Now, you might ask, why is she putting up this photo as a today's picture. It isn't very clear and it was taken through a window. But, this is as good a photo as I will be able to get of the dear wild turkeys that come around. There were nineteen at one point, all eating the thistle and sunflower seeds under the bird feeders. Do you know the book Time and Again by Jack Finney? In it, the man is able to go back in time by setting the scene the way it was in the past. Well, that's how it feels when I see these creatures. If I look really hard, just at them, I can be transported back to the days of dinosaurs. They look so, so old. Apparently they were becoming very scarce, not too long ago, and a few were introduced, and what a success story they have become. They are everywhere; on the sides of the roads, in open fields, in condo developments, and happily at my house. As we enter hunting season, I wish I could tell them to just stay here. Go hang out with the chickens. There will be plenty to eat and you will be completely safe. But, alas, they are wild as the wind and must go where they will. You may see better photos here, as well as read more about these wonderful birds.
Oh, you're so fortunate! We have too many houses nearby to see wild turkeys . . . but a couple of years ago, before we fenced the back lot and got the goats, a pair of hens came up through the yard and I was lucky enough to see them. I couldn't believe how graceful they were—and BIG! They went on through the yard, chattering to each other, and I haven't seen any since, but I've never forgotten how seeing them just off the back step took my breath away.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure I've told you this before, but we used to have two wild turkeys show up all the time when we lived in our other house here in Lincoln. Amy named them Desi and Lucy. They loved to eat the mulberries in our backyard.
ReplyDeleteFunny you should post this. Two weeks ago, we were in Omaha and saw a herd (?), flock (?), gaggle (?), ah, it's a rafter (thank you, Google!) of turkeys. I have pictures!!
I enjoyed seeing your turkeys. I am an avid birder and one of my favorite birding stories is about when my Dearly Beloved and I were birding in a forest and came upon a hen and chicks. They chicks were so small they looked like fuzzy softballs on stilts.
ReplyDeleteWell, the hen started squalling like a banshee and did the injured wing routine to distract us from her brood. It worked for a moment before I realized that she was protecting something. We stopped in our tracks and watched her perform.
She was so brave. She ran up to us screaming and throwing herself on the ground. Then moved away hoping we would follow away from her chicks.
Now mind you I have seen killdeer do this many times but this HUGE bird doing it along a skinny trail in the woods so close gave me pause. An event I will never forget.