Peacock Makes Himself At Home In Topsfield Family's Yard

TOPSFIELD (CBS) - A colorful stranger showed up in a Topsfield family's yard Thursday. The O'Connell family was surprised to look outside and see a beautiful blue-and-green peacock.

The bird poked around, looked in windows and made himself at home – even helping himself to food left out for the family's chickens.

"It tried to get into the chicken coop, but it was too big," Jeff O'Connell told WBZ-TV.

O'Connell and his two daughters nicknamed the bird Rodrigo. They went to bed Thursday night assuming their feathered friend would wander off to greet another family.

But Friday morning, there was Rodrigo on their roof, where he apparently spent the night safe from predators.

O'Connell said he was concerned for the peacock because his yard backs up to a large, wooded valley that is home to coyotes, so he called animal control.

While peacocks don't occur in the wild in Massachusetts, it is legal to keep them as pets.