{"id":3290,"date":"2013-03-13T12:00:28","date_gmt":"2013-03-13T16:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/?p=3290"},"modified":"2013-03-12T12:06:01","modified_gmt":"2013-03-12T16:06:01","slug":"oh-those-barrhaven-turkeys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/2013\/03\/13\/oh-those-barrhaven-turkeys\/","title":{"rendered":"Oh, those Barrhaven turkeys!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Suburban turkeys (in Grass Valley, CA). Photo: Larry Miller<\/a>, CC some rights reserved<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Barrhaven is a sizable bedroom community within greater Ottawa. Because there’s a wide span of greenbelt\/open-space between it and the main contiguous city, it sometimes gets razzed as “Far-haven” and “Bore-haven”.<\/p>\n

But this is about turkeys, the wild kind, some of which now rule those suburban streets.<\/p>\n

Wild turkeys in Barrhaven began to make the news several months ago, after causing traffic disruptions and becoming pests at a senior’s complex.<\/p>\n

Some residents think it’s fun to see wild animals close at hand, as with this video of turkeys at a backyard feeder<\/a>, or this video taken from a car<\/a>, with a child’s excited voice asking Daddy about the wild turkeys on the way to work!<\/p>\n

A\u00a0CBC article from Dec 2012<\/a>\u00a0finds others are less enthused:<\/span><\/p>\n

Barrhaven councillor Jan Harder said she says the birds pose a danger.<\/p>\n

“I am concerned there’s going to be a bad accident. People are going to dodge to avoid the birds,” said Harder.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources has a fact sheet on “Living with wild turkeys<\/a>“. \u00a0(The clue is in the title: live with it.) One can also download a 44-page “Wild Turkey management plan for Ontario”. Rules and language regarding what’s permitted can seem ambiguous. For example:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While landowners have the right to take lethal measures to mitigate turkey damage, the MNR does not condone the killing of wildlife if other options are available.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In this situation – on urban streets outside of hunting season – it appears to be illegal to kill the birds or move them more than a kilometer away, which would hardly solve the problem.<\/span><\/p>\n

Existing levels of conflict may be about to get worse. According to a recent article<\/a> from the Ottawa Citizen:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a difficult time of year for young male turkeys, explained Jolanta Kowalski of the Ministry of Natural Resources. They\u2019re looking to mate but it\u2019ll be a few weeks before any females are interested.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Typical. Blaming disgusting manners on some purported lack of interested females. Men! (Oh, right. we’re talking about wild birds.)<\/p>\n

Barrhaven resident Amy Lennon doesn’t find the situation amusing. She posted a video of aggressive turkeys<\/a>\u00a0engaged in “who-owns-this-road?” posturing as she walked to work. (Advisory: there’s an abundance of frustration and colorful language in her ‘running’ narrative.)<\/p>\n

According to the Citizen article, the Ministry’s\u00a0Kowalski says humans retain some legal remedies:<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can kick them,\u201d she said. \u201cSeriously. You can kick a wild turkey in the chest and it won\u2019t do serious harm but it will be a deterrent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Make yourself look bigger and yell at them, she added. In general, try not to run away: turkeys, like most animals, have an instinct that\u2019ll make them give chase. Standing your ground and scaring them off is a better bet.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It’s all funny until the beady eyes and waist-high pointy beaks are headed your way, eh?<\/p>\n

Barrhaven – not just a sleepy suburb. Here come the horny turkeys and wild times, right on the sidewalks and streets.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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