Gobble, Gobble: Turkeys and Turkey Vultures

A male wild turkey puts on a show to impress his female follower.

Turkeys

I know it’s not Thanksgiving yet but I ran across this wild turkey strutting his stuff for his female friend and was able to get some lovely photos! When I first spotted him, his tail was up and he was sending out his call. I didn’t see the female for a bit but she was following about 50 feet behind. Occasionally, he would slow down, fan his feathers, call out, check to see she was still there, and then continue on his way.

A wild turkey blends in with his surroundings except for his bright red and blue head.

A semi-fanned out turkey takes a break from his mating dance.

A wild turkey mid gobble. Notice his hunched neck and back.

A male turkey in full plumage for his female who is taking her own pretty time.

It was really pretty funny to watch. The female seemed interested in eating and not so interested in him. He would call every 20 feet or so and then fan his feathers out. She would scuttle behind for a bit and then go back to eating. After watching this dance for awhile, the male gets frustrated and goes running off, perhaps to find someone a little more interested in his courtship ritual. For more information about wild turkeys and their behavior, visit All About Birds.

The feathers of a male turkey are really something to see. They can range from iridescent, to black and white striped, to orangey brown.

A little frustrated by the lack of interest from the female, the male runs off in search of a new mate.

Turkey Vultures

On another nature outing the next day, I ran across this turkey vulture with his wings spread in the tree. They stand in a horaltic pose to warm up on cool mornings.

A turkey vulture takes in the sun at McMurray Natural Area.

A turkey vulture moves to a new position.

Until I had taken this photo below, I had no idea that turkey vultures have a hole in their beak. After researching, I found out that the hole is a bony structure that protects the nostrils (located right above the hole) from getting food in them as the vulture feeds. They have a terrific sense of smell, allowing them to find dead animals up to 5 miles off.

Fluffing his feathers, a turkey vulture roosts in a tree.

After walking around the ponds a bit, I came across the turkey vulture again, sunning his wings and warming his body. Another fun fact, from the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, is that the vultures pee down their legs (urohydrosis) in order to help cool the vultures off during hot spells. As the fluids evaporate, it cools the blood vessels in their feet, lowering the body temperature of the vulture.

Spreading his wings to warm up, in the horaltic pose, this turkey vulture puts on quite a show in the morning light.

Sprng in Fort Collins has so much to offer! I loved being able to see the wild turkeys doing their mating dance. For such an odd bird, turkeys have beautiful plumage. I’m not going to try to sell you on the beauty of the turkey vulture, however. There isn’t anything pretty about them but I did learn some interesting facts. Make sure to visit your local natural areas in order to take in the seasonal changes where you live. You never know what you will run across! Gobble, gobble!!