Pea and Pod the runaway peacocks evade recapture

And it seems the adventures of Pea and Pod, the runaway peacocks, are set to continue.

The two male birds have been causing a riot in Horndean after being on the loose for the past three weeks.

Matt Parker, 29, and his partner Kat Hooker, 27, spotted the birds in Acorn Drive – part of a new estate in Horndean – and got in touch with The News about their new residents.

The birds have been seen on roofs and trees – and have been keeping people awake at night.

Word has spread around the village and people have been driving into the estate to try to catch a glimpse of the birds.

But their sudden arrival has been demystified by owner Kim O’Brien, who explained she had been on the hunt for her delinquents for weeks.

Kim, who lives at Blendworth House, in Blendworth, near Horndean, said: ‘I’ve had them two years and usually they go around Blendworth. They go off but come back.

‘They never have gone this long.

‘Three weeks go they went AWOL and I’ve been trying to catch them.

‘I’ve tried factories, Blendworth Furnishings, people’s gardens and retirement flats.

‘I’ve spent hours driving.

‘Whenever they are spotted they move!’

But it seems the peacocks have a weakness for summer fruit.

Kim explained: ‘A lovely family in Havant Road caught them yesterday and tempted them into their strawberry cages.

‘We tried to get them today and one escaped and was seen but we couldn’t catch it.

‘The one we caught lost lots of tail feathers – they will shed these to protect themselves from foxes.’

She added: ‘They are like escape artists and almost impossible to catch.

‘I will carry on trying to round them up.’

Kim said her peacocks were ‘very tame’ and she hand-feeds them.

It’s not the first time peacocks have caused a stir.

Last year there was outrage among many people after Staunton Country Park, in Havant, decided to rehome its peacocks.

The park made the move after the animals became increasingly feral, with reports of the large birds ending up on roads and in people’s gardens across Leigh Park.

There was also a complaint about the creatures damaging a neighbour’s fence.

One resident put up placards in her conservatory demanding the return of the peacocks, but to no avail.

n Have you seen the peacocks? Call our newsdesk on (023) 9262 2118.