A disgruntled resident from Ushaw Moor, Durham, has started a petition after an estimated 30 mating peacocks and hens have been running riot through the village attacking cars and causing mischief.
The birds have been accused of causing “mayhem” by fouling on the streets and scratching the paintwork on residents’ cars throughout the former pit village, and now fed up locals have started a campaign to get rid of them after suffering for the last six years.
Graham Bridge started the petition on Change.org which has so far been backed by more than 100 signatures. Mr Bridge who is self-employed in financial services and works from home said the birds “screech” all through the day, disturbing his work and call out to each other from the rooftops at night ruining the sleep of the 4000 residents who live there.
He said: “Sleep to me is the number one nuisance, to a degree you can live with the other things.”
The peacocks also scratch and peck cars, convinced their reflection in the paintwork is a rival bird.
One resident’s car was allegedly attacked so violently that blood was left on the vehicle following the altercation.
Mr Bridge called the situation “ridiculous” adding: “I think the peacock saw it as a threat so it attacked the car, so much so that you could see blood, presumably from its beak.”
A further nuisance for Ushaw Moor residents is the muck the roaming birds leave, which can easily be trodden into a carpet and is a nightmare to get out.
While some people see the birds as a beautiful feature of local life, Mr Bridge and his 100 supporters have called on Durham County Council’s environmental health department to act.
He wrote: “These birds should be in a safe environment where they can be admired and properly looked after and not seen as pests.”
“Please add your signature and support us and help us get our sleep back.”
Joanne Waller, head of environment, health and consumer protection at Durham County Council, said: “We have received complaints about noise from peacocks in Ushaw Moor and we are currently investigating to determine whether they create a statutory noise nuisance under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.”