The seventeen

October began with the return of the girls. After enjoying daily visits from seventeen wild turkeys, they abrupbtly appeared to have found greener pastures. We never take wild animals for granted, but we miss them when they suddenly stop showing up.

Of course, there’s no way of telling whether they come by while we’re out or have our eyes away from the window.

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This day, the turkeys timed their visit to coincide with the arrival of two fawns that have been stopping by. The smaller of the two seemed keen to engage with the big birds.

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“Hi! I’m a deer. What on earth are you?

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“Don’t be like that. I thought we could play.”

But the turkeys weren’t interested in cavorting with a hyperactive fawn and strode off sedately up the driveway.

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“Spoilsports!”

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Then it caught sight of me in the doorway.

“Hello human. You want to play?”

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There’s nothing I would like better, but I don’t attempt to befriend wild animals.

Note the curious white patch on the back leg. It has the same thing on the left leg.

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The larger fawn went off into the woods but this one was not ready to leave.

It trotted off around the corner.

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When I went down the other end of the house, it was looking in a window at me, or possibly it saw Little Man staring out.

Then it went pronking off up the hill.

Is there anything more uplifting than the sight of young animals enjoying life?

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A few days later, the turkeys had a different kind of encounter.

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But the matriarchs soon organised themselves to defend the juveniles that went back to pecking at whatever they had found to eat.

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And soon the bemused fox gave me a look of disgust and took itself off into woods.

It looked like one of the younger ones, but I think it would be a brave fox that took on those seventeen sharp beaks.

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