Mississippi Valley Field Naturalists
October 8, 2010
Wild turkeys ‘Talk’ at next MVFN lecture
Bring your appetite for wild turkeys to the Mississippi Valley Field Naturalists (MVFN) October lecture “Talking Turkey—It’s Wild” to be presented by MVFN’s Program Chair and biologist Cathy Keddy. You don’t need to be an expert to enjoy MVFN’s monthly lecture series on natural history and biology held Thursday evenings in Almonte —just a curiosity or appreciation for wild nature.
Wild turkeys are native to North America and although they were not native locally, they are certainly here now and these large game birds are well known not only to hunters. Wild turkey ‘rafters’ often made up of numerous individual birds can be seen at almost any time of the year in fields from the roadsides of Lanark County, from our forest homes, and even in urban areas of Almonte. In fact due to reintroductions, alterations in habitat, and warmer climate, wild turkeys are thriving in Ontario in areas from which they had been extirpated and in areas such as Lanark County that are outside the historic range for these birds.
What is there to learn about the wild turkey’s status, distribution and abundance in our area and unique aspects of their habitat, sensitivity to harsh winter, and behaviour? Bring all your turkey questions to the lecture.
Wild turkeys unlike their domestic relatives, are strong agile fliers and are said to be ‘wild and wary to the point of genius.’ These cautious creatures have good eyesight and feed during the day, thus being quite visible to people and prone to receiving erroneous accusations relating to crop damage.
Wild turkeys communicate with one another with yelps, purrs, cackles and gobbles, but what does this cacophony sound like? Find out at Cathy Keddy’s presentation. Enjoy an evening among friends, find out more about these interesting birds and meet Cathy’s mystery guest, a former resident of the Clayton area. The presentation “Talking Turkey—It’s Wild” takes place Thursday, October 21 at 7:30 p.m., at the Almonte United Church, 106 Elgin St., Almonte. All are welcome ($5 fee for non-members). For further information please contact MVFN’s Program Chair Cathy Keddy at 613-257-3089.
