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WORDS ON BIRDS: Wild-turkeys-gone-bad roam the neighborhood

By Mary Taylor Young, Special to the Rocky

Published November 2, 2008 at 3 p.m.

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Maybe it's just the season or maybe they know Thanksgiving is coming, but the turkeys in my neighborhood are running wild.

Let me explain. I live in Castle Rock, next to a large, undeveloped ranch covered by oak brush and ponderosa pines. Wild turkey heaven.

During summer, the turkeys seem content to live quietly and secretly in their pine paradise. But from fall through spring, groups of turkeys filter out of this wild habitat to forage through yards and open spaces.

The wild turkeys I have known through my birdwatching career have been shy and secretive. If they detected a human presence, they sifted into the forest like smoke. Caught off-guard, they might take off running like ungainly sprinters. If startled, they leapt into the air with much flurry and flapping.

But the birds that roam our neighborhood are turkeys gone bad.

They slump through yards in close-packed groups like sullen teenagers. They shuffle through leaf litter and bark chips, gobbling up insects and acorns, heedless of private property rights.

If a vehicle slows to watch them, they mob it.

For some reason, they often cluster around the community mailbox. Drivers stopping to get their mail are sometimes flocked by ferocious turkeys that peck at the doors and attack anyone who gets out.

I think I even saw a group of turkeys smoking behind the lunchroom at recess.

Have these suburban turkeys been ruined by modern life? I think they've gotten used to us humans, who have invaded their neighborhood. Instead of something to fear, they see us now as creatures to take advantage of.

The word is out about the pond in the yard with the big pines, the house that fills its bird feeders every Wednesday, and the landscaping at the bottom of the hill that is loaded with seeds and berries.

I kind of enjoy these rogue birds, but when Thanksgiving arrives, I just might stay safe indoors.

Colorado nature writer Mary Taylor Young is author of nine books, including The Guide to Colorado Birds. MaryTaylorYoung.com

Comments

  • November 3, 2008

    9:09 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    familyortiz writes:

    Actually, you are in their neighborhood, but I think this article is funny, the way you descibe their antics.

  • November 3, 2008

    1:50 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    GILPINMAN writes:

    sounds like someone needs to get a good high power pellet gun before thanksgiving.