Three years later, these wild turkeys have not become a major problem as we were concerned they might. Their population seems to have reached an equilibrium.
This is a relatively new development. The first few arrived here only two years ago. By last year, a few more arrived to make a significant herd that split into two smaller herds. Now these two smaller herds are quite significant. If they continue to proliferate as they have been, they will become more of a problem. They are already shredding flowers and colorful berries that are within their reach, and digging up flexible irrigation hoses.
They are not really wild turkeys, since they are not native here. They are actually feral turkeys that escaped into the wild and naturalized. They may have moved in from surrounding areas, or they may have escaped locally. Turkeys have been roaming parts of Scott’s Valley and my neighborhood in the Los Gatos Hills for a few years. Much larger herds roam other regions, particularly the Diablo Ranges east of the San Francisco Bay…
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Tony Tomeo 
Nobody sees them as dinner?
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Yes, but there are too many of them, and this is California, where dysfunctional wildlife and vegetation has more rights than people. Seriously, we have had complaints because our vehicles have gotten too close to these idiotic birds as they run across the roads.
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Oh yea there is somethings backwards there. Seems like there isn’t a suitable solution. 😒
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I do love California, but it is certainly a weird place. There is a suitable solution. There is just someone or a few someones who can not accept it. Since I wrote that old article, we determined that the turkeys in the picture, although likely related to feral turkeys (of a formerly wild species), are likely also related to a wild species with an indefinite range (that the feral [formerly domesticated] turkeys were derived from). Although their native range is not documented as extending into this region, it changes, so could have extended to this region prior to documentation, and seems to have extended into this region recently. Natural ranges for animals are not as static or as slow as those of plants.
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So if they came to his region recently, they could still be relocated.
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That is not practical. There is no place to relocate them where they are not already too abundant. Besides, if this really is their native range, relocation would not be appropriate. Fortunately, their population seems to have equalized, as if they only breed as much as their ecosystem can sustain.
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Well that’s good. At least you don’t have to think about an ever growing population of them. Nature at work, somehow limiting the breeding. 👍
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Well, I am still none too keen on them shredding the contoneaster berries or tearing shingles off to get to grubs.
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Tearing shingles off, wow. They really do make a lot of problems.
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Yes, and now one single male comes to the fleet yard to attack chrome bumpers. He does no damage, and only a few modern vehicles have any chrome on them, but it can be annoying.
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That’s funny. Yea, not many chrome bumpers around now any more. And he attacks them, reflection you think? No he couldn’t do any damage and it would be fun to see until it got to be annoying, yea.
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It would be worse if he attacked bumpers on vehicles on the road outside, but I doubt that he can see his reflection while they move so fast. Peacocks can actually do a bit of damage. They were attracted to the metallic blue color of my old Electra, but then attacked all the chrome, and got frustrated enough to shred the vinyl roof.
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Ohh, yea that’s easier to damage. You were not happy about that. 😳
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Apparently, it is more common where peacocks have naturalized. They are not naturalized here, but live in some places where they get fed as pets.
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They’re doing a public service by eating grubs under shingles. Grubs don’t belong on a roof.
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but shingles DO.
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But you can’t have both!
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Neither would be better. Turkeys belong in ovens, not on roofs.
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