You! Turkey!
Posted on January 16th, 2009 – 11:07 AMBy Jim Williams
About 40 years ago I watched as a couple of dozen transplanted Wild Turkeys were released in Carver Park. It was hoped a few of them would survive and perhaps even reproduce. Well, any worries those folks had were long ago set aside. We might even have created a new species: Urban Turkeys. In some places, Prospect Park in southeast Minneapolis for example, they’re hardly wild. This pair of birds has settled in along Orlin Avenue SE. They wander through the neighborhood, nibbling at plants, digging in gardens for acorns buried by squirrels. They really like rose hips according to my friend Susan who called me recently as the birds stood on the deck of her house and pulled at her rose bushes. Last year, this pair of birds (or another) nested in an Orlin flowerbed. Incubation began in April. The homeowner took pity in August and removed the obviously infertile eggs so the bird could get on with its life.
3 Responses to "You! Turkey!"
There are wild turkeys on Shepard Rd. in Saint Paul, twice I have nearly ran one over.
RECENTLY AS I CAN REMEMBER, I WATCHED A NUMBER OF WILD TURKEYS ABOUT 6 OR SO WALK ACROSS THE BRIDGE SPANNING MINNEHAHA CREEK AT ABOUT 50 TH AND NICOLLET AVE SOUTH. THE TRAFFIC WAS TO SAY THE LEAST TRYING THEIR BEST NOT TO RUN THE BIRDS OVER, AFTER THE HORN HONKING THEY JUST SIMPLY WALKED UNDER THE BRIDGE AND WALKED AWAY WITHOUT LOOKING BACK
A TRULY BEAUTIFUL SIGHT
HOPEFULLY THEY WONT BECOME A BOTHER AS SOME OF THE CANADIAN GEESE HAVE BECOME.
I spend a lot of time at Carver Park as it is near my home. I’ve seen many groups of turkeys there at many various times of the year. It is a beautiful park with abundant wildlife. I, personnally am thankful for the natural spaces Three Rivers Parks have set aside. It provides one with a chance to realize the world really can be a beautiful and peaceful place.
