The early days of summer; it’s that time of year again when those of us interested in the wildlife that surrounds us begin watching more carefully for wild critters and especially the young of the year.
The birding crowd has their feeders well stocked, and they are on the lookout for what birds might show up as well as the immature birds accompanying their parents.
For those of us who look forward to the fall hunting seasons, now is the time we begin observing our surroundings more carefully as well in hopes of getting some idea of what we might find come hunting time.
Getting a good look at wildlife during the early summer can be a bit challenging, obviously due to the heavy new growth that encompasses fields and forests. In early spring, spotting a flock of turkeys or some deer at the edge of the woods or in a field was fairly easy, but the young of the year were not yet available. Now, of course, fawns and poults are roaming about but seeing them can be really difficult unless they happen to cross the road in front of you or show up in your backyard.
Case in point; my wife and I were driving a few miles down the road to visit some friends last week, and as usual, when driving around these parts, we keep an eye out for deer. My wife commented that she was surprised that she had not seen a single fawn yet this year; at that very moment, I spotted two young fawns sprinting across the road just up ahead of us. Interestingly enough, a couple of days earlier, I spotted a doe and fawn feeding at the edge of our yard just inside the tall weeds, and two weeks ago, I had to stop completely to allow a doe and her two fawns to cross in front of my car as I was on my way into town.
When it comes to turkeys, I’ve been checking several locations as I drive by, and interestingly enough, about two weeks ago, I looked into one of my ‘hot spots,” and there in the middle of the field was a gobbler all fanned out — a bit late for that behavior but there he was. Over the next couple of weeks, I saw what I believe was that same gobbler and some hens, but now when I go by, the planted crops and weed growth are so high I can no longer see mature turkeys let alone poults or young birds.
Fortunately, I have been able to spot a few young turkeys with mature hens on a couple of occasions, but my most interesting sighting actually took place right out back of my house. One mid-afternoon, my wife and I looked out back in the high weed growth at the edge of the woods and spotted two hens and one poult. We watched the birds casually feeding for quite some time from a second-floor window. We later left and drove into town on some errands. A couple of hours later, when we returned, my wife again went to the upstairs window, and to our surprise, the hens and poult were still feeding out back.
So, as a hunter, how should I interpret these sightings of poults and fawns? Does this mean we are going to have a good number of turkeys and deer this fall? I know us deer hunters are anxiously checking the deer we see in hopes of spotting the new antler growth. Certainly, what I’ve seen so far looks encouraging; I guess we’ll see come fall. In the meantime, it is still very enjoyable seeing the different wildlife and especially the new arrivals.
