by Pigeon Patrol | Jan 4, 2022 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Law, Bird Netting, Bird Spikes, Columbidae
Did you find a pigeon nest with eggs in the geranium pot on the balcony? I bet that’s why you’re reading this article. Maybe you’re wondering what to do with it.
Do you keep it? Can you touch the pigeon eggs? Should you feed the mother bird?… Well, think again.
What should be done if you find a pigeon’s nest on your balcony?
If you find a pigeon’s nest on your balcony, the best thing to do is to get rid of it. Pigeons represent a severe health hazard for you and your loved ones. Do not touch it with your bare hands. Wear a pair of gloves, and remove it from your balcony.
Get rid of the nest together with its eggs. In order to discourage the mother to return to the nest, try placing a toy snake where you found the nest. Hopefully, this will scare the bird for a while.
Am I too cruel? Probably. However, as much as I love animals, in this specific case, I have no doubts: get rid of the nest and the eggs as fast as you can! Let me explain why.
Are pigeons dangerous?
Pigeons, especially those who live in the city, are carriers of diseases that sometimes can be very serious. They are not the kind of animal you want to keep as a pet on your balcony.
Not to mention how messy they are! Yes, you guessed it right. I am talking about their infamous droppings. Worthwhile mentioning it, three primary diseases are associated with pigeons that are dangerous for humans: Histoplasmosis, Cryptococcosis, and Psittacosis. Let’s explore this topic a little bit more.
HISTOPLASMOSIS:
Histoplasmosis is an infection caused by breathing in the spores of a fungus found in bird droppings. This disease affects the lungs. You can catch this disease by inhaling the spores in the air while performing cleaning jobs or any other type of project (such as renovations or demolitions) that can raise high levels of spores in the air, . The majority of people are asymptomatic; however, Histoplasmosis can be dangerous for those with a compromised immune system, such as infants and the elderly. As I said before, the majority of people won’t develop any symptoms, however, when the infection is severe, it can lead to a high fever, chest pains, and fatigue.
Some people can develop a chronic form of Histoplasmosis, which includes a bloody cough, mimicking symptoms of tuberculosis. If untreated, this disease could be fatal.
CRYPTOCOCCOSIS:
Cryptococcosis is caused by a fungus known as Cryptococcosis neoformans. It is a disease that affects the lungs and is associated with pigeon droppings, soil, and unwashed fruit. This disease is contagious and can spread from person to person. Generally, healthy people won’t develop any symptoms, but people with a compromised immune system such as elderly or infants are at a higher risk for contracting the disease. This infection attacks mostly the lungs, with minimal symptoms. In some rare cases, however, it can spread to the brain, the urinary tract, and the bones. When the infection reaches the brain, it can lead to meningitis and other serious complications.
PSITTACOSIS:
Psittacosis is also known as Ornithosis or Parrot Fever. It is an infection caused by a Chlamydia Psittaci, a fungus present in bird droppings. People can catch the disease by inhaling the fungus spores that are in the air. Symptoms can vary from headache, fever, dry cough, and pneumonia. People who are most affected by this disease are pet shop owners, workers in aviaries, and veterinary facilities. Psittacosis cannot be transmitted from person to person.
If the above still hasn’t convinced you, here is a list that will change your mind. You really don’t want to keep these pesty birds anywhere near you. Besides being disgusting, pigeon droppings are corrosive and can cause significant damage to roofs and balconies. It is also really difficult to scrap it from floors, and most probably will leave a stain if not cleaned in time. Also, the droppings are really hard to remove from smooth surfaces such as your car, the patio floor, but also from your clothes and your shoes.
The droppings can attract other unwelcome guests to your premises, such as flies and rats. Pigeons might cause damage to your vegetable garden. These birds are territorial and will scare smaller beneficial birds such as hummingbirds. They tend to return from season to season, which makes it very challenging to chase them away.
Well, now that I have convinced you to dispose of the pigeon’s nest with its eggs, comes the messy part: how to clean the balcony from pigeon droppings.
How to clean pigeon droppings
Generally speaking, cleaning windows and windowsills does not pose a health risk to you or to your family. However, you will need to take some precautions such as:
- Wearing disposable gloves and a mask
- Wearing closed-toe shoes
- Washing your clothes immediately after dealing with the droppings
- If you are thinking of scraping the dropping, wet them beforehand, to prevent inhaling the fungus spores that float in the air.
- Brush with warm soapy water. Where needed, you can add some baking soda to the soapy water solution. Throw away the brush or the sponge-cloth that you used for cleaning.
