'A big ol' turkey': A surprisingly fowl sighting in downtown St. John's

Matt Roberts drives the same route to work from Monday to Saturday every week. But this Wednesday his early morning trip in was a little different, thanks to an unexpected turkey on the road.

"I was on Battery Road, actually, turning into Signal Hill Road, and I see this white bird down the road," Roberts told The St. John's Morning Show. 

He initially wasn't sure what the bird was but it became clear as he continued driving.

"Got a bit closer and I realized it was a big ol' turkey."

Latest turkey sighting

Roberts' turkey sighting was the latest in a string of them in St. John's and area. 

In the week before Thanksgiving, several turkeys were spotted on the Clovelly Golf Club in St. John's and in the city's east end. 

On Wednesday, a woman posted on Twitter that her father saw a turkey running down his street in Clovelly on Tuesday.

Andrew Hines, a daily golfer at Clovelly, told The St. John's Morning Show that he's noticed turkeys at various parts of the course for about three weeks now.

They're usually walking around in the grass by the woods, Hines said, but will come out on the fairways once in a while.

"Every now and then they come out, have a look at us," he said.

Got a bit closer and I realized it was a big ol' turkey.- Matt Roberts

Clovelly's general manager, Mark Altese, said he's received reports about the turkeys from his members — though the club member who first came to him with a video of a bird meeting its unfortunate end thought it must be a hawk or other wild large bird.

"In the video the fox is dragging the turkey into the woods," Altese said.

Altese previously worked at a course in Prince Edward Island, where the owners had free range turkeys, and said turkeys and golfers can happily coexist.

Hines said he doesn't mind having the birds, who seem quite tame, around while he gets his daily game in.

"It's nice to see wildlife around."

Wild turkeys?

The rogue turkeys are unexpected because Newfoundland does not have wild turkeys — not officially, at least.

But in addition to these latest birds, there have been reports of wild turkeys in parts of western Newfoundland as well.

The birds likely escaped from a yard or farm and decided the golf course made a nice home.

"I'm not sure if there are turkey farmers here but if there are, you may have lost some," Altese said.

No, not wild turkeys

The Signal Hill Road turkey turned out to be one of a pair, as another similar-looking bird was seen on Temperance Street at about the same time Wednesday morning.

The birds are not wild at all, however. They live in a backyard in the Battery area of St. John's, but had gotten loose in the morning. 

"I came down this morning to go to yoga, turned on the radio, and they said there are turkeys on Temperance Street," said Penny Allderdice, the owner of the downtown birds.

"That was the last thing I wanted to do."

Allderdice figured that the birds, who were hatched in late June, likely got loose because of Tuesday's bad weather.

"I don't know how they got out. There was such a storm yesterday afternoon that I was afraid the wind would blow me over if I went out, so I didn't lock them up," she said.

"I like them because they're so tame. I enjoy them, but I didn't take good enough care of them yesterday."

However the birds got out, they weren't too hard to get back in.

"So I took the walker out and walked on Temperance Street, took the bread in my pocket and I called them and they came," she said.

The turkeys are now back safely in the yard, but two of Allderdice's hens were not quite as lucky and were killed by a mink and a fox.

"Someone told me that they saw the fox carrying the hen off," she said. 

"But I guess the turkeys were too big."

With files from The St. John's Morning Show

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