Meleagris ocellata
Silhouette: PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The ocellated turkey (Meleagris ocellata) is a species of turkey residing primarily in the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, as well as in parts of Belize and Guatemala. A relative of the North American wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), it was sometimes previously considered in a genus of its own (Agriocharis), but the differences between the two turkeys are currently considered too small to justify generic segregation. It is a relatively large bird, at around 70–122 cm (28–48 in) long and an average weight of 3 kg (6.6 lb) in females and 5 kg (11 lb) in males.
The ocellated turkey lives only in a 130,000 km2 (50,000 sq mi) range in the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico—which includes all or part of the states of Quintana Roo, Campeche, Yucatán, Tabasco, and Chiapas—as well as the northern and western parts of Belize and northern Guatemala.
The ocellated turkey was considered endangered by Mexican authorities as recently as 2002 and has been considered Near Threatened by the IUCN since 2004. The species is believed to have experienced a decline in response to land use changes and higher than sustainable harvest by migrant workers and subsistence hunters living in the Yucatán Peninsula... Wikipedia →
Call0:33
Mexico · 2016
© Ross Gallardy · XC332802 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Song0:06
Mexico · 2006
© Richard C. Hoyer · XC5925 · CC BY-NC-ND 2.5
Recording0:15
Mexico · 2024
© Daniel Correia · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tikal National Park | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 2 | Calakmul Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 3 | Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walsrode World Bird Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 2 | San Diego Zoo Safari Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Bronx Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Bratislava Zoo | 🇸🇰 Slovakia | |
| 5 | Parque Zoológico de León - Zooleón | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 6 | Xcaret | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 7 | Fort Worth Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Zoológico Benito Juárez | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 9 | Vallazoo | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 10 | Turtle Back Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Elmwood Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Zoo Lagos | 🇵🇹 Portugal | |
| 13 | Biouniverzoo | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 14 | Reino Animal | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 15 | Zoológico Miguél Álvarez del Toro | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report an Ocellated Turkey sighting in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve on a given day, based on 646 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 21st most-seen of the 271 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and November–December
In those months about 50% of wildlife watchers report an Ocellated Turkey in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve on a given day, against about 10% in July, the lowest month.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Ocellated Turkey sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Ocellated Turkey sightings, Calakmul Biosphere Reserve ranks 2nd at about 40%. The best odds are in Tikal National Park (Guatemala, about 60%).
Same order: Galliformes
The closest relatives of the Ocellated Turkey that you can see in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (order Galliformes, Landfowl) are Plain Chachalaca (about 40%), Great Curassow (about 20%) and Crested Guan (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Ocellated Turkey is recorded against all the birds logged in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (646 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
