A Tom & His Hens

Today I saw turkeys just outside the plant -- it was so neat because I've never seen any out in the "wild" before! I was told that the male turkey is called a tom and the females are hens. Learn something new everyday. I liked those names. So in the first picture they are wandering quite peacefully out in the field across from the mill. Occasionally, the tom would puff up; guess it's mating season, perhaps. Anyone know about turkey calendars?



Of course I feel compelled to pull over for photos. I mean really...I'm almost forty and this is the first time I've seen this so no telling how long it'd be before I see turkeys out and about like this. So, I'm amazed and I think it's neat to see this but then I also start to worry about what a nuisance the tom is making of himself. He was attacking every vehicle that passed by slowly enough for him to peck. He was going for the tires. It was getting to be quite a traffic distraction, especially since it was a little after five o'clock and people were leaving the plant. On the one hand, you don't want to hit and kill the bird so you slow down. But on the other hand, if you slow down or stop, he attacks your tires and then you don't know if you should move for fear of killing the crazy bird.



Of course, I think it's hilarious until he spots me and moves in to attack. Those turkeys are NOT pretty up close. LOL, almost as appealing as a goose chasing you down (had that happen before in NC). Anyway, he wasn't a cooperative subject and he was staring me down pretty good so I decided it was a good time to leave. That was a great way to end the day. My friend called to make sure I had seen and photographed the birds and we had a great laugh over it all. I think every work day should end on an interesting note such as this.