- Rinse thoroughly with a hose.
As I said before, pigeons will return, and once they spot your balcony as their favorite nesting place, you are doomed. They will return every season and nest there.
How do you tell if a pigeon is going to lay eggs in your balcony?
As soon as spring comes, around March/April, pigeons begin to look for air vents, vases, hidden corners on the terraces to establish their nest and create a family. You will surely notice a continuous flutter forward and backward. It’s the parents which take turns as soon as they establish their nest.
It will be challenging to move them. These birds will remember your house and will want to go back for generations.
How to get rid of pigeons & How to prevent them from returning to your home
The secret to prevent pigeons from returning to your house is to make their landing place as inconvenient as possible. This is what you can do to scare pigeons off your property and to prevent from nesting in the future:
- Install some anti-roosting spikes. They are by far the most effective pigeon deterrents. I found them on Amazon and are pretty easy to install.
- Install a bird deterrent gel that is commercially available and that works on a multi-sensory level using sight, smell, and touch. This gel makes the surface where the pigeon lands very sticky.
- Install a wind chime on your balcony or your patio.
- Fasten some aluminum foil strings on your balcony railings.
- Put a decoy crow on your roof. Move the crow from time to time as pigeons are very clever and they will get use to it.
- Put a screen over attic vents, chimneys, and anywhere they can create a nest.
- Put a toy snake on your balcony or the place where they might build their nest. Once I made my own decoy DIY snake from a souvenir alligator head from Florida. I filled a black sock with some clothes and slipped it on the alligator’s head. (A word of advice: as time passes, just remember where you placed the snake… it might suddenly scare you to death when you least expect it! I am speaking from experience!)
I hope I have convinced you that pigeons are messy and also carry parasites. You won’t regret getting rid of their nest. Besides, have you ever seen what pigeon chicks look like? They are the scariest chicks ever!!
Source
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 Bird Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.
Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca
Pigeon/Pigeon Patrol / Pigeons Roosting / Vancouver Pigeon Control /Bird Spikes / Bird Control / Bird Deterrent / Pigeon Deterrent? Surrey Pigeon Control / Pest /Seagull deterrent / Vancouver Pigeon Blog / Birds Inside Home / Pigeons in the cities / Ice Pigeons/ What to do about pigeons/ sparrows , Damage by Sparrows, How To Keep Raccoons Away, Why Are Raccoons Considered Pests/ De-fence / Pigeon Nesting/ Bird Droppings / Pigeon Dropping/ woodpecker control/ Professional Bird Control Company/ Keep The Birds Away/ Birds/rats/ seagull/pigeon/woodpecker/ dove/sparrow/pidgeon control/pidgeon problem/ pidgeon control/flying rats/ pigeon Problems/ bird netting/bird gel/bird spray/bird nails/ bird guard
by Pigeon Patrol | Jan 4, 2022 | Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Law, Bird Netting, Bird Spikes, Columbidae, Doves
In the UK, pigeons seem to be everywhere you go and if you find them on your roof – at home or work – chances are, you’ve heard them too. Not only are pigeons notoriously noisy but they can create a whole lot of mess and expensive damage to your roof tiles. What’s more, their faeces can carry diseases and draw vermin such as flies and rats to your property, which can leave you with yet another problem.
How to get rid of pigeons/birds: Can home remedies work?
There are some widely recommended home remedies to get rid of pigeons and other birds, but these are generally ineffective in practice.
Can spices get rid of pigeons?
Spices such as chilli powder, pepper and cinnamon have been touted as pigeon/bird repellents. Unfortunately, they’re far from an effective solution – you’ll also need to apply them very frequently as they get washed away with rain and lose their potency. Going up to your roof every weekend to sprinkle more seasoning is less than ideal, to say the least.
Do decoy birds of prey scare pigeons?
Decoy statues of birds of prey or lightweight kites have been known to be used as pigeon/bird deterrents to try and stop pigeons nesting on your roof. That said, even if you do initially have success with decoys they will only be effective for a short period of time because birds get used to their fixed placement – and when the birds approach they will see that they’re just an object.
Will spreading sticky stuff get rid of pigeons?
Sticky substances, such as an environmentally safe commercial gel-repellent or honey, are another temporary solution that’s been tried to prevents pigeons and other birds from perching on your roof, due to its slippery layer.
