I’m crushed. When the snow melted, the turkeys left. I was excited about the possibilities of photographing turkey mating dance (they strut in a figure eight with their snood almost reaching the ground); I thought I had a good chance of photographing turkey sex; and now I have no turkeys at all.
So I’m getting a flock from Murray McMurray Hatchery. At first I thought we could have Guinea fowl, adventuresome birds who forage widely. Bob pointed out that the flock would probably really like the neighbor’s yard too, and we should ask them if they want 30 Guinea fowl visiting before I put in my order. Good point.
I don’t want turkeys because they’d be bound to escape and mess up the wild turkey’s gene pool. Does anyone know about chickens? I’d like a flock of meat birds that are independent foragers
I thought the Lakenvelders looked nice–this is an old Dutch variety that are independent with very competent roosters.
The silver grey Dorkens are an old breed–known to the Romans, says Murray McMurray–with a long body and short legs. They’re supposed to be calm.
And finally, I liked the looks of this bird: a white laced red cornish hen. 
The catalogue said that these have the blocky body type of the true cornish hen, and are slow to mature.
If there’s a better foraging type, please let me know.
And if you have an opinion on which kind of flock I should get, please leave a comment.
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