Found a Clutch of Turkey Eggs

Rick · #1 04/21/12, 09:43 PM

We went for a walk out in the West 40 today to check on some oak firewood that fell across the survey line.

While tracking the line South with our normal two dogs and two cats along we came 15 feet from a turkey who took off like a helicopter at the last second.

We walked a few more minutes. On the way back my sidekick Buck appears, delicately cradling something in his mouth like he does large road rock. We decided to take the egg from him, but it was already on the ground broken. Buck and Fiona tasted their first raw egg.

By the time he handed me the second warm, whole egg I had figured out where he was getting them, and I told him no, don't touch.

I handed Ann the survivors. She set them in the clutch while I hustled the dogs away with praise and promises of peanut butter.

The clutch consisted of a few 20 inch sticks surrounding a pile of leaves.

GammyAnnie · #2 04/21/12, 09:46 PM

Oh my, I hope the Mama Turkey comes back!!

Annie

Paquebot · #3 04/22/12, 02:21 AM

I've often encountered them while searching for morels in early May. 15' seems to be about the closest that one will ever get to the nest before the hen goes airborne. Scared the daylights out of me the first time it happened! Since then, there's still something about that sound which can be really startling despite instantly knowing what it is.

Most eggs I have found were 24 but I suspect that two sister hens may have been involved. Other than that one instance, never found another nest with much more than a dozen.

Martin

Rick · #4 04/22/12, 06:40 AM

This clutch had 13 eggs before the departure flight, 12 when Ann restored the 2 lucky ones.

luvrulz · #5 04/22/12, 06:41 AM

Do you have an incubator??

Rick · #6 04/22/12, 07:42 AM

No incubator, and no grid electric.

I wondered if it was legal to take the eggs; It seems best to leave them in the wild. I guess if we were better prepared we could nurture the chicks and set them free.

Do they rely on Mama Hen for any tips and pointers?

mtnmom5 · #7 04/22/12, 07:55 AM

We tried raising a nestful of baby turkeys some years ago and they all died. They were hard to raise but these were hatched already, you might have better success if you hatched them yourself.

Legal or not, there will probably come a day when we won't think twice except to grab them, take them home and at least try!

rags57078 · #8 04/22/12, 07:59 AM

if caught taking those eggs it would cost you some big $$$ in fines

Rick · #9 04/22/12, 08:04 AM

LOL ... Maybe that's why Buck was trying to empty the nest!

BTW... Buck is 2 parts Blue Heeler, and 1 part Australian Shepherd and Black Lab.

Rick · #10 04/22/12, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rags57078

if caught taking those eggs it would cost you some big $$$ in fines

Ethics and Legalities aside, you've obviously never seen us on Google Maps.

ronbre · #11 04/22/12, 08:59 AM

amazing how the wild turkey have made such a huge comeback, when I was a child there were NONE and now there are thousands..amazing

ronbre · #12 04/22/12, 09:13 AM

amazing how the wild turkey have made such a huge comeback, when I was a child there were NONE and now there are thousands..amazing

suitcase_sally · #13 04/22/12, 10:52 AM

side question - how does a double post happen? I've seen this a few times.

edcopp · #14 04/22/12, 12:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick

No incubator, and no grid electric.

I wondered if it was legal to take the eggs; It seems best to leave them in the wild. I guess if we were better prepared we could nurture the chicks and set them free.

Do they rely on Mama Hen for any tips and pointers?

They do rely on Mom. Within a day or so of hatching she will be on the move with them. She will teach them to eat, hunt, and survive in general.

RonM · #15 04/22/12, 12:10 PM

Momma will return to the nest.....

ksfarmer · #16 04/22/12, 12:25 PM

Not exactly legal, but, I did raise a clutch one time. I hit the hen while swathing hay, took the eggs home and hatched 11 in a small incubator. Raised them just like chickens, in a small pen with a lamp for warmth. As they grew we released them out of their pen and they stayed around for most of a year. Finally wandered off with their wild cousins. Two young toms stayed the longest and got very agressive toward my old lab. He had been taught to leave them alone and wouldn't even defend himself except to run for the house for shelter. Finally I had to take those two on a ride and released them in the wild a few miles from home. Was a fun experience but not one I care to repeat.

luvrulz · #17 04/22/12, 01:44 PM

My farm is very secluded and fwiw, wild turkeys went thru my blueberry bushes (>600) and wiped out my crop last year. Left me with 2 blueberries total.

The game warden said I could do whatever it took to protect my crop, so this year, I'm packing all the time I head that way. And if I found a nest with eggs, by George, I would be a hatching mama! Enough said!

And we raise domestic turkeys for our consumption - we'd just combine those eggs with some of ours. As many wild ones as we have around us - am not sure they're protected around here. The warden didn't happen to mention it when he came out.....

Bearfootfarm · #18 04/22/12, 01:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by suitcase_sally

side question - how does a double post happen? I've seen this a few times.

What usually happens with me is the page "locks up" the first time you click "submit" and it seems like nothing happened, so you click again and end up with two

ET1 SS · #19 04/22/12, 06:15 PM

We have two coops with turkeys. Both are producing eggs now. But none of our hens are broody.

I got them all from another farm. I suspect that they were all incubated and brooded in electric devices. I am hoping from from our sex turkey hens at least one of them will have the instinct to be broody, to hatch and raise up the next generation of turkeys for us.

We have a couple electric incubators. But we lose power so frequently that we rarely have any hatch. And I would prefer to get away from relying on such a device.

Rick · #20 04/22/12, 08:22 PM

I don't know nuthin' 'bout birthin' no Turkeys.