Turkey trot

In bygone days, which is to say, before the hay field across the street was desecrated and turned into a construction site, I could often gauge the development of our local crop of wild turkeys when I'd spot mama and poults hiking through the grass. But all wildlife has fled that area, so turkey sightings are few and far between. That, of course, is by design, for the large birds are masters at hiding themselves and their offspring from predatory eyes. Occasionally, however, I'll get lucky, and so it was late this afternoon, when I was driving home from a much-belated visit to the lake for an overdue swim. It was exceedingly quiet deep in the country, so mama figured it was safe to show herself and cross the rural road. Her poults followed, one by one. I was glad I was driving the Prius, which, at slow speeds, is so silent that it's almost inaudible. The birds barely noticed me creeping along, and though I had to shoot through the glass windshield—not the best image-making situation—I managed to capture one decent photo of Mom and kid out for a walk. They didn't hang around for long and quickly melted into the underbrush.