Bird Watcher News November 12th, 2013

Local Bird News

Winter hummingbird reports are starting to come in! Several Rufous and one probable Calliope have already been spotted, with many more arriving in the next month or so from breeding grounds out west, as far away as Alaska! Keep those feeders going and please report any hummingbirds to
Georgia Hummers
or contact any of our store locations. We'll get you in touch with the right people!

Stop in soon!
We have beautiful new
fall scarves and jewelry so you will look stylish for Thanksgiving dinner with family and friends. We also have great hostess gifts - lotions, soaps, hand towels, candles, Bird/Squirrel Poop (yummy butter toffee peanuts that will make everyone giggle) and a nice selection of Mr. Bird seed ornaments and pecan wreaths (check out the cute owl!) We also have a new shipment of Dammit Dolls - fun for gifts or get one for yourself to help with the holiday stress!

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Small Business Saturday

is November 30th, so make sure you check your email for a special offer when you shop with us that day! We work hard to make Bird Watcher your favorite small business and we appreciate your support on that day, and every day!

Gobble, Gobble!

November makes us think of Thanksgiving, and of course, a huge turkey dinner with all the fixings. The turkeys we serve at Thanksgiving are actually farm-raised, but there are over 7 million Wild Turkeys spread across their range in North America, with Georgia's population currently estimated at 335,000 birds.

If you happen to live in a forested neighborhood, or in woods adjacent to open fields and meadows, you may occasionally be treated to flocks of Wild Turkeys, called gangs or rafters, visiting your yard. Many customers report them feeding under bird feeders, drinking from birdbaths and roosting high in their trees at night, noisily tumbling down to the ground in the morning. Wild turkeys have very powerful legs and can run at speeds up to 25 miles per hour. Their top speed in flight is 55 miles per hour, but they rarely fly very far.

Wild Turkeys are a success story in wildlife conservation. By 1973, Georgia's population plummeted to only 17,000 birds due to habitat loss and overhunting. Through restocking, conservation and hunting regulation, Wild Turkeys made a huge comeback by the late 90's. Populations do fluctuate yearly from too much or too little rain during the spring breeding months and availability of food. Turkeys are omnivorous, feeding mainly on acorns and other tree nuts, seeds and grains, berries, fruit, buds, roots, grasses, tender foliage, a wide variety of insects and small amphibians.

The Wild Turkey could have been our national bird if

Benjamin Franklin had his way back in 1784. He wrote in a letter to his daughter that the Bald Eagle was a "bird of bad moral character," being lazy and poaching food from other birds. He considered the turkey a "little vain and silly," but also more respectable, a "bird of courage that would not hesitate to attack."

Visit www.georgiawildlife.com to learn more about Wild Turkeys in Georgia.

Kennesaw * Roswell * Buford * Marietta * Canton