Meet the Northeast Minneapolis urban turkeys [VIDEO]

@NordeastTurkeys

Turk it out, boy.

​With the resurgence of urban farming, big cities like Philadelphia have discovered a new problem -- coop chickens that get loose and become feral, multiplying unchecked in the backyards of densely populated city neighborhoods. (Call it 'hen-trification.')

Well, here in Minnesota, we go big. Our hip urban enclaves are teeming with gigantic, car-pecking, bike-chasing wild turkeys. And their numbers are on the rise.

Wild turkeys had all but vanished in Minnesota when the Department of Natural Resources released some in rural areas in the '70s, trying to repopulate the area. But Bryan Lueth, the DNR's North metro area wildlife manager and an "urban turkey expert," says some well-meaning city dwellers pen-raised a few birds and illegally released them as well. Today, the turkeys are flourishing, in and out of their natural habitat. They can eat just about anything and will bed down in any old tree.

"They've adapted to living around people. They have a lot of advantages with abundant food sources, people intentionally feeding them," he says. "The population can grow unchecked."

That's why, he says, there are so many turkeys tearing around Northeast Minneapolis, stopping traffic and baffling onlookers. Their movements are closely monitored by not one but two Facebook fan sites (Northeast Minneapolis Turkeys and Nordeast Turkeys), and a Twitter account: @NordeastTurkeys. There, fans can observe the turkeys gobbling up and down Johnson Street, and partaking in some of their favorite urban turkey activities. Such as:

Buying life insurance.

Deb Ellis via Facebook

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Chasing bikers.

Alyssa Johnson via Facebook

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Fighting the rival turkeys they see in the reflection off car paint and windows.

Watch video here.

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There's even an NE Turkey Tracker website that went live recently, documenting sightings and turkey activities.

And of course, there are YouTube clips. Lots and lots of YouTube clips. Here's just one of many examples:

Lueth says if any Nordeasters have a problem with the birds, the DNR will issue permits to hunt them down and donate the carcasses to food shelves, but otherwise, they'll just let them be.

Notheast Minneapolis: Artists' quarter, hipster magnet... and now, turkey territory.