Driving down the road and you may have thought you were hallucinating! Was that a turkey? Do Wild Turkeys live in Marietta, Georgia? Read below to find out the answer to these questions and more!
So you may be wondering if you can find wild turkeys in Marietta, Georgia. You certainly can. There are a lot of them! A few days ago, I woke up and started to get ready for work. For whatever reason, I looked out of the front window and saw a funny-looking bird at the edge of our yard. It was a bit fluffy, and at a glance had colors similar to a duckling. Considering that this was likely 70-80 feet from the window I am not surprised that I was wrong - it was not a duckling, but instead was a very young turkey. There were more than just the one as it turns out…we counted 10! We jokingly call them “turklettes”.
We first counted 8 little turkeys, and then later we saw 10. Apparently 2 are very, very close to each other and often take naps, one will tuck it’s chin under the other and they will pass out. It has been very hot lately here (last week around 97F with a heat index of 106F for most of the week) and so the birds are out foraging for food. We had a turkey visit our feeder last summer and he walked the majority of the yard before leaving. We have a feeling this is the “daddy” turkey and now he brought back the female and the children as well. What would you do if you woke up and found a DOZEN turkeys in your backyard?
After walking around the front yard, this family did move to the back. They somehow got over the fence which surprised me considering the majority of it is 6′ privacy fence. As it turns out, the young turklettes can actually fly a little bit and a 6′ fence is but a mere obstacle for them. They do need a little bit of launching space before the fence to make it all the way over.
For the most part, the turkey youngsters will stay between their parents, in case of predators attempting to get an easy meal. I actually went outside and tossed a few handfuls of mealworms toward the adult male, and at first he was a little alarmed and moved away, herding the children away too. Then I threw some mealworms out into the grass and he ran back over immediately and started scooping them up. Several of the babies followed him and were able to get some much-needed protein too.
Update: They’ve been coming now for 6 days in a row, at least twice a day. All 10 babies are still with them looking healthy and we have even seen a hawk get a little too close for comfort! That was exciting to watch! A Red-tailed hawk came swooping in, just over our back privacy fence and very close to the ground. The parents saw this and both fanned out their wings to a full-width and RAN straight at the hawk very quickly! The hawk did a U-turn in mid-air and quietly went back over the fence where it came from. Amazingly, the baby turkeys all knew there was something wrong also, and they all piled together into one large heap, and tucked in all of their necks and feet. They looked like a medium-sized boulder! They stayed this way until Mom and Dad came back and let them know things were “all clear”. Then they started to forage again in the yard!
If you’d like to read more about the breeding habits, mating calls or the seasonal ranges for the Eastern Wild Turkey, check out this page on the Audubon Guide to North American Birds website.
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