Turkey Vulture Mutilates 4-Year-Old Girl

by Chaz "Jet Lag" Stalmach | March 9, 2016 11:00 AM

Rockford, IL – RKFDP (Rockford Dream Police) were called at 4:35 PM yesterday after neighbors heard Cathleen Buchareli, the mother of two, screaming for help. The situation is unheard-of and tragic, as turkey assaults are not as common as human home invasions in the Rockford region.  The 4-year-old victim lost her left eye and will need multiple surgeries on her face, neck, and left foot to correct the damage inflicted by the large, usually docile bird.

“Turkey Vultures have never had a great reputation,” says Officer Nicki Jacobs. “Last year, they are thought to be responsible for six area pet deaths and numerous other attacks that we couldn’t attribute to humans,” added Jacobs. “However, nothing like this most recent attack has ever been reported. Turkey Vultures do not usually attack anything.”

Turkeys are scavengers by nature and aren’t typically in this region until late May. In recent years the local population has been acting quite strange, and so has my girlfriend.  Last night she made me baked chicken. (“I don’t eat chicken,” I told her. “I eat turkey.” True story.)

“This behavior can be chalked up to global warming,” says local turkey vulture expert Dr. Jeff Homan “Bare with me here, recent high temperatures during incubation cause more turkey vulture eggs to develop into males. This has been happening for years. Now, the breeding population is over 65% male… which causes a sort of sexual tension and makes the birds more aggressive and desperate.”

A flock of Turkey Vultures near Heartland Church

A flock of Turkey Vultures near Heartland Church

The girl is in stable but critical condition at Rockford Memorial Hospital. At this time the police department and the family of the victim aren’t releasing any more details about the attack. With out to much speculation, I asked Dr. Homan to explain what a vulture attack might be like.

“The turkey vulture has extremely large talons that can easily pierce flesh and a beak designed to tear apart tough, dried-up corpses. I don’t particularly care to image what the attack would be like.” He goes on to explain that the turkey vulture will also spray the contents of it’s stomach, which is highly acidic, at a perceived threat.

We’ll keep you posted as more details come in. For now, watch the sky and keep your kids close.

Que?

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Source URL: https://rkfdnews.com/turkey-vulture-mutilates-4-year-old-girl/