by Pigeon Patrol | Jan 17, 2016 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting
It has come to my attention that there’s been some mirth at Hollister City Hall’s expense over the current field experiment with stereophonic raptor cackles in the downtown area. A steady stream of screeches and cackles emanates from the parking garage at Fourth and San Benito streets throughout the daylight hours.
I’m here to say that the mirth may be misplaced – at least for the time being. City Manager Bill Avera ordered the audio assault to be initiated in an effort to displace a booming population of feral pigeons that were busy procreating and simultaneously turning the garage into a cesspool.
Initial reports delivered to the City Council indicated that there do seem to be fewer pigeons doing what pigeons do in and on the garage structure. That makes sense. Birds are highly vocal, and critically aware of the noises around them. Broadcasting a variety of calls from predatory birds is likely to make other birds a little edgy and inclined to move on to quieter perches.
Birds use vocalizations for a number of purposes. Some of the singing we hear comes from males, eager to let others’ know that they’ve laid claim to a very desirable patch of real estate. Others are contact calls. Take a walk outside, and you are likely to encounter a cloud of Bushtits, or a flock of Chestnut-backed Chickadees, all visiting non-stop as they move through shrubs and trees. They’re staying in touch with one another, offering assurance that none of the members of the flock has seen or sensed anything thought to be a threat.
A group of retiring waterbirds called rails are very vocal. Given that they inhabit dense wetland growth, voice is just about the only way they can keep in touch with one another.
I may have been one of the first to notice the downtown calls, and to notice that they weren’t live, but Memorex. So let me be among the first to say that whatever efficacy the recordings have in convincing, the solution will be temporary at best.
Years ago, Bill Muenzer, owner of Muenzer’s Cyclery and Sporting Goods on Fifth Street, began selling life-sized plastic Great Horned Owls. They began appearing on downtown rooftops with the intention of moving the pigeons along. And that, too, seemed to work very well for a while.
But eventually, a thought flickered into some brighter-than-average pigeon pea brain. If those owls don’t move for a few weeks, maybe something’s up. Soon enough, the pigeons were back.
That’s going to happen with the recordings, too. So the feathered arms race will have to continue. A few years ago, the most chilling screams came from speakers on the roof of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute administrative building in Moss Landing. They were the sounds of gulls being seriously messed with. The calls made my blood run cold, but they didn’t seem to bother the hundreds of gulls perched on the same roof at all.
Some birds are well poised to thrive around people. Gulls can scavenge our leftovers and use flat rooftops as secure roosts. The feral pigeons circling downtown Hollister are the descendants of a genuine wild bird, known as the Rock Pigeon.
When Europeans first got here, the pigeons nested on cliff ledges. Then we built urban canyons filled with perfect cliff ledges. We call them “buildings” and “parking structures.”
Moreover, we continued domesticating pigeons. One of the first things a farmer does in domesticating livestock is to breed in a tendency to breed rapidly, the better to get more livestock.
The result is that today, we have a bunch of randy birds downtown with poor hygiene practices.
So enjoy the raucous downtown symphony while it lasts, because it won’t last long. The pigeons will see to it.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Jan 16, 2016 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes
Technology has its part to play at the Wimbledon tennis championships but it isn’t about to replace one important high-flying job.
Rufus the hawk is to keep his role scaring off pigeons around the SW19 event after his owners rejected suggestions a drone could take his place.
The Harris hawk is a regular visitor to the All England Lawn Tennis Club where he has been keeping feathered pests away for the last seven years.
Rufus’s owner Imogen Davis said drones do not have the “predatory instinct” of a bird of prey.
She said: “Pigeons would simply get used to them and become accustomed to them. Rufus is a predator, drones are not.”
Reaching speeds of up to 30mph, eight-year-old Rufus has been making weekly visits to the south-west London venue over the past 12 months.
He will step up to daily 5am patrols when the highlight of the British tennis calendar begins on Monday.
The Harris hawk, who has his own Twitter page and pass to enter Wimbledon, can also be found scaring off pigeons at Craven Cottage, the home of Fulham football club, as well as Westminster Abbey and Billingsgate Fish Market.
Rufus hit the headlines three years ago when he was stolen from a car overnight during Wimbledon.
After widespread media coverage, the bird of prey was handed in to the RSPCA a few days later.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Jan 15, 2016 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting
A chronically ill man may have to stop feeding his beloved pigeons, after a dispute with the manager of the supermarket next to his Bexleyheath flat.
Steven Picard feeds stray birds on his roof – which overlooks the Sainsbury’s Local car park in Windermere Road – two to three times a day.
The 63-year-old supermarket “regular” has been told to stop encouraging the feathered creatures, and may now have to choose between them and his local store.
Following a dispute with store’s manager, Mr Picard was “peed off” and says the situation forced him to shop online for over a week.
He suffers from multiple sclerosis (MS), which means he struggles to travel further afield to shop.
He told News Shopper: “I think it’s ridiculous.
“It’s not illegal to feed pigeons.
“The supermarket’s only 50 yards away from me.
“It’s very inconvenient because of my MS to go any further.”
Mr Picard said the Sainsbury’s manager claimed birds were dive bombing customers and making a mess on cars, but Mr Picard refused to stop feeding them.
