Turkey chicks

[Slickcraft]

A hen spent some time in the yard today with six very small chicks. She was very wary which reminded us as to how vulnerable the chicks are at this stage.
Also attached is a photo taken in the yard two months earlier.

[Nadia]

Well...we know Slickcraft is busy checking out the chicks!

This is a really beautiful picture, thank you for posting. I have observed many turkey's lately, it's been great!

[Meredith lady]

Hi all-I have had a family of turkeys living in the neighborhood for awhile now. They are soooo funny when they walk in a straight line with Mom in the lead and Dad taking up the rear! They love to eat bugs and moss and I see them early mornings taking a stroll. I will get a picture of them and post it soon. They don't like my cat and give him the evil eye...but the cat just sits there and watches them...

[Cowgirlnh]

wonderful pic, thanks for sharing!

[Rattlesnake Gal]

Slickcraft, thanks for sharing your pictures with us.

July 2004 we discovered a hen on a nest on Rattlesnake Island. I've been told that finding a nest is rare.



We startled her and were able to get a shot of the eggs.



She did make it back to finish her job. I was so excited that I was going to get to see baby turkeys running around.



We took an overnight trip home and missed the whole thing.
I hope they weren't eaten! We never did get to see a baby chick.

[Slickcraft]

R. G.; that is indeed a rare photo of the nesting hen. Thanks for finding that in your archive.

I believe the chicks in our yard were from a nest only about 300' away; we will wait a week or so and then go looking now that you have shown us what to look for. In the winter a flock roosts at night at the suspected spot and also spends part it the day in between trips to the yard under the bird feeders.

[Moss Creek Media]

I heard weird noises outside my bedroom window today and saw a momma turkey with her babies foraging around in the mulch. She saw me through the window and before I could snap a pic, she ran off into the woods, and those baby chicks were cruising right behind her!

I then left the house and as I turned out of my driveway, a momma deer ran across the road with her 2 little spotted fawns chasing behind her.

I think I live in a wildlife sanctuary

Kirk

[Argie's Wife]

Kirk - Maybe it's a Disney movie....

[Coolbreeze]

It's a Disney movie when they come up to the window and start talking to you.

[Moss Creek Media]

That sounds like a Disney Movie sponsored by Jägermeister

[ApS]

Originally Posted by Rattlesnake Gal

"....I hope they weren't eaten! We never did get to see a baby chick..."

If you mean the eggs were eaten, it doesn't appear so. When a raccoon or other predator invades a nest, eggshells are unevenly damaged and spread all around the place.

Yours appear to have been "pipped" from inside as Nature intended.

Your baby chicks can verbally communicate with their siblings:

"...A clutch of chicks may begin making clicking noises before actually hatching. This allows them to communicate with other chicks ready to hatch so that they can hatch at the same time. In the wild, this is a protective measure so the chicks can remain together. Once the chick breaks the internal membrane it immediately begins tapping at the eggshell until it breaks a small hole and begins to breathe outside air. This process is called external pipping. As the chick continues to hammer at the opening, you will begin to see the tip of the beak through the hole. The chick also turns and pushes in the shell; creating a crack that helps it open the shell..."
http://www.ehow.com/how-does_4681694_a-chick-hatch.html