This turkey ditched Thanksgiving and went to a national park instead, photo shows
This turkey must’ve heard the horror stories of what happens to its kind on Thanksgiving and decided to take a vacation instead.
The National Park Service posted a picture on the eve of Thanksgiving of a turkey demanding entrance to a building at Jewel Cave National Monument in South Dakota.
“Your chances of being hunted by a turkey are low, but never zero,” the National Park Service posted Wednesday on Facebook. “Be careful out there. This Peeping ‘Tom’ was spotted at Jewel Cave National Monument.”
The park service said the turkey was “looking for a cave tour” but it was too late in the day for monument officials to accommodate the animal. The park was about to close, but the turkey stood its ground, staring down the folks inside the building, the photo shows.
“The ranger on duty thoughtfully explained the park was closing,” the park service said. “After some ruffled feathers and some ‘fowl’ language, ‘Pluck my what?’, the turkey left the park without further incident.”
The photo is a few years old, but the park said it happened around Thanksgiving and it resurfaced this year when the National Park Service shared it.
“Several years ago, turkeys would sometimes stand at the visitor center door and gobble at their reflection in the window,” Jewel Cave National Monument said on Facebook. “In this particular instance, it occurred around the holiday and caught the attention of several visitors. You can about imagine the comments made on behalf of the turkey.”
Jewel Cave National Monument is home to many wild turkeys after a fire created a meadow for them to forage in during the day.
“Before the fire, Jewel Cave National Monument was heavily forested with few meadows,” the National Park Service said. “There were more than enough areas to roost, but the turkeys would have to fly far to find food. Now that the fire created open meadows where the turkeys can search for food, this bird has returned to the Monument.”
This story was originally published November 25, 2020 at 1:04 PM with the headline "This turkey ditched Thanksgiving and went to a national park instead, photo shows."