Just as with the spices, however, this method must be reapplied to maintain its effectiveness – and it’s not very effective in the first place. It’s not only inconvenient but also potentially dangerous to keep going on your roof, as you could hurt yourself and possibly damage your roof even further. If you’re unsure, speak to the experts who can keep birds away from your roof.
Spraying pigeons with water
For a solution which works all of two minutes, you can spray pigeons with a water hose. This is method simply scares them away for the time being but they’ll happily return in no time to nest on your roof again.
How to keep pigeons away from your garden
Ultrasonic devices to keep pigeons/birds away
These devices can be installed by pest control companies and are effective bird repellers that produce sound waves we humans can’t hear, but to pesky pigeons, and other birds – it’s irksome. This device can be effective and the high frequency will be a sure way to make birds find another place to reside.
Can my pets deter pigeons?
If you have a dog or cat, they may help out with the bird problem to an extent, but the odds are that the birds won’t be too put off due to the height advantage they have over your beloved pets.
Will using a scarecrow get rid of birds?
Installing a scarecrow in your front or back garden – wherever the pigeons will see this figure – is a similar idea to the bird of prey decoy. It also has a similar amount of effectiveness – very little – particularly once the birds get used to it.
Why are there pigeons on my roof?
If you’ve noticed an unusual amount of pigeons on your roof, it’s likely they have a nearby food and water source. If you’re aware of these sources, remove them – it’s important not to feed pigeons and birds if you wish to get rid of them. Pigeons and all birds in general love grass seeds, berries and your pet’s food, so consider laying fresh turf on your lawn, replace fruit bearing trees with fern, oak, pine or maple trees and keep your pet’s food indoors.
Access points to your attic might be the reason you’re seeing so many pigeons on your roof. This area provides them with the ideal breeding ground where they’re warm and safe from predators.
Basic DIY bird prevention measures
- Remove fruit-bearing trees
When should I call the pest professionals for bird control?
If your home remedies aren’t working, it’s important to call your local pest controllers who can put a stop to your pest peeves.
How do professionals keep birds off your roof?
- Bird netting – to prevent pigeons from colonising, bird netting is an effective method. Netting comes in a whole range of sizes so this preventative can be made suitable to any dimensions of a building. To exclude pigeons, starlings or sparrows we will ensure the grids on the netting are the optimal size to enforce the exclusion of your pest problems. This method can be used to protect building fascias, flat roofs, balconies, statues and decorative embellishments where birds can potentially nest.
- Bird spikes – are in fact a humane bird control solution and highly effective too. This piece of equipment can be installed on any linear surface, where pigeons and other birds may nest.
- Bird wire – also known as anti-pigeon wire is ideal for large establishments such as cathedrals, churches and banks offering a discrete solution that will eliminate any pigeon or bird infestation. This method has a low visual impact and will subtly tackle the problem at hand.
- Electric bird deterrent system – this is used around heavily colonised buildings and measures a discreet 8mm. Birds experience a small shock when a bird of any species lands on the building. This does not hurt the bird, it simply encourages the bird to move elsewhere.
Keeping pigeons away from your garden and balcony
Finding pigeon or any bird poop on your garden furniture, patio or balcony can be extremely irritating and hard to clean. It’s likely you will have to turn to a professional who can implement a more permanent solution.
Source
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 Bird Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.
Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca
Pigeon/Pigeon Patrol / Pigeons Roosting / Vancouver Pigeon Control /Bird Spikes / Bird Control / Bird Deterrent / Pigeon Deterrent? Surrey Pigeon Control / Pest /Seagull deterrent / Vancouver Pigeon Blog / Birds Inside Home / Pigeons in the cities / Ice Pigeons/ What to do about pigeons/ sparrows , Damage by Sparrows, How To Keep Raccoons Away, Why Are Raccoons Considered Pests/ De-fence / Pigeon Nesting/ Bird Droppings / Pigeon Dropping/ woodpecker control/ Professional Bird Control Company/ Keep The Birds Away/ Birds/rats/ seagull/pigeon/woodpecker/ dove/sparrow/pidgeon control/pidgeon problem/ pidgeon control/flying rats/ pigeon Problems/ bird netting/bird gel/bird spray/bird nails/ bird guard
by Pigeon Patrol | Dec 24, 2021 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Law, Bird Netting, Bird Spikes
When pigeon flocks grow too large, use these humane methods to control their numbers
From a pigeon’s perspective, city living can’t be beat. Food and water are readily available. Predators are rare. Plus, there’s plenty of free housing. Pigeons find our window ledges, rooftops, bridges, and warehouses to be ideal substitutes for the natural ledges in cliff sides that they have always used as roosting, nesting, and sheltering sites.
