Bouldin Creek’s Peacocks: Old Austin’s Feathered Locals

By Mikhelia Williams

Photography By Mikhelia Williams

Reporting Texas

 

Long before tech bros and $8 matchas, the South Austin neighborhood of Bouldin Creek had wandering peacocks in its front yards. Nearly six decades later, the colorful birds are still strutting through driveways, shrieking at sunrise and sunning themselves on porch railings. 

And in true old-Austin, keep-it-weird fashion, most residents like it that way.

The peacocks’ unofficial home base is Mattie’s at Green Pastures, a century-old estate turned restaurant in the heart of Bouldin Creek. The birds arrived there in the 1960s and, according to the restaurant’s website, about 17 still roam the grounds. Over time, they have become a part of daily life in the neighborhood.

Neighbors slow to a stop on Oltorf and Fifth streets to let the peahens saunter across the street. Some even leave birdseed on their steps just in case one decides to drop by. But not everyone who moved to 78704 understood the culture when they arrived.

Molly White moved to Bouldin Creek in 1976, long before it became one of Austin’s most sought-after ZIP codes.

“When we moved in, there was no wealth here,” she said. “It was a mixed neighborhood — working class, middle class, a little bit of everything. Now, of course, it’s gentrified, with these modern glass houses popping up.”

One of those newer homes became the center of controversy in 2016, when a resident filed a complaint about the peacocks with the city.

“He lived in one of those white stucco houses with big reflective windows right across from Green Pastures,” White said. “The peacocks would land on his fence and attack their reflections in the glass. He didn’t like the noise or the mess and wanted them confined, which is impossible; they roost in the oak trees and wander wherever they please.”

For many longtime residents, the complaint raised concerns about the neighborhood’s changing character.

“The peacocks were here way longer than that guy was,” White said. “People were outraged that anyone would want to get rid of them.”

“They’ve been here forever,” said neighbor Lori Barzano, who joined efforts to protect the birds. “It’s humans who have encroached on their habitat. The least I can do is protect their habitat for them.”

That was when the “Peacocks Welcome Here” signs, and other shows of support, appeared a decade ago.

“The neighbors were up in arms,” said longtime Bouldin Creek resident Lana McGlivray. “And of course, good old Faith being our kind of neighborhood artist … took it upon herself … to rally and get the whole thing going around with signs and the T-shirts.”

Neighbors met at Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse and other local spots to coordinate. They researched rules, wildlife protections and property laws to ensure the birds could remain free to roam.

The dispute eventually reached City Hall.

Jason Stanford, who served as the mayor’s communications director at the time, later wrote about the situation in his Substack series, “The Experiment.”

According to Stanford, when the Green Pastures property changed ownership in 2015, the peafowl were not included in the sale, leaving them without a formal owner. Classified as wild animals, they were allowed to stay, and the city declined to intervene.

Today, the peacocks have become something of the neighborhood’s stray cats — fed, watched over and often photographed. The “Peacocks Welcome Here” signs that first appeared in 2016 still adorn lawns across the 78704, even as far as the backside of Butler Park, where the peacocks never roam, but the sentiment remains.

“People adore them,” White said. “I’m happy to slow down for them when they cross the road. It doesn’t bother me one bit”

The neighbors watch out for the well-being of other wildlife that shares their neighborhood. Last week, it was foxes.

A resident spotted a caged fox being hauled away by a hired trapper and quickly took to the Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Association’s email forum to sound the alarm.

The post spread quickly, rallying the same community that once organized for the peacocks.  

“Someone suggested we need new signs that say ‘Peacocks and Foxes Welcome Here,’” White said, laughing.

Since the post circulated, residents have shared contact information for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as an alternative for relocation, and the issue has started to die down.

“These animals were here before we were. It’s our job to protect them,” Barzano said. “Peacocks can’t vote, so the least we can do is speak up for them.”