Is this turkey wild?

Storm recovery continues ...

... was my first thought when this hen Wild Turkey appeared in the backyard this afternoon, clucking softly and looking as though she would like to scratch for seed beneath the feeders. 

This was the first appearance of a turkey in my yard since Hurricane Irene wrecked her havoc last August. But this girl acted very strangely. My wife was doing transplanting only 20 feet from her, but she (the bird, not my wife) did not flee ...

I circled around her (the bird, not my wife) with my camera, expecting that she would take flight, but she clucked, moved slowly and watched me ... though it hardly seemed that she was very concerned. This was a very young, naive bird, I thought. Or was she a "wild" farm raised bird who wandered off. Perhaps the neighbor across the street who keeps various fowl also kept turkeys. Maybe we should call and ask if she was missing a bird.

After a bit, my companion finished her transplanting and went inside for a shower. I opened a cold local brew and sat on the porch, pleased about how well things were coming together after last year's storm. I also continued to mull the presence of the hen turkey.

And then ... the strange behavior of the hen evaporated and her behavior became clear. She crossed along the far end of the yard, leading a brood of recently hatched poults ...

I count 15 in this next photo ... a handful if she had to feed them ...

.. but she only shows them how to find food, and watches - diligently as I had previously observed - for potential danger.  

 

 Good birding in the backyard!!