They were definitely not guineafowl. There was no fleshy helmet on top of the head - just a crest of thin feathers.
I just got home, and the closest match I can find in any of my references is female peafowl. But I'm continuing to look things up. Christopher A. Brochu Associate Professor Department of Geoscience University of Iowa Iowa City, IA 52242 USA phone 319-353-1808 fax 319-335-1821 email [email protected] ________________________________ From: Eric Ollie [[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, July 04, 2012 9:07 PM To: Brochu, Christopher A Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Ok, this will make me sound really crazy... Any chance it was a Helmeted Guineafowl, run astray from someone's farm? On Wed, Jul 4, 2012 at 5:55 PM, Chris Brochu <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: I just drove to Davenport from Iowa City. About halfway through Cedar County, I saw two large gamebirds on the I-80 median. They looked larger than pheasant, and I don't think they were turkeys. All I saw above the grass were the backs, necks, and heads, but in spite of being in a moving vehicle, I'm sure I saw a spray or comb of thin feathers on both birds' heads, like what one finds on a peacock. The birds were dark gray rather than blue. Any ideas? Could they be escapes from somewhere? Sent from my iPhone --- Please contribute your sightings to our list; it is only as good as members make it! --- Birding channel recommendation for FRS/GMRS radio use: Primary selection; channel 5/0 , alternate selection; channel 6/0 --- This mailing list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union. Membership available on-line at http://www.iowabirds.org/iou/PayDues.aspx. ----- You are currently subscribed to ia-bird as: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> --- Please contribute your sightings to our list; it is only as good as members make it! --- Birding channel recommendation for FRS/GMRS radio use: Primary selection; channel 5/0 , alternate selection; channel 6/0 --- This mailing list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union. Membership available on-line at http://www.iowabirds.org/iou/PayDues.aspx. ----- You are currently subscribed to ia-bird as: [email protected]
