serving the uc davis campus and community since 1915
www.theaggie.org
volume 131, number 109
tuesday, november 13, 2012
Wild turkeys rampant across town Feeding of turkeys leads to population increase
Mark Allinder / Aggie
Davis has begun raising awareness about the hazards of feeding wild turkeys. Wild turkeys develop aggressive tendencies when residents feed them.
By MEREDITH STURMER Aggie News Writer
The City of Davis has recently begun stepping up efforts to raise awareness about the hazardous effects of residents feeding the local wild turkey population. The turkeys were first noticed in 2006, when about six male turkeys began frequenting the Davis Cemetery. Six years later, the turkey population has increased dramatically and has become concentrated in the Davis neighborhoods Covell Park and Rancho Yolo, around the North Davis Greenbelt. “Animals need various elements to support reproduction: food, cover and water. These turkeys are finding all of
these here,” said City of Davis wildlife resource specialist John McNerney. “In the urban setting, there is an absence of significant predation, and when combined with feeding in a concentrated area, the population increase is amplified. It [feeding] increases the impact.” The primary danger of feeding wild turkeys is not simply an increase in the number of turkeys around Davis, but an increase in turkeys behaving aggressively towards people. “Naturally, turkeys are fearful of predators, but when they lose that natural fear they become more aggressive, especially in the mating season when male turkeys have higher levels of testosterone,” McNerney said. “Those are the animals
which we begin to be concerned with.” In 2006, the original turkeys around the cemetery did begin exhibiting aggressive behavior, leading the city to undertake trapping efforts. “It was successful, but we confirmed that turkeys are difficult to trap. It takes a couple weeks so it is very labor intensive. They are very smart animals and they remember it for many years, surprisingly, so females will tell their young not to go into the traps,” McNerney said. “Trapping is not a good solution.” Residents may be unsure as to how to react if approached by an aggressive turkey. “The proper response would be negative reinforcement — yelling loudly,
City of Davis implements “no burn” wood burning ordinance Ordinance to be in effect from Nov. 1 to Feb. 28
Courtesy of Andrea Vergata
The City of Davis issued Ordinance No. 2397, placing restrictions on wood burning. The ordinance was issued to maintain Davis air quality in winter.
By MEREDITH STURMER Aggie News Writer
On Oct. 23, the City of Davis issued urgency Ordinance No. 2397, placing restrictions on wood burning. The ordinance adds Chapter 39A to the Davis Municipal Code, and was declared as urgent due to the importance of the matter to public health and safety. According to the ordinance, the goal is to restrict emissions from indoor and outdoor wood burning during the “cold weather season” of Nov. 1 through Feb. 28. These burning devices include indoor fireplaces and wood burning stoves, along with outdoor fire pits. Wood burning will be prohibited during a “curtailment period,” days when the city has determined that the
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air quality is already unhealthy for sensitive populations such as young children and the elderly. If the concentration of fine particulate matter is forecasted as exceeding 25 micrograms per cubic meter within the City of Davis — the federal standard that is unhealthy for sensitive populations — it is considered a curtailment period and the burning of wood is prohibited. “I think it’s a good idea,” said UC Davis alumnus Bruce Guttin. “I’m allergic to wood smoke, and anything that inhibits proper oxygen consumption is dangerous for some people. It’s very sensitive for them [Davis City Council] to restrict it.” A report by the Davis Wood Smoke Scientific Advisory Committee confirmed the toxicity of wood smoke. The Natural Resources Commission of the City of Davis has also analyzed
the health impacts of wood burning. “The Davis Wood Smoke Scientific Advisory Committee confirms … the dangers posed by the accumulation of wood smoke in neighborhood ‘hot spots’ due to the use of residential wood burning devices,” the ordinance said. Additionally, the ordinance states that the cold weather during these months increases the negative impact wood burning has on the air quality due to the increase of surface temperature inversions. These inversions cause pollutants, such as those from wood smoke, to become concentrated and trapped close to the ground, worsening air quality and exacerbating many respiratory or cardiovascular conditions. “I lived with a wood burning stove for about three years, and it’s an efficient manner to heat the house,” Guttin said. “But in a dense urban environment, its effects on health and the environment are very different than out in the country.” The City of Davis will notify residents if it is an “okay to burn” day via a burn status update posted on the city’s website. Each day there is a burn status update for the current day along with the forecasted burn status for the following day. There are certain exceptions to the ban, however. The ban does not apply to wood burning devices being used in a structure that has no gas or electric heat. It also does not apply during power outages and does not restrict the use of manufactured fire logs. “It’s a traditional holiday thing, and you don’t want to deny people that experience,” Guttin said. “But it does have its residual effects on people’s health and the environment. In the
