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Post by binnylou on Sept 13, 2020 13:52:51 GMT -5
Yesterday morning, hubby spotted 8 turkeys crossing the south yard, then disappearing in to Neighbor Dave's cornfield. Then in the evening, he saw them returning from where ever they spent the day. They apparently picked up a couple, because 10 came out of the cornfield. Do you suppose the extra two birds were lost in the field? Kinda like getting lost in a maze?
This morning...10 birds marching up the road, but not headed in to the cornfield.
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Post by Wheelgarden on Sept 13, 2020 14:36:10 GMT -5
A dozen or so of them, mostly wandering around at the far treeline, but sometimes venturing to the garden area. They know exactly when the grapes are ripe. Picking grapes this evening, if the gobblers don't beat me to it.
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Post by breezygardener on Sept 13, 2020 17:28:49 GMT -5
We have several groups of turkeys here that we see almost daily. They have a specific route they seem to follow - crossing our property in one direction in the morning; returning the opposite way in the late afternoon.
From mid to late summer onward the females & their young gang up together for about a month or so, then the females kick all the young males out of the group, & the juvenile males go on to gang up with groups of the resident males - mature & juvenile. The same-sex groups winter over separately until the May mating season.
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Post by Mumsey on Sept 14, 2020 2:58:16 GMT -5
I see flocks of turkeys sometimes on the way to Dad's. Seems their numbers have increased over the years, while pheasant numbers have decreased.
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Post by mcool61 on Dec 16, 2020 21:35:03 GMT -5
I saw 65 or so wild turkeys, kept getting different numbers each time I counted, in a recently harvested bean field not far from my house a few years ago. I used to have pheasants around but they slowly declined & I haven't seen any lately. Had a hen that nested in the set aside field of weeds behind me for a few years. She would parade through my yard with her troop of little pheasants in a line behind her. Cute as heck. Neighbor said he thought the babies drowned one year after a real hard rain. I never saw any after that.
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Post by James on Feb 15, 2021 10:56:43 GMT -5
I have one Rooster Pheasant that comes strutting through the yard daily. He will scratch around under the bird feeder then move on.
No turkeys here.
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Post by lilolpeapicker on Feb 15, 2021 14:20:46 GMT -5
Sometimes I see them just off the road when I am driving the bus. It scares me when I see them....deer too....there are a couple good spots for grazing I guess and they are not in healthy places. I say a prayer.
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Post by breezygardener on Feb 15, 2021 15:55:51 GMT -5
We have an ongoing flock that we affectionately call "ours". In fact, just saw one of our flock of 7 poking around around the horses yesterday morning. The weather does wreak havoc with them, so we do worry about them when the weather is cold & wet.
I love when a hen or more come through with their little poults in late Spring. And they DO have a rhythm to their wanderings. "Our" turkeys would stroll through our yard east-to=west in the morning, & then come back through west-to-east in the late afternoon. They obviously had a definite route.
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Post by martywny on Feb 15, 2021 18:13:23 GMT -5
We have a large local flock, counted up to 11 of them as I drove past and I believe there were at least 5 or 6 more but I was told I'm supposed to be looking at the road and not the turkeys. They were on both sides of the road and they were very large birds.
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Post by binnylou on Feb 15, 2021 18:58:01 GMT -5
Hubby saw two toms a few days ago when he left the yard. I brought up the suggestion of buying a supply of corn next fall just to help them through the cold parts of winter. Neighbor used to scatter corn in two locations, but I think he has stopped doing that. I think his focus was replenishing the pheasant numbers, but he may have just been bringing dinner for the coyote population.
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Post by binnylou on Feb 18, 2021 16:45:59 GMT -5
We now have six hen turkeys digging and scratching in the snow below the bird feeder. The squirrel came back and they are tolerating his presence. He’s right there in the midst of them.
Mr. Brown will be here soon with a delivery. I’d expect them to scatter when he stops.
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Post by binnylou on Feb 18, 2021 19:15:56 GMT -5
Late in the afternoon, one of the six turkeys was brave enough to fly up to the deck railing, and then she was on the deck...just outside the kitchen door. She’s gettin’ closer to the roasting’ pan.
What if she brings the family to the deck tomorrow?
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Post by binnylou on Feb 19, 2021 11:16:46 GMT -5
Twelve turkeys this morning...one perched on the bird feeding tray.
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Post by binnylou on Feb 21, 2021 18:15:18 GMT -5
Thirteen turkeys now, crapping on my yard. They poop like a small dog. The magic is gone. That didn’t take long.
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Post by breezygardener on Feb 22, 2021 18:12:45 GMT -5
I brought up the suggestion of buying a supply of corn next fall just to help them through the cold parts of winter. We used to do that, as well as put out a salt block for both the deer & the bunnies (bunnies LOVE salt). Had to stop because our area of Virginia is now a hot spot for CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease)in deer, so you're not allowed to feed them anymore to help prevent spreading the disease. It affects them neurologically & brings all sorts of problems. We had a young deer with it last year who staggered around & died from it (husband buried it), & had a doe give birth to a stillborn fawn right up next the house (again, husband had to bury - ugh), so we have definitely given up putting out anything that deer might congregate around & eat. The only thing the wildlife (except for the regular bird feeders) get are our leftover/softening Halloween/Thanksgiving pumpkins.
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