Illinois

Duck Eggs Hatching After Wild Turkey Takes Over For Mother Killed by Hawk

Talulah, a wild turkey, adopted the duck eggs and began sitting on the nest

Talulah nesting 2
Fox Valley Wildlife Center

Duck eggs are beginning to hatch at an Illinois suburban wildlife center after a wild turkey began sitting on the nest to take over for the mother, which was killed by a hawk. 

The eggs were brought to Fox Valley Wildlife Center earlier this year after a red-tailed hawk in Elgin swooped down and grabbed a mother duck off her nest outside the Advocate Sherman hospital Emergency Department, ultimately killing her. 

Nurses who witnessed the incident rushed to protect the nest outside the building and brought the orphaned eggs to the wildlife center. 

Talulah, a wild turkey, has been at the wildlife center for more than a year recovering from a severe wing injury. Officials said she has been laying eggs since November and refusing to leave her nest as she waits for them to hatch. The eggs never hatch, however, because they are not fertilized. 

After the eggs arrived at the center, Talulah adopted them and began sitting on the nest. On Thursday, officials said the hatching process, which takes about 12 hours, had begun. 

Employees are waiting to see if she will become a foster mom to the babies after they are born. 

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