He added: “I do enjoy feeding them, because my lifestyle these days is quite limited.
“They congregate on my lower roof and then they go away.
“They know me well.
“It’s not in their area that I am feeding birds.
Feeding pigeons can attract large groups (stock image)
“I have been a good customer, every day for the last four years.”
Mr Picard was also upset and embarrassed that the manager “shouted at” him in front of other shoppers.
He said: “It was completely out of order.
“I cannot walk very easily because of my MS.
“I have to go online now for shopping.
“It’s a lot more inconvenient.
“I just want the situation to be resolved.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Jan 14, 2016 | Bird Netting, Pigeon Spikes, UltraSonic Bird Control
BY DUSICA SUE MALESEVIC | Residents on Duane St. in Tribeca are fed up with a neighbor they say is attracting pigeons and their droppings.
At 173 Duane St., a resident on the fifth floor is reportedly feeding pigeons — they are going back and forth from her apartment — incensing residents at 171 Duane St., who have been complaining to Community Board 1.
There has been a long history of complaints, said Caroline Bragdon, director of neighborhood interventions for the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s pest control services program. Many inspections had been done, but it had never warranted a violation until now, she told the Quality of Life Committee at their Thurs., Apr. 16 meeting.
The violation would be sent to the owner of the building, not the tenant.
“Sometimes it seems unfair that we’re writing violations to the owner of the building, but we can’t go after an individual,” she said.
Neighbors said the pigeon droppings are piling up on air conditioner units. The woman has also been seen feeding pigeons in Duane Park.
Benjamin Flavin, lawyer for 171 Duane St., said that the tenant is an elderly woman who has been living at 173 Duane St., a co-op, for around 20 years.
In addition to pigeon problems, Bragdon went over what she called favorite hot spots for rats. She started with 403 Greenwich St., which is between Beach and Hubert Sts.
“Right now, it’s just a vacant lot with rat holes in it that no one is doing anything with,” she said.
The lot is owned by 403 Greenwich Enterprises L.L.C. The owners have not been attending their hearings, said Bragdon, who has increased the violation from $300 to $600 to now $1,200. She said if this continues, it would go to $2,000.
“They don’t care,” the city’s Bragdon said. “They’re just letting their violations default. A lot of the wealthier owners will just pay.”
“It’s nothing — it’s the cost of doing business,” said Pat Moore, chairperson of the C.B. 1 committee.
The lot has been vacant for quite some time, said Bragdon, who explained that putting some bait stations costs a couple hundred dollars a month. The owners could also choose to dump gravel over the soil, which would deter the rats.
Further south at 372 Greenwich St. between Harrison and N. Moore Sts., Bragdon said it has gotten pretty ratty. At one time, it was maintained by the volunteer organization, Friends of Greenwich Street, but remains to be seen who is responsible for its upkeep now.
There are several planters, said Bragdon, but it is just one, the one in front of 372 Greenwich that has the rat problem.
“Rat condo,” quipped Moore.
Bragdon went through one more site at 29 Harrison St., which was issued its first violation and has Rubbermaid bins filled with soil and gnaw marks on them — a sign that rats were around.
She then listened to places that the committee and the public suggested to investigate. Committee member Marc Ameruso said 53 Beach St. has a raised platform with vents and “at night, [the rats] just take over the street.”
C.B. 1 Chairperson Catherine McVay Hughes mentioned a problem site in the Financial District, a lot on Rector and Trinity Place.
“I have never ever seen the quantity and the size of these rats,” she said. “It’s really scary.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Jan 13, 2016 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services
ABERDEEN, SD – We’ve all seen them. Some of us have maybe even cleaned up messes left by them.
Cities across the country and here in KELOLAND are looking at ways to fight a pigeon problem. The issue made its way to the Aberdeen City Council Monday.
“They continue to be a continuous problem and they do cause quite a bit of damage and they’re a health hazard,” animal control officer John Weaver said.
Aberdeen city manager Lynn Lander wants to contract with a professional to fight the problem. Lander says the goal isn’t to eliminate the birds, but rather to control the population.
The service would cost $7,250 a year, Lander said. Owners would still need to play a part in guarding their property from pigeon damage.
“We would go to specific buildings to disrupt the nesting process because a typical pair can have as many as 20 offspring and a wild pigeon can live up to 10 years,” Lander said.
Pigeons have caused damage to public and private property in Aberdeen. The Aberdeen Police Department has a device that runs to a vent on the roof. Pigeons nested in that vent, dropping eggs and droppings right down into the building.
“Very annoying,” Daryl Van Dover with the Aberdeen Police Department said. “The pigeons have been quite a problem for some time.”
“Through my research and talking to various different municipalities, we all have the same problems,” Lander said.
There are already efforts underway to cut down on the number of pigeons in town. The Aberdeen Downtown Association manages a netting program. Through that program a man recently captured and hauled more than 500 birds from the Hub City, Weaver said.
Lander wants the additional pigeon population control to target problem areas and supplement efforts already taking place.
At the police station, workers have already tried blocking birds from the vent but say they’re running into issues again.
“We’re attempting to screen them out once again and hopefully that’ll take care of the problem,” Weaver said.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
