Rare Sighting Of A Numida meleagris!
I was rambling through the woods the other day when I saw a couple of large birds that were partially obstructed by vegetation. What is that?! It's not a turkey or a pheasant, maybe it's something special! Then I got a better look at it and figured it must be a bird that wandered off of someone's property. I found it listed in Sibley's as a Helmeted Guineafowl or Numida meleagris .They like to eat ticks so that could be beneficial in a high tick area. They're common in zoos and farmyards but I can honestly say that I've never found one wandering in the woods before. That makes it a rare woodland sighting for me. Have you ever been fooled by a farmyard or escaped bird before?
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8 comments:
Cool bird, glad you saw it and were able to take a photo.
Guinea Hens! Have them on our farm for the ticks, but i hear that they cook up real good also
Last month, my mom and I saw a Helmeted Guineafowl walking along our road (it escaped from our neighbors' farm), but it was neat to see one wondering around.
eileen-It was fun to see even if it was only a farm hen.
Brite-With all the Lyme disease in CT I'll bet a lot of people have them around for the same reason.
prairiebirder-I've noticed that these days people just let chickens and other birds just roam around.They don't bother fencing them in. Most of the time they come back home for dinner.
Ha! They were all over in South Africa.. Have never been fooled by a farm bird..but just saw a Virginia Rail in. bradford Pear Tree (huh?) Life bird..
Cindy-A Virginia Rail in a pear tree?
Was that sighting followed by 2 Turtle doves and 3 French Hens?
Larry, yes. When I lived in Livermore Falls, Me I found a pair of Chukars in the woods near my house. I was able to get photos of them and sent them off to Audubon, then later met a neighbor who raised them and released them when she didn't want them anymore. Mystery solved. I don't think the chukars made it through the winter however.
Kathie-I've been finding a lot of pet birds running around lately.Good detective work Kathie!
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