A century of Turkey talk 2000-2100.

[sfgwife]

I have a broody turkey already Miss Mary has been hiding the nest box all day today and all evening yesterday. It's too early in the season for this!

We need have a facetime chat with your miss mary and our ladies.... they need be givin up the egglets already! Hahahah! Saw the lil SG lady putzin in a corner today actin like she was lookin for makin a nest spot... maybe soon we will get egglets! She was the first to start squattin for the dumbo buster brown but we have seen all but one squat for him many times now and still no prizes. . We have even went on easter egg hunts lookin for a hidey hole since we have three that will be new layer this year. These gals are holdin out on us! Jerks.

 

[sfgwife]

The silent part. Hahahahaa! Paul got him a coyote call since we been hearin a lot of them lately and up close to the house. So out to the woods he goes with his new fancy schmany call.... welp.... after sittin there bout five whole minutes whoosh an owl swooped the call box. He said it kept after it to... guess it wasnt dead enough since it was still callin. Lol! Then it roosted. Bout ten minutes later another one... grazed.his.noggin! And went for the box. Oops. Wish i coulda SEEN this mans face on that one! He wasnt foolin me cause he had the muddy print on his ballcap to prove. Anyhoo. Your runnin amok turkey in tow made me think of it. After that he said he changed the call “voice” to somethin else.

 

[Molpet]

The silent part. Hahahahaa! Paul got him a coyote call since we been hearin a lot of them lately and up close to the house. So out to the woods he goes with his new fancy schmany call.... welp.... after sittin there bout five whole minutes whoosh an owl swooped the call box. He said it kept after it to... guess it wasnt dead enough since it was still callin. Lol! Then it roosted. Bout ten minutes later another one... grazed.his.noggin! And went for the box. Oops. Wish i coulda SEEN this mans face on that one! He wasnt foolin me cause he had the muddy print on his ballcap to prove. Anyhoo. Your runnin amok turkey in tow made me think of it. After that he said he changed the call “voice” to somethin else.

wrong predator

I haven't gotten any turkey eggs either... nothing leafing out yet so it's easy to look in all the hidey holes

 

[sfgwife]

Speakin of no egglets..... LOOKIT! Paul found it this mornin by the food bowl. It is with a reg chicken egg. So i am sure one of the new ladies left it. Plus it is too pointy and way more color than the older ladies gave last year.

 

[memphis]

Congrats on the turkey eggs! Mine aren't laying yet. I can't believe they aren't laying yet. .

 

[sarcasm]

I finally got this year's first turkey egg yesterday! Silly girl laid it in the floor of my bantam chicken coop. Time to make an omelette and see if the young tom has figured out how to get the job done yet...

 

[holm25]

Saw the owl up close & personal yesterday evening. Was getting towards turkey tuck in time & I was sitting in the yard with Daisy in my lap. It soared right over us about 15 feet above us. Daisy saw it first. All birds ran for cover. It landed in the oak closest to my house. Only about 12 feet above ground. I hopped up and ran toward it. It just watched me for a bit. Actually stretched a wing out, rather casually. Finally it flew over to a neighbors backyard tree. I walked toward it & it flew off to a big magnolia. That's when I realized I was running around chasing it with fat/heavy Daisy still tucked under my arm. So I penned my girls. I'm wondering if it's hunting in my yard & nesting in the magnolia. I need to figure that out. I was impressed with it size. Definately a Barred Owl. No idea of sex. Fully mature bird. A good 24 inches tall. Beautiful feathers....saw that when it stretched out a wing. And silent in the air. Completely silent. It amazes me that you can't hear owls fly especially the big ones.

When those babies hatch watch out. My grandpa was attacked by a pair that were nesting by his garage... They tried scalping him with those big claws...

 

[Bantambird]

Owl returned mid morning. Heard the turkeys even while in the house. Blue jays were screaming and I saw it sitting in one of my pecan trees. After research, I'm thinking it's hunting during the day to feed babies. But I don't know. Females are bigger...this thing is huge...might be a girl. I was able to get pretty close to it before it flew to the magnolia. I finally saw it , so we just stared at each other awhile. I tried to explain how squirrel fur had more protein than chicken feathers. Apparently it will eat birds as large as a grouse. No idea what a grouse is. I'll have to look that up too. I left it sitting there...watching...waiting. It a beautiful bird. But I swear it had a smerk on its face...

We have grouse here in Montana, sage grouse. They compare in size with large chickens. In the late spring, they have hilarious mating displays where the males dance for the females, similar to the turkey strut, only grouse males have inflatable air sacs on their chests that puff up like balloons. They dance in certain display areas called leks. We have a few out at my folks' place. They like the salt flats for leks. Pretty fun birds to watch!

 

[Bantambird]

Here are hilarious dancing male sage grouse.

 

[feedman77]

No eggs for me yet either.

Weather is nasty today. 40 mph winds. Rain is starting to set in now.

All birds turkey and chickens are secure in pens.

So try as they may. try as they might. Predators shouldn't be able to eat bird tonight.