It’s turkey time in Texas. The 2025-26 fall turkey season in Burnet County begins Nov. 1 and runs through Jan. 4. Another well-known turkey day is lurking ahead in late November, but wild turkeys are not typically served on a Thanksgiving platter. That honor goes to table turkeys, a highly domesticated cousin of the wild birds that roam Central Texas.
Hunters flock to the Highland Lakes of Burnet County during turkey season, which takes place in the spring and fall each year in the state. Texas has the largest population of wild turkeys in America with three subspecies: Rio Grande, Eastern, and Merriam’s. The Rio Grande turkey, commonly called the Rio, is most abundant and native to the Highland Lakes.
Like most wild turkeys, the Rio’s habitat consists of trees, grasses, and water. Trees offer nighttime roosting, daytime resting, a food source, and emergency escapes. Wild grasses provide food and harbor insects, another food source. Much of a turkey’s water comes from the food it eats: insects and vegetation. It also will drink from water sources, puddles, and dew. Turkeys are ground-dwelling birds but can, and will, fly when needed.
Standing around 3-4 feet tall, the Rio is a formidable quarry with exceptional vision and hearing. The bird has sharper eyesight and processes images faster than a human. The ability to periscope its head gives it an easy 360-degree field of vision. The Rio can hear sounds from a mile away and discern lower frequencies than humans. It has a complex vocabulary, which includes about 30 different sounds.
Wild turkeys are intelligent birds with the ability to recognize potential predators and react quickly. For these reasons, hunters find turkeys to be quite the challenge.
If you are lucky enough to bag a bird, take it from field to table. Wild turkey meat is quite different from domesticated table turkey. Wild turkeys have much leaner meat with a more intense, wild flavor. If not properly prepared, the meat will be dry. Brining prior to cooking is highly recommended for added moisture. The National Wild Turkey Federation has several recipes for wild turkey here.
If you miss the fall turkey hunting season, you can try again from March 28-May 10, 2026, in Burnet County, which falls in the North Zone.
TURKEY TIDBITS
- Turkeys are primarily herbivores but will eat insects and snails.
- Poults (the chicks) primarily eat insects and snails for protein.
- Turkeys roost in hardwood trees, particularly at night, to avoid predators.
- Turkeys have 18 tail feathers measuring 12-15 inches long.
- Molt takes place in bilateral symmetry. One side mirrors the other.
- Beards do not molt
- All males have beards as do some females.
- Male turkey poop typically resembles the letter J; female poop is spiral-shaped.
- Typical turkey sounds include clucks, purrs, yelps, and gobbles.
- Turkeys form large flocks in the winter.
- If you are called a “turkey,” be flattered; they are highly intelligent birds.