Bush Turkeys Removal And Relocation Sydney

The amount of bush turkeys wandering around the North Shore of Sydney at the present time is amazing. The main reason for this is spring is here, and all the rain and warm weather and vegetation growth has presented itself as optimum breeding conditions.

They are a fascinating beautiful bird that I admire, but are a pest and a protected one at that, so don't get any ideas about sticking one on the barbeque. I can help you with a troublesome bush turkey so please ring as I have been addressing this problem for over seventeen years on the North Shore of Sydney.

Until recently, Bush Turkeys weren't a problem because they were fairly uncommon in the Sydney area, having been hunted as a pest, food and by foxes. They are now protected, and their population has expanded enormously due to their prodigious breeding and amazing adaptability. The main cause of this explosion in the bush turkey population is the very successful fox baiting program.

When bush turkeys first started to invade Sydney's Upper North Shore gardens, Micropest experimented with many different methods of physically deterring bush turkeys. Sometimes we were successful and managed to deter them only to find them nesting in the next-door neighbors garden to their dismay. Unfortunately, they still came over the fence to forage for food scratching up the garden. In most cases, the bush turkey would come back in a week or so or the next year with a vengeance. BIG WASTE OF TIME, MONEY AND STRESS MOST OF THE TIME.

I was at a customer's house in Wahroonga the other day, and he was complaining that he was on his third batch of garden mulch and a second lot of plants and trees for his garden because the local bush turkey kept on taking it all for his nest. That's two thousand dollars worth of garden mulch and plants. They may be protected, but that's not on. The only humane way of dealing with a persistent bush turkey is to trap it and relocate it in a bushland environment away from houses. For any enquires or quotes, please don't hesitate to contact Gerard from Micropest Pest Control Sydney.

Bush Turkeys.

Bush Turkeys are large birds, up to 75 cm long, with a wingspan of about 85 cm, with redhead and black feathers. They have a superficial resemblance to the North American turkey but are only distantly related. They are found in the forests of eastern Australia from Cape York to the Illawarra region. In its northern habitats, they tend to be found at higher elevations during the warmer months and come to the lowlands in winter. In cooler climates, they are found at both higher and lower elevations.

They are very clumsy fliers and roost in trees at night and when it is hot during the day. They build communal nests on the ground, used by a number of birds. A group may contain a dominant male, younger males, and some females.

Bush Turkeys eat insects, fruits and seeds, much of which they reveal by scratching away the leaf litter with their feet, although some are observed feeding on fruits still hanging from tree branches. Some survive by feeding on pet food from outside food bowls, having chased away the resident dog or cat.

With the recent change on Sydney's North Shore from manicured English-style gardens to more natural bushland settings, Bush Turkeys have recently become a pest, where they are attracted to the leafy environment and expanses of undisturbed bushland. Bush Turkeys will often attempt to steal food from tables in national parks and picnic areas, showing little fear of human contact. They are nesting more frequently in suburban gardens and cause enormous damage by re-arranging large amounts of mulch from nearby piles. The action of scraping the ground with their large feet and claws can damage groundcover and damage gardens.

They will then start building a nesting mound from whatever material is handy. Once the male has decided on the space where he'll be building his nesting mound to attract a female, they are very difficult to remove, and a resident flattening out the mound of material will only experience exasperation after finding that it's been rebuilt within hours.

The nests are made of rotting vegetation that creates heat as it composts, incubating the eggs. Nests are up to 1.5 metres tall and as much as 4 metres across. Males tend the nests by using their beaks to check the temperature and adding or removing material to maintain the correct 33 - 35 degrees.

The incubation temperature affects the gender of the young, as with many reptiles. Males are produced when the temperature is lower, and females at the higher temperature. The same nest will be used year after year, with nests renovated from season to season. A female will lay between 16 and 24 large white eggs between September and March. There may be as many as 50 eggs in a single nest, belonging to several females.

