Ruffed Grouse
Bonasa umbellus
When surprised, a female ruffed grouse with young puts on an injured bird act and makes mewing and cheeping sounds to draw the intruder away from the fleeing chicks. (Lewis County, New York)
Habitat: Deciduous or mixed woodlands.
Wild Turkey
Alarm calls of a hen. We startled this bird which flew perhaps 15 feet, landed, ran back across the trail where we had first seen her and began calling. In summer, young poults make the kee-kee call which appears to serve as a contact call; it is given by birds trying to regroup after having been scattered by a predator and is often called the "lost call". It may be used in other contexts, however, as this bird was one of a flock that drew me in by its incessant kee-keeing. Here is a recording of a distant flock of poults illustrating the variation in kee-kee calls. (Albany County, New York.)
Habitat: Open wood edges. Fields near woods.