Does the colors red, white, or blue mean anything to a turkey?

[reveriereptile]

I know that you aren't suppose to hunt with any of those three colors to avoid being shot by another hunter or seen by a turkey. I was wondering though if turkeys will attack those colors? I know their heads change with those colors. I didn't know if red maybe means aggressive and if they would attack something red.

 

[Skyesrocket]

I always assumed turkeys were colored blind until this year. I have a Holland White tom that will go after a blue or red bucket. And I noticed he will try to chase me off if I'm wearing red and blue.
Looking at the red, white and blue coloring on him I'm starting to suspect that the colors aggitate him.

 

[hambone84]

A turkeys head turns colors to what its feeling! Red meaning aggressive and white meaning passive or blue and white combo meaning like breeding mood or calm! Yes i hunt wild turkeys and raise them and you dont want to wear those colors in the spring hunting them because thats when people see the changes the most...The breeding season! Any questions PM me

 

[brandywine]

Turkeys have SUPERB color vision.

The reason you shouldn't wear red, blue, white or black (gee, that leaves SO MUCH in the average outdoor wardrobe) in the woods during turkey season is that it is the most dangerous hunting season of the year (at least in this state).

More people shot "mistaken for game" than any other season. Not all of them other hunters.

I wear tons of blaze orange all May, as do my dogs (two of them mostly black, one that looks like a giant coyote, another one coyote-colored).

Now, I like wild turkey as much as the next guy, and I do hunt them (without much success, mostly due to lack of time and obsessive focus) -- I cannot fathom getting so het up about bagging a fifteen-pound bird that I'd get an itchy finger and fill a hiker or a Labrador with turkey shot.

Yet it seems to happen pretty regularly.

 

[KOTurkeyRanch]

wild turkeys have up to 10 power binocular vision.
clinical study i searched the day before spring gobbler =p

 

[toredano]

If they can see and like red ,white and blue.. They are very patriotic birds.

 

[dog31743]

I HAVE ABOUT 30 WILD TURKEYS HERE AND ONE OF THE BIG TOMS JUST SIMPLY DOES NOT LIKE ME AND WHEN HE IS FOLLOWING ME AROUND TRYING TO CATCH ME OFF GUARD FOR A REAR ATTACK, HE IS WHITE AS A GHOST. HE DOES COMBINE HIS CHIRPING WITH GOBBLES AND THAT IS THE WAY I RECOGNIZE HIM. ANOTHER BIG TOM WILL FOLLOW ME AROUND RIGHT BEHIND OR BESIDE ME JUST CHIRPING LIKE CRAZY WHEN HE WANTS ME TO GIVE HIM DOG FOOD, HIS FAVORITE WHEN HE DOES HE IS BRIGHT RED. THIS MORNING THEY WERE BOTH BUGGING ME AND I WAS WEARING BLUE JEANS AND A GREY SHIRT. SO IT WOULD APPEAR TO ME THEY ARE NOT CONSISTENT ABOUT COLORS.