The young dig themselves out of the nest and look after themselves, with no parental involvement. With the young left to fend for themselves, they are vulnerable to predation by feral cats. The eggs are sometimes eaten by dingoes, dogs, goannas and snakes, and were once a staple food of indigenous Australians. Bush Turkeys will often attack goannas that come near the nest, pecking the goannas ferociously and chasing them away.

Bush Turkey Deterrents.

1) Remove all trees and garden mulch from your garden and lay a big cement slab. Very successful method. One hundred percent success rate. Unfortunately, if you have trees that drop leaves and you have garden mulch, you are fair game for any wandering male bush turkey wanting to start a nest.

2) Lay chicken mesh over your entire garden and pin it down securely with tent pegs. A very big and time-consuming exercise. When the bush turkey tries to rake the leaves and mulch, its claws get caught in the chicken mesh. They get frustrated and eventually move on.

It can be a successful method; however, you tend to only move the male next door to your neighbors house to their dismay, and when you remove the chicken mesh, another male bush turkey starts a new nest. So to be successful, leave the chicken mesh on your garden and lawn all year round.

If you have a very beautiful and expensive garden, it does not look very nice with chicken mesh everywhere. It just doesn't seem fair.

3) One way of reducing nest building is to avoid having an exposed compost heap in the yard, which the male will take over as a half-built nest. Many people find them fascinating to watch as they start nest building, but by then, it's difficult to stop them from planning to build there and causing subsequent damage to the garden.

4) On the occasion, I have applied a very smelly dynamic lifter over the nest and garden beds, and the smell and the feces from the dynamic lifter sent the bush turkey a couple of doors down. Unfortunately, when the dynamic lifter breaks down after a couple of weeks, the turkey will come back most of the time.

5) If that's unsuccessful, a pest controller can be called in to catch the offending male and relocate him away from your home. It's unlikely the Bush Turkey problem will be solved any time soon; just as with some other Australian animals, they have adapted well to human environments and have found a niche which allows them to exploit us very effectively.

Bush Turkey Comments And Emails

I have a big problem with a bush turkey destroying creek banks and native plantings. What do you charge to take him away - far away! I am at Lindfield, on the North Shore of Sydney. Comments: My in-laws live in Turramurra and have a bad bush turkey problem. They have been trying to discourage them from building nests in their beautiful bush gardens for about three years now, and they have spent a fortune fixing up the damage the turkeys have caused. Is there a way of relocating them legally, and how much would that cost? Yours faithfully,

We have a bush turkey problem - a large nest in the neighbors garden and a very destructive male... if you could send me a quote to remove it, that would be great. We live in Hunters Hill.

We have four turkeys causing a big concern in our corner block in Pymble. Could you advise if it's possible to relocate them, and the cost of doing so? I am in Avalon 2107, and there is a turkey nest in the neighboring yard. Both he and I want the pests removed, so can you please call me to discuss options I've got some bush turkeys driving me absolutely insane - they are stealing my chickens' food and egg and destroying parts of the garden. How much is your relocation fee for bush turkeys? We are located in West Ryde, Thanks very much Patrick.

Comments: Bush Turkey relocation - Hi I work at a holiday park on the central coast, and our bush turkey population continues to grow. I wanted to enquire about relocating a couple of male turkeys to reduce the numbers. Can you provide any information and a quote for this service? Kind Regards, Michael

Comments: Hello We have two bush turkeys that have moved into our background (not great with 2 Dogs) and was hoping to get a quote to remove them. Thanks Gaye

We have five very scared and bloody chickens. Is there any cost involved in catching this turkey and relocating it, please? We have locked the chooks away in their enclosure (usually the door is left open for them to roam), we hose the turkey each time we see it but can't be there all the time. And this morning we have put a mirror at the entrance to the enclosure. At least now the chickens are moving more freely in the enclosure instead of huddled together in one corner and not daring to move for quite some time after the turkey has been hosed away.

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