Forecast I don’t know about you guys but I forgot how cold Davis gets this time of year! Luckily, this week looks slightly warmer. Don’t forget to bundle up anyway! Written by Amanda Nguyen Weather report courtesy of www.weather.com
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spraying it with water or hitting it with a broom. Don’t let the turkey be the dominant organism,” McNerney said. “The danger is when people try to run away — they may trip or run out into traffic trying to avoid them, or if they’re on a bicycle they may swerve into traffic.” Beyond Davis, students have had threatening experiences with aggressive wild turkeys. “I was hiking when I was eight and we stopped for a snack when a large group of wild turkeys came up and tried to steal our food,” said Amber Yao, a second-year communication and economics double major. “They were almost the same size as we were, so we ran away. It was actually pretty scary.” Not all Davis residents have had negative experiences with local turkeys. “When they first came five or six years ago, everyone was excited, especially the kids. Some people think they’re a nuisance, but other people are charmed by it. The most common complaint seems to be the poop,” said a resident in the Covell Park neighborhood. The resident also commented on the possibility of people feeding the turkeys. “Over the years there have been local campaigns about not feeding wildlife, like the ducks in the Arboretum. It’s very important not to feed wildlife,” the resident said. “I’ve never seen people feeding them around here.” The City of Davis, however, wants to make the gravity of the feeding problem known before it gets too out of hand. “We’ve stepped up our efforts to target the communities. The North Davis population has become more of an issue,” McNerney said. “We’re using local media like the Davis Enterprise, and a type of social media called Nextdoor. We’d like to see more households participate.” These efforts are not just limited to social media. Other points of outreach are being used to raise awareness about the importance of not feeding the turkeys. If the feeding continues, the turkey population will more likely exhibit aggressive behavior, in which case the city may have to resort to trapping. “We staff tables at local events like the Farmers Market and various public venues to hand out pamphlets,” McNerney said. “It’s important just to get out there and talk to people about the turkeys.” MEREDITH STURMER can be reached at city@theaggie.org.
News iN Brief
Occupy UC Davis plans to assemble at UC Regents Meeting today The University of California Board of Regents meeting is scheduled to take place Nov. 13 to 15 at UCSF Mission Bay to discuss finance, compensation, health services and campus buildings, among other agenda items. The Regents are also set to consider tuition increases for 61 professional degree programs throughout the UC. Members of Occupy UC Davis plan to collect at the meeting in opposition to the possibility of a push toward gradual privatization of the UC system, according to organizers. “We can’t let top UC management frame our future as inevitable privatization,” a release from UC StudentWorkers Union stated. “Student groups and unions are planning huge mobilizations for the next year to roll back tuition, cuts and the resegregation of higher education.” For information on the Regents’ meeting agenda, visit regents.universityofcalifornia.edu. — Stephanie B. Nguyen
Free holiday blues workshop on Wednesday Need to battle bouts of the holiday blues? Attend a free workshop hosted by Child Care Services on Wednesday from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the Veterans Memorial Center Game Room, located at 203 W. 14th Street. David Hafter, a marriage and family therapy counselor from Victor Community Support Services, will give advice on how to manage the stress during the holidays and how to access community resources. The workshop will identify holiday stressors, such as stress from visiting family or having a tighter budget, and offer ways to minimize them. To register for the workshop, contact Libby Wolf of Child Care Services at (530) 747-8236. — Claire Tan
Enough about Prop. 30, let’s talk about the porn stars in L.A. who have to wear condoms now. Maybe condoms are more comfortable than herpes? Maybe. Janelle Bitker