SWAMPSCOTT — One particularly belligerent turkey has staked his claim over the intersection on Swampscott’s Paradise Road, hindering drivers as they pass through the busy entrance to Swampscott Mall.
Shoppers and employees have reported several run-ins with the large fowl who was described as “unafraid” of loud traffic by Lindy, an employee at the Petco in adjacent Vinnin Square.
“I’ve been here about two years. He’s been here the entire time,” said Lindy, who requested the Item not use her last name. “He comes back around fall, before Thanksgiving, and directs traffic — walks around, gobbles at anyone who beeps at him or tries to shoo him away.
“He’s not scared whatsoever. I’ve literally sat there, in the middle of the road with a big truck beeping next to me, and (the turkey) just sat there gobbling.”
Swampscott Animal Control officer Diane Treadwell said the bird in question — affectionately named Vinnie by some — has actually only inhabited the intersection since summer, and added the problem has been a divisive one for the town.
“Half of the town hates him, half loves him,” she said.
Treadwell said the issue has been difficult to solve because it is illegal for Animal Control to relocate a healthy animal. The best case scenario is that Vinnie moves on his own, but she said that’s unlikely to happen while residents continue to feed him.
“People don’t realize they’re part of the problem,” she said.
For those wondering what draws the turkey to this particular area, Marion Larson of Mass Wildlife agreed the explanation might be a simple case of easy access to resources.
“Most of the time when we have birds show up in these weird places, it often has to do with (the fact) some kind of food has been made available to them,” Larson said. “Either purposeful feeding, or an area where there is a lot of food available to them all the time. It could be somebody with bird seed or something like that on the ground.”
According to Larson, turkeys tend to be less scared of cars than of people and are often unfazed by loud honks from frustrated motorists.
Her suggested solution? Just keep driving — slowly — and the bird will get the message.
“People don’t realize that if you drive towards the bird – and I’m not saying drive towards it to run it over — but if you keep on moving, the bird will run out of the way,” she said.
“I’ve been in that area, and that’s a busy road. There’s no reason to sit through three light cycles. You can move, and the bird will move.”
As for Lindy, she remains unbothered by Vinnie’s antics.
“It’s hilarious. Everyone comes in (to Petco) saying, ‘oh my God, did you see the turkey? … He’s basically just very stubborn. ‘I’m standing here. Leave me alone.’”
Treadwell asked that people refrain from feeding Vinnie and encouraged anyone interested in learning more about the problem to visit Mass Wildlife’s website or mass.gov for tips on how to interact with local wildlife.
Elyse Carmosino can be reached at [email protected].
