UPDATE: Sightings of peacock, but Diamond still on loose
Thornhill peacock may be trying to find home farm

YorkRegion.com
June 5, 2014
By Kim Zarzour

For those who’ve been wondering, Diamond is still on the lam.

Sohil Janieh says his family has been searching the neighbourhood, but there’s still no sign of their runaway pet bird.

“Our other peacock has been making a lot of noises and my dad thought he heard another peacock call from a distance, so he went to look, but no luck.”

The 19-year-old Thornhill resident says his father is convinced that Diamond is still in the area, but he has received emails from three different people in a wide geographic range.

“One was saying they saw it at Woodbine and Stouffville and then one at Yonge and Jefferson Sideroad and then another in Houston, Texas. Obviously the last one was impossible, but I thought it was funny.”

The other two sightings seem plausible, he says, because that area is closer to Newmarket where the farm from which they purchased the two birds is located.

“It could be trying to find its way home. I don’t know how smart peacocks could be, but it’s a possibility ... You never know.”

Richmond Hill’s Karen Trofimchuk says her husband may have spotted the peacock under the bird feeder in their back yard near Jefferson Sideroad.

“Maybe it will come back to feed on the spilled seeds.

“Good luck catching him. I couldn’t even get close enough for a picture. He took off down into the ravine.”

Lana Borg, animal care manager with Safari Niagara, says the bird’s chances of survival are relatively good, provided he doesn’t encounter dogs or coyotes.

Even with clipped wings, a peacock can catch wind and lift six or seven feet off the ground.

He is likely spending the nights roosting somewhere high in a tree, fence or rooftop, feasting on bugs, she says.

When they purchased the peacock May 24, the breeder assured them the bird could not fly, Janieh says.

“The farm didn’t have much to say [after learning of the escape] but just apologized because they didn’t clip its wings properly.”

If you think you’ve spotted Diamond, try leaving out corn or grain to entice it into a garage, suggestes Lionel Purcell, owner of Lionel’s Pony Farm.

Alternatively, contact Sohil Janieh at sohiljanieh@hotmail.com