They start early

[Jim K]

I'm a taxidermist and have a bird feeder outside my shop. I put cracked corn on the ground

I have turkeys feeding on the corn. The other day I watched 2 poults fight and doing fighting purrs.

This morning I watched one squat and another mounted it. I know it was a dominance thing not breeding but it sure is interesting to watch them interact.

The other day it was REAL hot. A hen came in. She walked around with her beak open( do they pant?) and she'd get in the shade and open her wings to get air underneath.

What fascinating birds they are. I can't get enough of them. I know you all understand that statement.

[grayfox]

That had to be pretty cool to watch.

[GobbleNut]

What a wonderful situation to be in, Jim!  Unfortunately, the nearest wild turkeys to where I live are about a two-hour drive away.  ....Bummer   

[HookedonHooks]

For anyone interested in seeing poults do this activity check out Michael Chamberlain's page on Facebook in of of his most recent posts he discusses this and has some great photos of the action. The NWTF also shared this post to their Facebook page.

Turkeys sure are some fascinating critters. The more we learn about them the more respect in understanding we can have for them.

[Greg Massey]

We need a live feed , of all this turkey activity.

[silvestris]

This morning I watched one squat and another mounted it.

Instinctive behavior, like running to a decoy, but more natural.

[JeffC]

Greg, if you look up "Crush Cam" on HD on tap or links from Lee and Tiffany's home page you  can watch 2 different feeds of all the animal's that come to the feeder. There is 2 different flocks of turkeys that come thru everyday. Cool to see the 2 different age groups of poults interact with each other. 2 nice Tom's have been missing lately, but do pass thru, besides all the great bucks.http://www.thecrush.tv/deer-cams/live-deer-cam

[Jim K]

The other week a buddy was helping me in my shop. We worked into the evening and some turkeys and poults came to the feeder. We turned out the lights and watched them.

After awhile a hen laid down and 4-5 poults crawled under her wings and belly. Fascinating! I knew they did that on a limb when roosting. But I never saw that before. We were blessed. Here's a picture of her. I hope you can make it out.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Jim K]

We need a live feed , of all this turkey activity.

I should have videod it on my phone. I'll try and get some. Can you post a video on tapatalk ? I'm still getting used to it. I have to make my photos smaller or it says they're to big?

[Yoteduster]

That's a cool picture Jim k

[Jimspur]

Thanks Jim - great picture.