Guinea Fowl

Numida meleagris

These very noisy birds look like a bunch of AWOL army helmets as they run across the yard.  Rumor has it that they are good for controlling the Lyme disease bearing deer tick but there hasn't been any research on that.   One bit of interesting information is that if you keep bees, the guinea fowl will stand by the hive and snap up the bees as they come out.

Guineas often lay their eggs out in the fields and hatch their young by themselves.  Incubation is about 26-28 days.  Young guineas are called "keets".  Being native to the dry areas of Africa, they are very susceptible to dampness during their first 2 weeks and can die from following the mother through dewy grass.  After 2 weeks of age, they are probably the hardiest of all domestic land fowl.