Residents of Staten Island, the borough of New York City most New Yorkers would rather cede to New Jersey, apparently don’t like their Wild Turkeys.*

Their fate hangs in the balance of a “turkey attitude” survey being developed by the state Department of Environmental Conservation to gauge how annoying residents find them. Anecdotal evidence suggests opinions are mixed about the birds, which hold up traffic when they cross the street, roost in trees and decorate the cars below with their copious droppings.

The birds might be left alone, eradicated, moved, or kept in captivity.  Let’s hope Staten Islanders have a higher opinion of turkeys than New Yorkers have of Staten Islanders.  Maybe if the survey is distributed after (American) Thanksgiving the turkeys will be spared?

The full article is available at silive.com.  Article found via Gothamist.

*Though whether or not the birds are 100% wild in origin is in question.

Written by Corey
Corey is a New Yorker who lived most of his life in upstate New York but has lived in Queens since 2008. He's only been birding since 2005 but has garnered a respectable life list by birding whenever he wasn't working as a union representative or spending time with his family. He lives in Forest Hills with Daisy and Desmond Shearwater. His bird photographs have appeared on the Today Show, in Birding, Living Bird Magazine, Bird Watcher's Digest, and many other fine publications. He is also the author of the American Birding Association Field Guide to the Birds of New York.