These Chicks Were Real Turkeys!

I spent most of Sunday morning exploring the shoreline town of Guilford, which is bordered by Madison, Branford, and Durham. Guilford is known for its many historical buildings, but I was more interested in finding some potential birding spots. There are plenty of hiking trails to explore, including some that take you around open marshland. I walked part of a marshland trail where I heard a Marsh Wren calling. There were plenty of Red-winged Blackbirds, egrets and a pair of Osprey there. I found this Wild Turkey hen with her poults (chicks) feeding in a grassy area near a yacht club of all places. I think that I counted about 8, but they were camouflaged fairly well. The birds can't fly when they're very young so the mother roosts with them on the ground until they're old enough to fly up into trees to roost.
I noticed a sign that was for public access to Long Island Sound and followed it. It brought me to the town marina. I quickly counted at least 60 Ruddy Turnstones there, but the total number of them was probably closer to 90. They were picking through the grass and muddy bank looking for food. After a while, they flew to the other side where they tried to live up to their name by leaving no stone unturned. I read that besides eating what they find under rocks, they have also been known to eat a variety of other things, including the eggs of some terns.

It's always nice to find new areas to access the Sound from land. A lot of the Connecticut shoreline is lined with cottages in private neighborhoods. I remember a few years back when my father and I were in a 14 foot boat fishing in the Sound. The wind picked up quickly and the average wave height increased to about 4 feet. We were quickly getting pushed farther away from our boat launch and couldn't get back because of the strong winds. We grounded the boat a couple of miles from where we started on a strip of a private beach. Within minutes, someone came running out to check on us. It wasn't our safety he was concerned about. He just wanted to let us know that our boat was on private property and that we needed to move it. What could I say? "Pardon me sir, can you pass the Grey Poupon"?
Another bird that I enjoyed watching at the boat launch was this Barn Swallow. I think it was nesting somewhere in this beam.

It would occasionally fly to the other side of the dock to keep an eye on me making sure I didn't steal any of its insects.

I saw 2 signs for the Lone Pine Trail on Route 77 as I was heading back towards Durham. I only walked up part of it, but plan to return at another time to hike the entire trail. I found these cool boulders..

..... and some kind of toad-(the toads are the ones with bumpier skin compared to frogs-right?).

Feel free to identify it if you can.

I was done for the morning and was heading back home when I passed by this sign and said to myself-"What did that say?" I just had to turn around and go back. The sign was on a barn that was set on a large piece of property with a large old-fashioned house. It said what I thought it said; but what did it mean? Could the name of the family actually be the Insultings? That would be hard to believe. Do workers live on this farm and have to put up with a lot of negativity from the owners? Is this a Bed & Breakfast where people with big egos go so that they can be brought down to earth by the innkeepers? Is this an estate owned by a sharp-tongued comedian like Don Rickles or Joan Rivers? Maybe it's just some people with an quirky sense of humor who put the sign up to make people wonder, like me!

click to play

Maybe the Turkeys know the real story behind Insulting Manor.