The farmer on the land I hunt was mowing hay a few weeks ago and flushed a hen. There were approximately 12 eggs. He left mowed around the nest but was under the impression that the hen wouldn't return. He ended up taking 7 of the eggs and left 5. He is incubating the eggs and they all started hatching yesterday. So far 5 have hatched. I wish he had left them but honestly a single patch of hay in the middle of a field is likely going to be investigated by every varmint out there and they probably wouldn't have made it anyway. Regardless, I thought that a late July hatch in the Kansas City area seems really late to be hatching. Maybe she lost a nest or two. Not sure. Anyway, I will keep you posted on their development.
Interesting for sure, but the spring around here was so weird, I observed breeding activity well into June before they got into those summer or post breeding daily routines . Sounds like I'm not far from where you're at.
Definitely be interested in seeing how they develope.
Seems late, but then again, where I hunted this spring the gobblers were with multiple hens late into the season. I even saw a strutter following 2 hens in a field in central Florida in June.
That's interesting. I have noticed some very small poults here in Ohio lately. In late May we had a major rain storm that created a lot of flash floods around our area. The best nesting area around here had water running through it quickly. The very next day I noticed a major increase in gobbling, strutting and late season breeding. I went from seeing 2-3 hens to seeing 8-9 all the sudden. I saw more breeding in those 2-3 days in late May than I have ever seen. We had 7 toms of various ages who were breeding like crazy.
I anticipated seeing some hens with small poults July 1-20. Just this week we had two hens show up with tiny poults. One hen had 7 poults and one had 9-10.
Please keep us updated. I am really interested in this.
She may have moved the eggs. I've seen that before. But I would've mowed in late July too.
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Up until about two weeks ago I was seeing lone gobblers out seeking for hens still. Its been a strange year for sure.
Here they are after two days. (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180725/bf277bdd714a09d565d33ab5b4e71ead.jpg)
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Not sure about Kansas, but in SE PA & South NJ, poults are just starting to show up now. I never knew turkeys could breed & nest so late in the year, but I learned something new. 4 weeks without rain, things were really looking good, and now the last 5 days it hasn't stopped raining. Birds can't seem to catch a break. :angry9: :angry9: