Maybe it's looking for a partner. Perhaps this is a preemptive strike when Thanksgiving is approaching.
Either way, the only license plate close to the wild turkey is the license plate because it will prevent traffic in southwest Rochester.
Since early October, a male wild turkey has taken a place on Southwest Sixth Street near the Edison Administration Building at Rochester Public Schools.
When the weather is good, when the driver catches a glimpse of the bird, the male cat will slow down the traffic.
On bad days, the harsh sound of car horns reminded Nick Samson that a neighbor’s bird was blocking traffic somewhere on the street.
Samson lives on Sixth Avenue Southwest in Rochester and works from home most of the time. He watched municipal staff and Rochester police confront the bird in early October. He said that the police and staff spent several hours trying to solve the problem. He said that during that confrontation, he saw a policeman fire a non-lethal bullet at the bird.
"The turkey responded calmly and finally stood out," Samson said. "Literally-he flew over a house and escaped."
In mid-November, Irma Micijevic had a brief confrontation with the turkey in the car.
"It went to the front of my car and won't let it go," she said. "It's kind of like playing peekaboo with me."
Some neighbors call this bird "Lyle". Another said his family called him Gerald.
Lynn Wroblewski, a data manager at Rochester Public Schools, who works in the Edison Building, said that turkeys are very docile and even friendly to walkers.
On the other hand, he tends to become indifferent to vehicles.
Wroblewski wrote in an email: "When he pecked the headlights of a car, he would hover on the sixth (street) and block the traffic."
Wroblewski added that despite any short-term setbacks, this bird has always been a lovely source of entertainment.
Wroblewski wrote: "We all complain about him, but when you don't see him for a few days, you actually worry." "I hope he lives a happy life here-just don't block traffic."
Although the bird has not been captured by animal control and law enforcement agencies so far, history shows that if the bird continues to block traffic or adopt aggressive stances towards people living nearby, the continuous uptake may not last.
In May 2018, Rochester police shot and killed a wild turkey that had repeatedly disrupted traffic in the Southwest 16th Street and Mayowood Road areas.
The then interim police chief John Sherwin said that the bird ran into a child while riding a bicycle, otherwise attempts to argue with it would have failed.
The police did not say much about any confrontation with this turkey. Rochester Police Department spokesperson Amanda Grayson said that the police received more than a dozen service calls about the bird in the area of Sixth Street and Southwest of Sixth Avenue. When they drive by, callers often report turkeys pecking their cars. She said that officials and animal control departments have repeatedly tried to catch the cunning bird in the net, but it is still at large.
Kirk Payne, a retired quarry naturalist and teacher, said this is not the typical time of the year for turkeys to find a mate. But then again, Lyle/Gerard showed up when we had a warmer, brighter weather.
"It's like some plants are confused and under pressure," Payne said. "Sometimes, if the light level triggers something, the animal will briefly become aggressive."
He added that it looks like the bird is very comfortable around people.
"You have to wonder if it grew up in a more urban environment around people," Payne said.
He added that the area provides ample shelter and habitat for the birds west of the Edison Building.
"There is quite a lot of backyard habitat on that east-facing slope," he said.
What was new at the beginning has now become commonplace for some people nearby.
Samson said he was here to enjoy bird watching. He shared a video of one of the many conflicts he witnessed with the driver.
"Looking at nature causing severe damage in densely populated urban areas," he said, "It's kind of beautiful."