Friday, December 15, 2006

Wild, Wild Turkeys

Wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) reintroduction in Ontario is a huge success story. Not so many years ago the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters, working with the Ministry of Natural Resources, started the process of releasing wild turkeys from the US into suitable Ontario habitat. (Here are links to a couple of stories about the program.) The birds took off! Or rather, stayed, and were fruitful multipliers.

In my uncle's yard, Woodview, Ontario (north of Peterborough)

The picture shows just a few of the forty or more birds my uncle was seeing every day. I don't see turkeys in these numbers in Thomasburg, but as I travel back and forth to Prince Edward County every week I almost always see at least one flock somewhere along the way.

Thanks to Don Wood for the photograph.

And now we're off to board the Friday Ark.

2 comments:

Duncan said...

Nice to read a good news story Pamela

Dave Dorsey said...

Did they cross the border to escape the US Thanksgiving? All joking aside, awesome that they're doing so well.