A much-loved white-brushed turkey that ‘set up camp in a prime position’ on Noosa’s Hastings Street has been remembered as a character and a little legend.
Key points:
- A deceased whitebrush turkey was popular with locals and visitors to Noosa’s Hastings Street
- Whitebrush turkeys have been around Hasting Street for decades
- Discussions are underway on a plaque and burial site for the much-loved bird
The popular male turkey was hit and killed by a car late last week near Hastings Street.
“We are all devastated because it is a shock that this happened,” said Corinne Martell, a resident of Noosa.
“The fact that he set up camp in the busiest section of all of Noosa’s main beach on Hastings Street, he had a privileged position…that’s a little legend.”
Ms Martell first spotted him as a chick, measuring under six inches, in 2019 while swimming at Main Beach.
The three-year-old bird has developed a reputation for strutting along the popular tourist strip, darting in and out of cafes and restaurants, and posing for photos.
With a boldly planted mound at the Hastings Street entrance, Ms Martell says “it was the local tourist attraction”.
Noosa’s mum, Tanya Mancini, says brush turkeys are common in the town, but this one was “really special”.
“He was our little celebrity in Noosa. It’s really sad,” she said.
“He always came to us. He was very, very friendly.
Genetic trait in Noosa turkeys
Wildlife Noosa founder William Watson recovered the deceased bird near the bus station about 50 yards from Hastings Street.
“He was a bit of a character,” Mr Watson said.
“We had a few [white brush turkeys]and they all had that dominant character.”
Whitebrush turkeys have been prowling Noosa’s main street for decades.
They were often called “Albi” or “Albie” in reference to their albino appearance.
However, University of the Sunshine Coast animal ecologist Dominique Potvin said they were not albino.
Dr. Potvin says birds are classified as leucistic because “the eyes have pigment.”
Mr Watson said leucism was a rare and random genetic trait among turkeys in the area.
“[The] the recent Albie may have produced only all-black turkey chicks, and yet two black turkeys from the other end of the spit can produce leucistics,” he said.
While the scrub turkey was best known for its prominent nest in Hastings Street, Mr Watson said he also had one at the nearby Peppers Noosa Resort.
The debris the bird strewn across the resort road while building the mound was so extensive that Mr Watson had to build a fence to contain it.
“He would walk from Peppers down that hill, then up Hastings Street, then spend the day strutting around Hastings Street looking for food, then coming back in the afternoon and tidying up his nest preparing it,” said said Mr. Watson. .
At this site he repelled foxes and goannas until the day he was expelled.
Mr Watson believes the turkey then started working on another mound in the garden outside the Surf Club to be ready to hatch eggs by September.
At this time of year, he said it was unlikely there would be any fertile eggs in that mound.
Push for the memorial
Mr Watson and Mike Drinkwater – a photographer, wildlife ‘fanatic’ and Noosa’s unofficial ‘turkey guy’ – are in talks with Noosa Shire Council for a plaque and burial site for the well-known bird. -like.
“The plaque or memorial of some sort should be in the same spot where most people knew where his nest is outside the Surf Club,” Mr Drinkwater said.
“We have to bury him too, and we’re trying to figure out where to do that and get permission to do that as well.”
Mr Drinkwater said it would raise awareness of the presence of turkeys, a protected species, in the area.
A spokesman for Noosa Council said plaque applications would be considered under the relevant council policy.
He said signage was not necessarily the answer to keeping wildlife safe.
“Putting up a plethora of signage doesn’t necessarily mean people buy into it,” the spokesperson said.
“We are still promoting, as are Tourism Noosa and wildlife groups [for] people to be aware of wildlife and drive accordingly. »
On social media, Tewantin local Bernard Jean called for a reduced speed limit along Hastings Street.
“We have admired generations of these beautiful creatures, killed one by one by motorists on Hastings Street,” he said.
“There should be a very low mandatory speed limit on this street where people, children and wildlife can safely cross at all times.”
Mr Drinkwater is now moving forward with signage ideas that he says would help locals and tourists alike while reducing wildlife deaths and injuries.
“Some people drive into Noosa unknowingly, especially early in the morning when they are more active.”
Resident Tanya Mancini welcomed more signage.
“That would be fantastic because brush turkeys come out all the time and it also gets busier and busier,” she said.
“I think it would be nice to have a bit more signage, like a big sign that says ‘Slow down’.”
