Turkey Buzzards in McLean

Every Saturday we go for brunch at McLean Family Restaurant followed by grocery shopping at the Safeway across the street or the Harris Teeter further down the road. It’s not uncommon to find deer along the roadway that have been struck by cars. That was quite common in the Midwest. In fact, it almost happened to me once coming home from work. It does take your breath away. And there are specific spots along the GW Parkway that we always see the deer feeding and always pay close attention to their whereabouts. So yesterday we saw a flock of turkey buzzards sitting along the median in the road. And that means only one thing. Because it wasn’t in full view, it looked like they were just hanging around, until we made a u turn and saw what was really on their minds. What was left of the deer carcas was just the head and a few bones. It must have been there for awhile. And up in the trees were three sentries keeping watch above on the action below. We have seen these huge birds many times - once sitting around a fence in Charlottesville and up on the chimneys in McLean. It is a rather disgusting sight to come upon this feast, but when you read about these buzzards you do learn to appreciate them. It’s a gross job but somebody’s got to do it. 

The Turkey Buzzards Are Back

We were driving along Dolly Madison Highway, also known as 123, on our way to McLean. It is a highly travelled road, as it is just off the George Washington Parkway. Right in front of a large building was a deer that had just been hit by a vehicle. And for the second time along this stretch of road, we saw a bunch of turkey buzzards chowing down on the remains. It's not like this doesn't happen all the time, but that it happens in such a metropolitan area is somewhat unexpected. But, there is a huge deer population here and not a lot that can or has been done to manage it. We oftentimes see eagles and hawks flying overhead- in fact, we counted three eagle nests along the GW Parkway yesterday. Maybe some of those birds flying around are actually turkey buzzards- but they tend to travel in groups. In Wisconsin, we always heard about deer crashing in to cars, and always had them in our back yard. It's a sad sight to see, but when you read about turkey buzzards, you get a better feel for their side of the story. But there is something about Bambi - no matter how many of them there are. 

Before they noticed us, they were having a feast- and ignoring all the traffic

Then they ran for their lives when we stopped to see them-
they are a lot bigger than it looks here

Two were left, but the male sent the female off and guarded the prize-
he must have drawn the short stick

But he was getting a snack in between guard duty

Turkey Buzzard

I never really knew about turkey buzzards until a few years ago. There was a neighborhood in Milwaukee that was plagued by them. A bunch of them would sit on the roof of a poor soul's house. We thought we spotted one along the Pennsylvania Turnpike as we were returning home from DC to Milwaukee one summer. When we went for a day trip to Monticello last year, we came cross a whole flock of them sitting on a fence and planning to do some mischief. Along the Dolly Madison Parkway in McLean on the way to the George Washington Parkway, we came across the carcass of a deer that had recently been struck by a vehicle. Then out of no where, there they were..... and every time a car passed, they would scurry to the hills so as not to be seen, only to sneak up and grab a bite when the coast was clear.

Making a go of it

Only to retreat to the hills at the sight of an approaching vehicle