 of them were white! They were about 200 yards away so I couldn't tell if they were Hens or Toms. They just had a little bit of brown on their wings.


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## jamie7117 (Aug 15, 2001)

they used to have a bunch of them running around the dansville area, a cross breed of domestic and wild turkeys.


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## Liver and Onions (Nov 24, 2000)

We have a couple in our area that are gray and black/brown. Must be somewhat common with turkeys.


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## Brock (Oct 27, 2000)

I hope to see them this Spring! I wish I would of had my video camera so I could of gotten them on film.


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## mich buckmaster (Nov 20, 2001)

We have two or three running around our place also. I think they are a mix between domestic and wild.


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## Dangler (Mar 24, 2000)

I hunt between Mason and Dansville. We've had 5 white hens in the local flock for the last 4 years, but they disappeared last spring. A guy I know killed a white Tom real close to Dansvile 3 years ago.

I emailed the DNR about these birds a couple years ago asking them to confirm or deny the rumor of domestic/wild hybrids in this area. I asked if the birds were hybrids or perhaps just a concentration of smokey greys (the white color phase that often occurs naturally in turkeys). Their answer: "White turkeys are called smokey greys". Other attempts to get a straight answer met with similar results. So I still don't know if they're actually hybrids or not.

I guess it doesn't matter now, I don't think they survived last winter. Too bad, I had painted one of my decoys white because the gobblers always followed those white birds around like they were in love.


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## BOSSTOM (Oct 23, 2001)

All

Plumage color in the wild turkey is affected primarily by hormone levels in the bird. Evidence of this can be found in experiments where a male's testicles (that are mighty tasty when deep fired) were removed and the plumage began, over time, to resemble that of a hens. One thing I think we may be getting confused here is the differentiation between a white turkey and a smokey gray. They are different species. The smokey gray is not that common of a subspecies of the Eastern Wild Turkey, and if you get one, it's quite a trophy. It is NOT white. The best way to describe this bird is by it's name. It does have some color and is somewhat grey in appearance. An all white turkey is a domestic bird. I've got to side with Jamie on this one, they are probably a cross of domestic/wild birds. Remeber, releasing turkeys in the state of MI, except by approved agencies, is illegal and detrimental to the overall genetic health of the wild turkey.


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## Dangler (Mar 24, 2000)

I should clarify. The birds I'm talking about were about half white and half brown, not all white. I didn't mean to imply that I was convinced they were smokey grays. I didn't know one way or the other, and the DNR either doesn't know or isn't saying, as far as I could tell from their emails to me.

Thanks for the info, BOSS.


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## butrunt (Nov 22, 2001)

Here in Saginaw county we have several of the smokey grays not a cross. When birds were reintroduced to Michigan a lot of them came from Iowa where the smokey gray occur. If you see these birds and can get a good look at them you will notice that the majority of them will be hens.


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## captjimtc (Aug 10, 2005)

Well I found this topic after seeing ones of these white turkeys myself. I'll post a picture if i can figure out how since most of these sites have size requirements and etc. Well some reason this post is locked from posting attachments so sorry can't post the white turkey.


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## Linda G. (Mar 28, 2002)

If you're wondering about the background of bi-colored birds you're seeing, check with your local CO...they usually know what birds have run off from domestic flocks or been stolen by wild toms, they know most of the landowners around their area.

I highly doubt you're going to get any kind of answer out of your field biologists anywhere about such a thing except-"don't know...could be!"-they can't get out in the field anymore at all, so they really don't know. 

CO's have a better idea. Used to be that when this occasionally happened, (turkeys are turkeys, wild toms don't care what color that hen is, nor does she care), the CO's would be sent out to remove the domestic birds, as it does present a disease issue, and can result in poor quality genetics in poults-you lose that "wild" factor. That's not really being done anywhere anymore, unfortunately, no time, no money, no people. 

So it's up to us-get those white turkeys!!


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## deputy (Feb 2, 2002)

the new turkey and turkey hunting says that there not a mix of domestic birds........................


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## One Eye (Sep 10, 2000)

The only one I have seen in the woods was in Central Newaygo County, and it was definitely a mix between wild and domestic. There is a guy living close by with penned turkeys, and he had an escape that year :yikes: 

Dan


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## Linda G. (Mar 28, 2002)

I haven't read the article, don't get the mag, but I do know that wild turkeys can, and do, frequently, inbreed with domestic birds, if given the opportunity. So does any biologist, and most other turkey hunters. 

Yes, purely in the wild, smokey grays don't come from breeding domestic birds to wild turkeys, as someone else said, they're a color anomaly...but they are extremely rare. When you start seeing gray, brown, and partially white turkeys all over the place, or more than once in a lifetime, I'd bet anything that's a domestic bird breeding with a wild bird. That's what it's been here in northern Michigan, so far, every time we've seen birds like that-we backtrack, and try to find out what's going on around there, and we find someone who's missing a domestic hen...


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## woodsrat (Jan 4, 2005)

Linda G. said:


> ......I do know that wild turkeys can, and do, frequently, inbreed with domestic birds, if given the opportunity. So does any biologist, and most other turkey hunters.


I'm a turkey hunter and I've NEVER bred with a domestic bird. Sorry, I couldn't resist. :lol:


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## NEMichsportsman (Jul 3, 2001)

Woodsrat too funny!:lol:


Captjim email the pic I will post it in this thread.


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## bender (Nov 10, 2005)

woodsrat said:


> I'm a turkey hunter and I've NEVER bred with a domestic bird.


phwew... i'm new to turkey hunting, and i thought for a minute maybe that was some sort of fraternity-like initiation. :16suspect


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## Dr. Vette (Jan 8, 2006)

I know a local CO in Allegan County, and he told me the white ones and white/brown ones are all crossbreeds between escaped domestic birds and wild birds.

I've seen a lot of white/brown birds in northern Allegan County over the last 25 years.


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## old graybeard (Jan 19, 2006)

Dangler said:


> I hunt between Mason and Dansville. We've had 5 white hens in the local flock for the last 4 years, but they disappeared last spring. A guy I know killed a white Tom real close to Dansvile 3 years ago.
> 
> I emailed the DNR about these birds a couple years ago asking them to confirm or deny the rumor of domestic/wild hybrids in this area. I asked if the birds were hybrids or perhaps just a concentration of smokey greys (the white color phase that often occurs naturally in turkeys). Their answer: "White turkeys are called smokey greys". Other attempts to get a straight answer met with similar results. So I still don't know if they're actually hybrids or not.
> 
> I guess it doesn't matter now, I don't think they survived last winter. Too bad, I had painted one of my decoys white because the gobblers always followed those white birds around like they were in love.


I live and hunt the same aea as you do and I too have seen the white birds. All of the ones I have seen were mixed colors not all white. My taxidermist has had a few brought in over the years and he calls them Smokey grays? They are really nice looking trophies and appear to resemble wild birds rather then domestic birds. I have one hen that frequents my property and she is mostly a light gray color with black tips on most of her feathers.


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## lang49 (Aug 1, 2005)

Were there any cougar in that flock?? Oh that is right they dont exhist either.


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