Pam’s Perspective
Pam Otto is the Manager of Nature Programs and Interpretive Services for the St. Charles Park District
Remember back a few years ago when folks were all abuzz about bald eagles? The majestic eagle, our nation’s symbol, an animal once on the brink of extinction, was right here, in Kane County! People just couldn’t believe it.
Then, three years ago, the big birds ramped it up a notch, building a nest in a broken-off conifer on the Mooseheart grounds in North Aurora. Excitement began to build, and eagle watchers everywhere rejoiced when the pair returned to the nest in 2010 and, glory be, laid eggs. The sheriff’s department actually had to get involved due to the traffic issues that were created by people stopping–on Randall Road, no less–to try and catch a glimpse of the eagles and their young.
And then there was last year, when the pair grabbed headlines yet again–but for a completely different reason. A big storm toppled their nest, and their two eaglets inside landed on the ground. Mom and Dad Eagle stopped feeding the youngsters, and after a period of days they were rescued by staff from Flint Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation. Last fall the young were released, fully fledged, during a media event at Starved Rock State Park in Utica.
Which brings us to today, February 2012. Even though this time of year, winter, is when eagles are most likely to be sighted, there’s been very little mention of the magnificent birds. Because of our mild weather the Fox River isn’t frozen, and eagles throughout the region do not have to congregate and feed below dams and other areas of open water. At this point in time, eagles in Kane County are yesterday’s news.
Instead, there’s another bird that has people talking: wild turkeys.
Believe it or not—and judging by my phone calls and emails, you’d better believe—the wild turkey is making itself increasingly at home here in Kane County.
I remember my first inkling that turkeys may be finding our suburban neighborhoods to their liking. Six or seven years ago, I was working at Red Oak Nature Center in North Aurora and received a phone call from the North Aurora Police. A resident had called them to report a “strange bird” in his driveway. When the officer arrived, he was confronted with a large and altogether unruffled wild turkey, walking and pecking its way around the front yard.
That bird, or perhaps one just like it, was subsequently sighted several times in parks and open areas along the Fox River between North Aurora and Batavia. But then it went away, and I sort of forgot about it.
Then, last spring, I got a call from Bob and Kathy Andrini of Kane County Audubon. They were conducting a bird census at Delnor Woods in St. Charles and came upon, of all things, a wild turkey. Veteran birders that they are, they were both surprised to find a big game bird like that right in the midst of a neighborhood park.
Then, just like that, the turkey and its pals were popping up everywhere—the parking lot by St. Mark’s Church and the St. Charles Library; backyard birdfeeders near the PineView Care Center; North Cemetery; and assorted yards in Valley View. Sightings from the east side of St. Charles continued to roll in throughout the fall. Then, as winter approached, calls began coming in from the west side of town. (The most recent one was this past Wednesday, from a resident west of Randall Road and north of Dean Street.)
Clearly, the story of wild turkeys in Kane County and, specifically, in St. Charles, is really just beginning. I want to find out more about where they’re coming from, what’s attracted them to this area and, most important, what the outlook for their future here is.
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Pam’s Perspective – Page 2
But today I’m hung up on one thing: the bald eagle-wild turkey connection attributed to Benjamin Franklin.
Maybe you’ve heard that ol’ Ben, if he’d had his way, would have made the wild turkey the symbol of our then-brand new nation. That’s a bit of an oversimplification, according to historians. But the fact remains that Mr. Franklin didn’t think much of bald eagles, a species he felt was not just lazy but also cowardly.
As for turkeys, he wrote that “…the Turkey is in Comparison a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America… He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage, and would not hesitate to attack a Grenadier of the British Guards who should presume to invade his Farm Yard with a red Coat on.”
Will he—the wild turkey, not Franklin—hesitate to take up residence in and around the TriCities? Time will tell.
And maybe you will too! Have you seen wild turkeys in or around your neighborhood? If so, let us know. I’ll report back in a week or two what you’ve got to say.
Pam Otto, sometimes a little vain and silly herself, is manager of nature programs and interpretive services for the St. Charles Park District. She can be reached at 630-513-4346 or potto@stcparks.org.