Wild Turkey

 Greetings,

Wild turkey are probably more common than you think!  It is hard to believe this bird was heading toward extinction 100 years ago.  Their habitat is oak/beech/hickory forests.  

Check out this photo of a female Wild Turkey with 5 poults in a backyard in Ellicott City.  This photo was taken yesterday by Dave Savin.  The photo was sent to me to confirm breeding of this species in the Savage NW block in the MD Breeding Bird Atlas.


As a reminder, this project is mapping the distribution of breeding birds every 10-square miles across the State and DC.  If you see turkey with young, please snap a photo and send it to me with the date, time and location.  This is a hard bird to confirm and it usually is just being in the right place at the right time when you just happen to see them.  I don't need a National Geographic cover photo!

Comments

  1. UnknownJuly 17, 2021 at 8:38 PM

    How strange. On 7/6/21, I was on my walk and flushed a turkey hen and five poults of the same age! They flew into the trees even though the poults were so small. Sorry, I had no camera. And, I've e-mailed you before about wild turkeys that I see from time to time so you put me on the map already.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownJuly 19, 2021 at 8:03 PM

      Ok, your name doesn't come across on the reply, it just says "unknown" so I don't know who you are! Your turkey from 7/6/21 were the same location that you previously notified me?? You can always take a photo with a cell phone, even a blurry cell phone turkey photo is identifiable. You can use my Atlas email to send any photos or nest confirmations.

      Sue

      Delete

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