Peafowl found dead Palos Verdes, CA (US) Date: Jan 23, 2005 Disposition: Open Suspect(s) Unknown - We need your help!

Case ID: 3869 Classification: Unclassified Animal: bird (wildlife) View more cases in CA (US) Login to Watch this Case

Palos Verdes Estates officials expect to learn whether five deaths within two weeks amount to more than a coincidence. Five peafowl have been discovered dead recently in Palos Verdes Estates, prompting concern among police and residents that their deaths are unnatural. Tests are not completed, but could determine if someone is killing the great birds of Malaga Cove.

"It does seem an awfully strange coincidence that five peacocks die within two weeks," Palos Verdes Estates police Capt. Mark Velez said Wednesday. "If somebody is killing them, we don't put up with that."

Debbie Mott, a resident and president of Friends of the Peacock, said her husband found two dead peafowl on Jan. 23 across the street from their home.

The birds, a 1-year-old peacock and a young hen -- appeared to have died a short time before they were discovered.

"There was no sign of any injury or any trauma, visibly, to the birds," Mott said. "They were on the ground underneath a large pine tree where they roost. It looked as though they fell out of the tree."

Three more hens were found dead in the following days on nearby streets.

Mott said peafowl sometimes are discovered mauled or attacked by other animals, but these two showed no visible blood or ruffled feathers.

Malaga Cove and Espinosa Circle are two areas the city established in the 1980s to protect the birds. Some residents love their beauty and see them as a symbol of civic pride, but others complain about the noise, droppings and destructive behavior.

The mating season is just beginning.

"They are starting to wake us up again and they continue to be an ongoing nuisance," said Bill Goldman, a resident of the Espinosa Circle area. "They continue to wake us up in the middle of the night."

Other residents in the two neighborhoods, angered that they must bear the brunt of the noise while other Palos Verdes Estates residents get a full night's sleep, filed a lawsuit, claiming the city was illegally harboring the birds by maintaining the flocks around their homes.

Following two trials, a judge in May ruled against the city, meaning the peafowl could be removed. The city has appealed.

Dorothy Acciani, an Espinosa Circle resident who represents the 16 plaintiffs trying to remove the birds, said it was an "interesting coincidence" that the peafowl began showing up dead just as attorneys were asked to file their briefs before the Court of Appeal.

Acciani said residents have worked through the courts for four years to resolve the issue.

"If somebody did kill them, if they were poisoned or met with foul play, then they should be prosecuted," she said.

Mott said a veterinarian in San Bernardino is examining the birds, including testing for Newcastle disease and avian influenza.

If the peafowl died for another reason, the person responsible could be charged with animal cruelty.

"It's a crime against all of us -- not just the birds, but the people that enjoy them," Mott said. "We don't know that a crime has been committed yet."

References

The Daily Breeze - Feb 17, 2005

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