Wild turkeys keeping visitors on their toes at the Mud Lake Trail
If you are yearning to walk the trails around Mud Lake in the Britannia Conservation Area, be aware there are wild turkeys looking for mates. A gang of three have been chasing and pecking at visitors to the nature trail for weeks.
Their mating season occurs between late February and early March in the southern U.S., and in April here in the northern end of their range.
Wild turkeys stand more than a metre tall, have a wingspan of up 1.4 metres and can weigh more than 10 kilograms. They are strong flyers and roost in trees at night.
Friday, the NCC closed parts of the trail to keep the public away from the pesky poultry, with plans to live trap the birds and relocate them to a quieter place.
On Sunday, the signs were down and the trails were open but, to the surprise of many, the turkeys were there as well, chasing off visitors as they approached.
Christine Norman and her friends had heard about the aggressive gobblers and decided to check it out; they noticed the signs were down, so they ventured into the woods, expecting the fowl to have fled. Instead, they were confronted by the three large male turkeys strutting their stuff.
“They are intimidating. We might not get to do our planned route back to the coffee shop,” Norman said. “It reminds you that nature is all around us and maybe we are not top of the food chain everywhere because these guys are intimidating.”
After snapping some pictures, the group decided discretion is the better part of valor and retreated, leaving the trio of turkeys to search for springtime brides.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.