Wild Turkey Hen Perched In A Netleaf Hackberry Tree

Wild Turkey hen perched in a Netleaf Hackberry – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

Last month while up in Box Elder County looking for birds I spotted this Wild Turkey hen perched in a Netleaf Hackberry tree not long before noon. The Netleaf Hackberry was situated about midway up a hillside out in the open in desert ranchland habitat. I have found turkeys in this location before so I always look for them while I am in the area.

Despite the large size of the turkey hen she wasn’t easy to point out.

Netleaf Hackberries seem to hold onto their leaves during the winter. The hackberries also leaf out later in the spring than other trees in the same area. The berries the trees produce are eaten by birds and wildlife and the leaves of the trees sustain many insects including moth caterpillars. I’ve never eaten a hackberry but they are edible. Maybe this year I will try one. I prefer to leave wild fruits and berries, no matter how tasty they might be, for the birds and wildlife especially during drought years. When I photographed this hen turkey there were still a few berries hanging in the tree.

Very soon the Wild Turkeys in northern Utah will start to think about breeding, nesting and rearing their young. I’ve already seen tom turkeys displaying this winter. I wasn’t able to take any high quality images of the toms strutting around but hopefully I will be able to do that soon enough.

I enjoy having these large birds in my viewfinder no matter what time of the year it is when I find them and I love hearing them too.

Life is good.

Mia

Click here to see more of my Wild Turkey photos plus facts and information about this species.