Elusive Peacocks

* “Not Showing Their Colors,” April 8.

I am a frequent visitor to the Los Angeles Arboretum in Arcadia, where peacocks roam the grounds unhindered and are a tourist’s delight, especially when the peacock (not the peahen) spreads its train. When the peacock calls for its mate, however, the noise is horrendous; it sounds like cats fighting.

The peacocks at the arboretum came with the territory, as declared by the original owner, who had imported the birds from India and stipulated that the peacocks remain on the grounds when he turned the property over to the state.

When the peachicks come around a few times a year, they delight the tourists, but they can be a hazard when they can’t be seen. Peahens don’t build nests as other birds do; they scrape out an area in the ground to lay their eggs. And one chick is not enough; the clutch can be up to 10 chicks at a time.

Residents near the arboretum have tried to get the peacocks removed, but the birds are still there. Good luck, Van Nuys.

GRACE B. WEINSTEIN

Los Angeles

*

* I feel sorry for these people surrounded by peacock shrieks. Unless they can locate the property and talk to the owner, there is not much they can do. I had a rooster next door to me who would crow from 3 a.m. until sunset, almost adjacent to my bedroom window. My neighbors were infuriated and so was I. Letters and numerous phone calls to the Department of Animal Regulation did not help. Fortunately, after talking to my neighbor, they finally took the rooster to a farm in Chino, and we are lucky to have peace and quiet again.

ANNELIESE OHLER

North Hollywood