Merriam's Turkey Taxidermy

About the Merriam's turkey

Meleagris gallopavo merriami. The Merriam's is a turkey of the western mountain west — Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, the Dakotas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Arizona, and parts of Utah. Merriam's hunts are usually high-country hunts against ponderosa pine, aspen, and rocky ridges.

How to identify a Merriam's

• Near-white or buffy-white tips on the tail fan and lower back feathers.
• Overall paler body plumage than a Rio or Eastern.
• Slightly smaller average body size; long, slim legs.
• Beards often shorter and finer than Easterns; spurs typically moderate.

Mounting a Merriam's turkey

The Merriam's white fan tips are its signature — they show best against darker habitat elements. We often build Merriam's habitat bases with weathered pine bark, aspen deadfall, granite, or mountain grass to accentuate the pale fan. Feather work on a Merriam's has to preserve the crisp contrast between the pale tips and the dark base — one of the reasons a well-done Merriam's stands out on a shelf.

Hunting the Merriam's

Merriam's hunts are often loud, mobile hunts — big country, wide-ranging birds, long echoing gobbles off canyon walls. That aggressiveness makes for great stories and makes a strutting Merriam's mount an easy display favorite.

Book your Merriam's turkey mount

Whether you're hunting one at home or on the road, we're set up to receive birds from anywhere in the U.S. Reach out early — request a quote and we'll walk you through prep, shipping, and pose options.