Wild turkeys making themselves right at home here

Benjamin Franklin wanted the wild turkey to be our national bird. He was out-voted and that honor went to the bald eagle.

But that large, increasingly familiar bird has taken its revenge and is becoming a rather common sight in area suburban lawns and fields.

“There is a regular flock of them - maybe about 15 or so, that seem to do a walk-through at dawn every week or so," stated Lynn Feingold, of Randolph, answering a social media call for comments. "They walk on the lawn and pick up bugs and just keep walking – once in a while one of them will call. If I go outside when they are out there, they appear eager to get out of my way.”

The return of turkeys across the region and country is indeed a conservation success, but it also has caused problems. How do we co-exist with the largest upland game bird living in the United States?

“I've never had an issue with any of them being aggressive but I understand that type of behavior might happen when they are in their breeding season - they become more territorial - but for the most part they don't bother me and I don't bother them,” Feingold said.

During April and May, the Eastern wild turkey hen, or female, will build a shallow nest -  usually in a swamp, or heavily forested area.  Hens have a duller coloration than males, featuring dark gray colors.

“There's a flock that lives and roosts in the trees at Taj Estates," said Allison Neff, of Stoughton. "...When they are getting ready to bed down for the night after strutting around the complex and surrounding woods and ravine they start gobbling a lot and fly up into the trees to roost,

“Our cats are very confused by the gobbling, and watching turkeys fly is hilarious because they don't do it well.”.

Strutting his stuff

Eastern wild turkey mate in early spring, usually between March and May. A mature male, or Tom turkey, will ruffle-out feathers in a beautiful strut display in order to entice a nearby hen into mating.

Males are also called “gobblers” due to the drumming sound they make by contracting their pectoral muscles. The actual act of mating only takes seconds, and is rarely observed in the wild.

Joel Quinn, formerly of Holbrook, recalls an incident that occurred on Union Street, across from Stanney’s restaurant, about a decade ago. About 10 turkeys wouldn't let his girlfriend get into the truck.

“But that story gets better," he said. "I had to go out with the lid of trash barrel and broom and poke at them and shield them so I could get the truck, drive it up to the stairs so she could get in.”

Say hello to big bird

Lately, it's been easy to see - and hear - the bird.

“This week it has been every day," said  Karen Griffin, who lives on Kimberly Lane in Randolph. "Other times only once in a while. They move from place to place. There is only one male and the rest females he protects. They have been roosting in the trees here. They stay to themselves,”

Sometimes, a turkey really gets to like the neighborhood.

“There was one specific one that showed up a few days before Thanksgiving years ago," said Diane Whittaker, of Stoughton. "He was eating the bird food under the feeder. I named him Lucky.  He came back and would stand looking through the fence for more food. My husband would scoop seed into the metal lid of the bucket, shake it onto the ground and that turkey would appear. This went on for about 5-6 seasons,

“I would be out gardening, would hear him behind me, tiny chirps and gobbles. He would hang for some time.  Our 3-legged cat would sit inside the fence fascinated by the big dino bird. One turkey grew to a gaggle of 5-6 for a year or two. Then nothing for a bit. One just showed up two days ago. A big chunky fella. He was skittish so we knew it wasn’t lucky,”

Turkey poults are newborn baby turkeys that will hide under shrubbery in urban neighborhood.  Their age is determined by the coloration and shape of the feathers.

“This time of year, the neighborhood rafter of turkeys returns almost every night to the trees in our yard," said Dori Burke who lives on Van Tassel Drive, Randolph. "I call the big guy King Tut as he struts up the sidewalk gobbling loudly to call attention to his feathers .He is always trailed by a group of adoring girls. It's hilarious.”

“I live on Spring Street and have turkeys in my yard quite a lot," said Kate Higgins, of Holbrook. "Just this morning I saw a pair mating right outside my back door. They go in both my back and front yards, and the males are usually displaying while they’re out there, .

“They usually pass through my neighbors yards down Crescent Street or cross over Spring Street. They’ve never been aggressive but they’re usually out there early morning so we’re not usually outside yet.”

This is no city pigeon!

For city-dwellers making the move to suburbia, the sighting of large birds in your yard is startling.   

“When we first moved to Holbrook 15 years ago my husband had always lived in Dorchester and never seen turkeys," Monica Glynn said. "He was putting the trash out front one day and came running and screaming because a bunch of turkeys were walking up the street. It was so funny,”

A family of adults with youngsters in tow can be quite a sight.

“Last year we had 3 adult and 18 baby turkeys pass through our yard," said Joan Zirngiebel Smith, who lives off  Liberty Street in Randolph. "One turkey was clearly in charge of the babies. They had to jump a chain link fence to get out of the yard. The adult turkey talked to the babies until they each figured out how to get over the fence and continue in their way. Fascinating to watch.”

“We live on Kathleen Drive in Holbrook and regularly get flocks of turkeys," Marissa Cohen said. "We often hear them gobbling to attract a mate in the spring. My son who is a pretty good mimic was imitating a strutting Tom’s mating call when a hen came out of the woods.

“She ran right by the puffed up Tom and headed towards my son in the window! It was very funny to watch that Tom trying to find his competition!”

Human civilization can confuse turkeys.

“Saw a turkey a week or two ago getting mad at his own reflection in a window," James McHugh, of Holbrook, said. "He was out there for like an hour just trying to attack himself.”

Some homeowners look forward to seeing familiar feathers.

“I have a huge family that visits often," said Cheryl Frazier, of Randolph. "I like to watch the parents teach the chicks. There is an order to everything. Their feathers remind me of poured wax. I find them interesting from far. After all they are wild birds and not pets. I like seeing them,”

“I play music every day with my daughter in Holbrook," said Roberta Kopelman. "I am in Florida. We do Facebook daily. As soon as we start, at least nine turkeys come running out of the woods, get in a circle and stay until we are finished. Makes our day to have such an attentive audience without critics,”

 “We have a group of turkeys in our yard daily," said Danielle Farmer, of Randolph. "We live right near the reservoir and the Norroway Brook that runs through our yard. They are fun to watch and are not at all bothered by our 150 pound dog. He even just lets them walk right by now. They seem bigger than normal this year,”

“One of the greatest environmental/conservation programs in our lifetime!" said Wayne Watson, of Randolph. "Turkeys were nearly extinct in New England, especially in Massachusetts. Now less than 30 years later the population is thriving & then some!”