Video shows turkey attacking Boston woman's car

BRIGHTON - A video showing a turkey attacking a Boston woman's car and the scratched-up aftermath has gone viral after she shared it on TikTok.

"Sorry you were the target of this turkey rage"

The video of the big bird scratching up the car happened on Cummings Road in Brighton.

"All sides of my car were messed up, like, completely scratched," said Alicia Mastroianni. She works overnight at Boston Children's Hospital and on the afternoon of July 15, she was on her way to work when she spotted a note on her car.

"You're already a little out of it. I saw the note, I was like, oh gosh, someone hit my car," said Mastroianni.

Until she read the note from a friendly neighbor who captured the moment on video.

"It says, 'I just watched and recorded a massive turkey attack your car for over 15 minutes,'" read Mastroianni. "'Sorry you were the target of this turkey rage.'"

Mastroianni, a good sport about the whole thing, sent the video to her dad. "He just laughed," she said. And then her friends had a brilliant idea. "My friends were like, no, you have to put this on TikTok."

The video went viral, now with millions of views. Mastroianni said the music choice is meant for a situation like this.

"The only words in it are 'Oh no no no no,'" she said.

Why are wild turkeys violent?

Turkey violence is not uncommon. Turkey attacks in cities like Cambridge and Dedham have made headlines too, for turkey intimidating residents and vandalizing vehicles. If you are scared of the turkeys, you can call the environmental police.

As for why the turkeys act aggressively, environmental police said there are several reasons, including that they can see themselves in cars' reflections. Residents are advised to make loud noises in order to scare the birds away and cover their cars.

"Sometimes they walk in the street, there's definitely usually more than one," said Ruth, who has lived in Brighton for two decades and learned to live with them. But she said it isn't easy. "When I do see them, I'm a little hesitant."

Despite the frustration, residents said they understand turkeys come with the territory.

"You just got to take it with a light heart and laugh it off because that's all you can do," said Mastroianni.