Brush Turkey Behaviours

I suppose that if they’ve been eating pellets they won’t last the 7 days, and like a mussel that refuses to open in the pot should be discarded. Any wild snails around here are likely to be turkey or dragon food long before they make it to the garlic and red wine.

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I’ve read that some eat animal waste and fungus and other snails…

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A good way to get extra fibre in the diet. :wink:

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@Fred123, perhaps we can have a cookoff. Your scrub fowl recipe against my European Carp out of the Murray recipe. Mine involves a housebrick. :rofl:

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Step 1
First … catch your …?
Step 2
…?

Our 90+yo mum’s father was familiar with all steps for Brush Turkey, although those beyond step 1 were a closely guarded family secret. For carp I suspect step 2 was throw your carp back and hope the next one is a Murray River Cod.

P.S. today throwing the Carp back is not permitted. It needs to be properly disposed of per local or state regulations.

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Carp is quite good if cooked correctly. The only thing to watch are the very fine (forked) bones in the flesh which can reduce its enjoyment.

Cook/fry in a wok in hot oil an with spring onions, ginger, Chinese cooking wine, light soy sauce, dried chilli flakes in oil and it is a worthy dish to eat.

It also is tasty steamed with ginger, lemin myrtle, pepper and soy sauce. Score the flesh to let the flavours in.

Here are some alternative recipes…

http://www.maggie.com.tw/en/9893/steamed-grass-carp-with-chili-ginger-and-garlic

Australians palates are accustomed to sweet ocean fish rather than fresh water fish. Carp has also got a bad name due to being a pest species…but pest species can be tasty, like rabbit or dear.

I would pick carp over a brush/bush turkey…not unless the turkey is boiled with a stone, and eaten when the stone softens,

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I’m learning lots from this discussion.
Note that for Qld the Carp could be an expensive meal.

Penalties apply for non compliance.

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So Carp is out, brush Turkey is out. What are we left with but blackbirds in pies again.
I know just as I have mentioned this Fred will be back with those feathered things. :grinning:

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Which is ridiculous…

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Heh at the end part of the purge you wait until no more excrement is forthcoming before preparing them to eat. Bran is good as it does a nice scrub of their digestive system :slight_smile:

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Yes, a built up but leafy area and it is getting tougher for them but as you say,they are adaptable. The neighbour paid to have the bird removed, around $200 but the law says it can’t be moved very far so not sure where to. Neighbours have done that a couple of times around here. We have now given up on using mulch!
I used to live in the country and kept ducks which had to be locked up at night due to foxes. I lost a few pet cats to snakes, don’t know if there were many ferals.
We still have brush turkeys nearby and the neighbour still has chooks which I quite enjoy hearing now and then. Perhaps they have upgraded their accommodation!

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Try the mirrors, set them up around where the males wander. They must be big enough for the bird to see himself (and at his level ie ground level). You only should need one or two mirrors.

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One of our urban family members has always had a Kelpie or two. A bit of a task in an urban area it’s a good excuse for a long fast walk twice a day and a run in the park. The intermittent presence of the dog seems to be very effective at keeping the feathered and other ‘Turkeys’ out of the yard.

We’ve the luxury of leaving the area around the turkey mound we follow from the kitchen window (20m) to nature. As a consequence there’s a very large surrounding area I hardly ever need to weed. There are another two mounds further away. The turkeys will rake through mulch or leaf matter anywhere looking for food.

Closer to the mound I’ve had to resort to using corflute tree guards or plastic trellis mesh and stakes to protect smaller plants until they establish. Or laying mesh, green plastic trellis as it’s easy to reuse or cut, across the top of the mulch also works. You will need to pin the edges. Plastic tent pegs or stiff wire with the a bent over hook on the top. Something that is not a hazard to tripping or falling on.

Using crushed gravel for a mulch layer may suit some plantings. The turkeys seem to have no interest in moving rocks. I’ve also resorted to laying larger 1m x 5-10cm, fallen branches and off cuts strategically to restrict the grab and fling action.

Our plantings tend to suffer most from the Eastern grey kangaroos which run them down, hop on them or lay on them. Not an urban problem.

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Yes, fortunately we have 2 dogs who keep our place pretty much turkey free out the back. It sounds as though you have it figured out so that’s good. My personal garden woes are more about possums these days!

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