Flies and a mystery flier

[billtils]

Visited a local farm shop/garden centre yesterday and took some photos while you-know-who was shopping. There are a few hoverlies, a couple of blue-bottle sized flies, and a mystery visitor.

Hoverflies:














Flies:















Mystery visitor:

It looks like a turkey and probably is a turkey, but in the wild in rural Perthshire, Scotland ????






Comments and info on the turkey all welcomed!

[Wavelength]

Wow; what a set of enjoyable images!!!

[Geoff F]

I did have a double check on Capercaillie but definitely not that one; so, as you say, probably something which has escaped into the wild.

[DanK]

Good captures. I have no idea what the bird is, but it is definitely now what we call a turkey on this side of the pond. The shape of the head and the type of bill are entirely different. It looks more like waterfowl to me. The flat bill looks like what one sees on surface-feeding ducks, like mallards and black ducks. But then again, i have no clue what counts as a turkey in Scotland.

Apropos of nothing, it's weird that in some other languages, turkeys have names that also point to a geographic region, but different ones. E.g., in Arabic, it's a "Roman rooster." In Greek, it's a "french chicken". In Turkish and Hebrew, it's "Indian" in the south Asian sense. https://guides.lib.uchicago.edu/c.ph...7857&p=1987573

[Astro]

Bill, nice set and I think your mysterious flyer might be a Muscovy Duck, probably an escapee...

[billtils]

Thanks James - yes, the head does indeed look like that of a Muscovy.

[billtils]

Thanks Nandakumar, Geoff, Dan and James

[Astro]

Echoing Dan 'Apropos of Nothing', Muscovy ducks originate in Central and South America....nowhere near Muscovy which is an archaic name for a region around Moscow in Russia

[billtils]

Echoing Dan 'Apropos of Nothing', Muscovy ducks originate in Central and South America....nowhere near Muscovy which is an archaic name for a region around Moscow in Russia

... and doesn't explain why there's one in the wild in Perthshire Do you know if they migrate?

[Astro]

Bill, they are an 'ornamental' breed, and I doubt they are capable of crossing the Atlantic.
I have seen them a few times in London Parks, over the years, and one on the River Severn at Ironbridge last year.. Actually I did photograph it,... but didn't get round to processing it yet.

I believe that they and their eggs are pretty good to eat.

It is almost certainly an escapee from either a family/children's zoo or a local duck fancier. Actually maybe not so local, since they are actually good fliers and tend to like roosting in trees unlike our more 'domestic ducks.

Probably much more than you needed to know , but I have family in Ireland (farmers), and too many years back my aunt had a couple. One other odd thing about them is they don't quack, but make a kind of whispering noise as if talking to themselves. As children we were warned to treat them with respect, they could be a bit aggressive. Personally, I found the turkeys much more intimidating!!

[billtils]

... Probably much more than you needed to know

No, not at all James. I appreciate you taking time to post this information - thank you.

[DanK]

Having raised turkeys briefly in my youth, I can tell you that your impression is warranted. I have no first-hand close-up experience with wild ones, although one sees them frequently here now, even in urban areas. But the domesticated ones, which can be much larger, can be aggressive and are large enough to cause harm. The wild ones often show no fear of people and can be hard to chase off.


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[Lon Howard]

Bill, having no background in turkeys or ducks, I'll just go along with Nandakumar. These images are well done!

[billtils]

Thanks Lon. It seems that the ID is solved (Muscovy duck) but how on earth it got to where I photographed it will remain a mystery.