So I saw them from across the street this morning and then again around lunch, but never close enough to take any decent pictures. This afternoon while I was reading on the back porch, I looked up at the gobble and realized they were wandering right through the yard, at the back fence. As you can see from the photos below, they are not shy and let me get as close as I wanted. I got VERY close to get good photographs, but I was a bit wary there for a second - they are pretty big. Check it out:
Three males and a female in the background (she blends in with the landscape)
This is so very typical. The female was immediately ready to head back to the woods, but the males sensed an audience and promptly ruffled their feathers every chance they got. I think they would have stayed if I had stood there longer to watch them.
The female was very vocal and seemed agitated; perhaps they had wandered too far from the nest. It's interesting behavior though to have one female and three males; with most species it's the other way around. Turkeys for feminism!
I reached over the fence for this shot. I was probably within arm's length at this point. Too cool!