When flocks grow too large and become a nuisance, killing the birds is often the first plan of action. But killing pigeons doesn’t work, and there are better, non-lethal ways to fix a pigeon problem.
Three steps to humanely solve a pigeon problem
You may just need one or a combination of all three techniques, depending on the size of the pigeon population you’re dealing with.
Stop feeding the pigeons (intentionally or not)
Most conflicts with pigeons can be tied at one point or another to feeding, intentionally or otherwise.
Pigeons get fed plenty of handouts and garbage, but there are also well-intentioned pigeon lovers who regularly feed the birds. This does the pigeons more harm than good as the pigeons begin to gather in large numbers, often leading to inhumane and ineffective attempts to reduce their numbers.
When such troubles arise, the best thing for the birds is to reduce feeding gradually over several weeks. The flock will gradually disperse until the remaining number of birds matches what the area can naturally support.
Unintentional food sources
Even when not feeding on purpose, we humans are messy, leaving leftovers and dropped crumbs everywhere. Pigeons hang around town squares, public parks, and other trafficked areas to help themselves to what we leave behind, especially when convenient roosting and nesting sites are nearby. To discourage pigeons from gathering, food attractants need to be cleaned up regularly.
In suburban neighborhoods, too, homeowners may mistakenly feed pigeons or they may be providing food for pigeons inadvertently when feeding their backyard birds by tossing seed on the ground, rather than putting it in birdfeeders. To discourage pigeons visiting your yard, change the type, amount, and timing of feeding. If most of the pigeons fail to move elsewhere, you’ll need to stop feeding all birds for a couple weeks. (Don’t worry; the birds won’t starve.) When you resume feeding, only put out seed in birdfeeders and keep the ground below them cleaned up.
Prevent roosting and nesting
Pigeons look for flat surfaces for roosting and nesting. Encourage them to do these things elsewhere by making flat surfaces unavailable to them. With the correct application of the right product, roosting structures can be rendered virtually pigeon-free.
There are a variety of devices that can be used to change flat nesting spots into inaccessible spaces and prevent pigeons from roosting in areas where they’re not wanted.
NEVER use polybutylene gel. Sticky gel repellents made from polybutene can harm all birds and any animal that comes in contact with it. The HSUS strongly recommends that these dangerous repellents be avoided at all costs. The feathers of any bird who comes into contact with the dense, sticky gel will become damaged, interfering with their ability to fly and to stay water-proofed.
These gel repellents are not selective. Other birds are likely to land on the gel, get stuck, and die a slow death. The polybutene gels are particularly harmful to smaller species.
Limit flock size with pigeon birth control
As year-round nesters, a pair of pigeons can raise a dozen or more young each year. If pigeons have plenty of food and space, their numbers can quickly increase. Fortunately, a bird contraceptive is available that limits growth of pigeon flocks.
Combined with exclusion and other humane measures to discourage roosting and nesting, OvoControl effectively reduces hatching rates in pigeons, thereby limiting flock sizes and diminishing problems associated with large numbers of pigeons.
Business owners who pledge to use OvoControl instead of lethal methods can download our free signage and educational materials. In Hawaii, where pigeons can be a major problem, businesses that have started OvoControl programs have seen a noticeable decrease in pigeon numbers.
Pigeon droppings and public health
Disease risk from pigeon droppings is often used to justify killing pigeons, but fresh bird droppings have not been shown to present a health risk.
People may fear that pigeons roosting or nesting nearby, or more specifically the droppings that accompany such sites, are a health threat. These fears usually focus on histoplasmosis, a fungus that grows in dropping-enriched soil, and on diseases caused by Cryptococcus and Salmonella. However, there is little evidence linking pigeons directly to human infections.
Histoplasmosis fungus is common in the eastern and central U.S. As many as 80 percent of people tested in these areas prove to have already been exposed to the fungus without knowing.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, fresh bird droppings on surfaces such as sidewalks and windowsills have not been shown to present a health risk. People should avoid contact with any animal droppings, of course, and ordinary good hygiene, such as washing hands and leaving shoes at the door, are adequate prevention if you accidentally come into contact with animal droppings.
Source
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 Bird Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.
Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca
Pigeon/Pigeon Patrol / Pigeons Roosting / Vancouver Pigeon Control /Bird Spikes / Bird Control / Bird Deterrent / Pigeon Deterrent? Surrey Pigeon Control / Pest /Seagull deterrent / Vancouver Pigeon Blog / Birds Inside Home / Pigeons in the cities / Ice Pigeons/ What to do about pigeons/ sparrows , Damage by Sparrows, How To Keep Raccoons Away, Why Are Raccoons Considered Pests/ De-fence / Pigeon Nesting/ Bird Droppings / Pigeon Dropping/ woodpecker control/ Professional Bird Control Company/ Keep The Birds Away/ Birds/rats/ seagull/pigeon/woodpecker/ dove/sparrow/pidgeon control/pidgeon problem/ pidgeon control/flying rats/ pigeon Problems/ bird netting/bird gel/bird spray/bird nails/ bird guard
by Pigeon Patrol | Dec 16, 2021 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Law, Bird Netting, Pigeon Droppings, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Predators, Pigeon Spikes
All birds should be hatched wild and live and fly free but unfortunately many don’t. Whether they are our pets because they are domestic or because they are rescued from the wild, they can’t free fly safely. We would break your heart with all the stories of pet birds lost. And how they suffer.
The biggest risk to a pet pigeon or dove is getting outside and being killed by a predator before he can get back in to safety. Wild pigeons derive all their security from being part of a flock that stays alert watching out for predators and knows what to do (and has the education and physiology to do) what is needed when under attack. A pigeon alone is extremely vulnerable. A domestic pigeon outside alone is in imminent danger. It is unsafe to take a pet pigeon outside unprotected. They need to be in an aviary or in the house.
Your pet pigeon or dove doesn’t want to get lost but many do, especially when allowed to hang around outside in the backyard or ride along unprotected on their person’s shoulder. And clipped wings do not protect birds outside. Birds are by their very nature aerodynamic and being outside unprotected with clipped wings is no safer. One little startle and, with the air currents outdoors, they are airborne. And in danger. Wild pigeons and doves derive all of their security from their survival of the fittest DNA, their education growing up in the wild and from being a part of a flock. Your pet pigeon, even if hatched wild, is at terrible risk if permitted to free fly. You (and your dogs and your patio cover, etc. etc.) offer no protection to pet birds, only an illusion of safety. We too wish your pet could fly free but the odds of tragedy are very high. It is just too great a risk.
Reprinted from the Palomacy Help Group, written by Ashley Dietrich
We’re discussing free-flying pet pigeons, and why not to do it.
It sounds great, right? These fantastic fliers, out in the fresh air, doing what nature intended? It sounds wonderful, and I wish I could give my birds the whole sky to enjoy. While pigeons and doves DO need exercise and sunlight, these needs can be met with a predator-proof aviary, out-of-cage time indoors, secure leashes, etc. Here are the reasons Palomacy advocates against allowing domestic birds outdoors un-caged/un-tethered:
1. Predators
— Hawks – they’re everywhere. I’ve read a report about a hawk grabbing a parrot off of an owner’s shoulder. Raptors focus tightly on their intended prey, swoop in, and won’t always notice or care if a human is nearby. Two years ago, a small hawk tried to get my dove Cecily as she sat inside the screen of my open window, sunning after a bath – I was sitting less than 3 feet away. My windows are now covered in hardware cloth in addition to the basic window screens, so it is safe to open the glass. I live in the woods, but hawks are city birds too.
— Cats and Dogs. Even with the benefit of wild instincts, countless birds fall victim to outdoor cats and dogs. Cat attacks are the #1 human-related cause of bird mortality. I’ve seen this first-hand too many times as a wildlife rehabber, and I’ll spare you the gory details.
2. Birds can get lost
Birds are more difficult to retrieve than 4-legged pets. It’s easy for something to spook a bird – if they go too high or too far, it can be even harder to get them back. They can cover more distance, quickly – and a bit of wind exacerbates this problem. The tamest of birds could bolt if startled, and not all pigeons have a homing instinct. Adding to the complications, many people do not realize they are pets, so birds are less likely to get help from strangers. The pigeons and doves I have retrieved after they were found outdoors have all been suffering from dehydration or hunger to some degree. They cannot find food and water in the wild.
Source
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 Bird Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.
Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca
Pigeon/Pigeon Patrol / Pigeons Roosting / Vancouver Pigeon Control /Bird Spikes / Bird Control / Bird Deterrent / Pigeon Deterrent? Surrey Pigeon Control / Pest /Seagull deterrent / Vancouver Pigeon Blog / Birds Inside Home / Pigeons in the cities / Ice Pigeons/ What to do about pigeons/ sparrows , Damage by Sparrows, How To Keep Raccoons Away, Why Are Raccoons Considered Pests/ De-fence / Pigeon Nesting/ Bird Droppings / Pigeon Dropping/ woodpecker control/ Professional Bird Control Company/ Keep The Birds Away/ Birds/rats/ seagull/pigeon/woodpecker/ dove/sparrow/pidgeon control/pidgeon problem/ pidgeon control/flying rats/ pigeon Problems/ bird netting/bird gel/bird spray/bird nails/ bird guard
by Pigeon Patrol | Dec 16, 2021 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Law, Bird Netting, Bird Spikes, Columbidae, Doves, history of pigeons
Many birds travel in flocks, sometimes migrating over thousands of miles. But how do the birds decide who will lead the way? Researchers reporting in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on November 25 now have some new insight based on studies in homing pigeons. For pigeons, it seems, leadership is largely a question of speed.
“This changes our understanding of how the flocks are structured and why flocks of this species have consistent leadership hierarchies,” says Dora Biro of the University of Oxford.
Previous studies had shown that flock leadership is unrelated to social dominance. Giving followers extra training flights doesn’t promote them to a position of leadership, either. The new findings offer an elegantly simple explanation for the phenomenon of leadership in birds, with important implications for how spatial knowledge is generated and retained in navigating flocks.
While many birds travel in flocks, homing pigeons are domestic and more easily studied than most. “We can control the composition of the flocks and the starting points for their homeward journeys,” says Benjamin Pettit, the first author of the new study. “We also have a good understanding of their individual spatial cognition, in particular how their homing routes develop over repeated flights in the same area.”
Recent developments in sensor technology also make it possible to explore with exquisite precision how pigeon flocks are coordinated. The latest GPS loggers allow the researchers to track not only the birds’ overall routes, but also the sub-second time delays with which they react to each other while flying as a flock.
In the new study, the researchers compared pigeons’ relative influence over flock direction to their solo flight characteristics. Their studies showed that a pigeon’s degree of leadership could be predicted by its speed in earlier flights.
In solo flights, leaders were no better than followers in forging a straight path. In other words, they didn’t excel in navigation ability, at least not at first. When the researchers tested the birds individually after a series of flock flights, however, they found that leaders had learned straighter homing routes than followers.
“Some birds are naturally faster and consistently get to the front, where they end up doing more of the navigation, which means on future flights they know the way better,” Biro says. “You can compare this to a ‘passenger-driver’-like effect: drivers in a car have to pay attention while passengers are often unable to recall the route they were driven along, especially if they remained passive in the navigation process.”
While it’s often tempting to take an anthropocentric view of leadership, the findings come as a reminder that leadership can arise as an unavoidable consequence of individual differences within a population. A very simple, self-organizing mechanism–such as that based on variation in speed–is sufficient for leadership to arise. In addition, the new findings offer a mechanism through which leaders can improve in their roles over time, making increasingly better decisions that others can follow.
“Our findings broaden the range of species and situations in which we would expect to see leadership and explain how leadership and competence can naturally come to correlate,” Pettit says.
Source
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 Bird Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products ten years in a row.
Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca
Pigeon/Pigeon Patrol / Pigeons Roosting / Vancouver Pigeon Control /Bird Spikes / Bird Control / Bird Deterrent / Pigeon Deterrent? Surrey Pigeon Control / Pest /Seagull deterrent / Vancouver Pigeon Blog / Birds Inside Home / Pigeons in the cities / Ice Pigeons/ What to do about pigeons/ sparrows , Damage by Sparrows, How To Keep Raccoons Away, Why Are Raccoons Considered Pests/ De-fence / Pigeon Nesting/ Bird Droppings / Pigeon Dropping/ woodpecker control/ Professional Bird Control Company/ Keep The Birds Away/ Birds/rats/ seagull/pigeon/woodpecker/ dove/sparrow/pidgeon control/pidgeon problem/ pidgeon control/flying rats/ pigeon Problems/ bird netting/bird gel/bird spray/bird nails/ bird guard
by Pigeon Patrol | Dec 7, 2021 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Law, Bird Netting, Bird Spikes
The CIA assassinated John F. Kennedy after he refused to kill and replace billions of birds with drones. The U.S. government is sequestering a team of Boeing engineers in Area 51 for a secret military mission. Our tax dollars have been funneled into building the “Turkey X500,” a robot used to hunt large birds.
Combine all these conspiracies and you get Birds Aren’t Real, a nearly two-year-old movement that claims the CIA took out 12 billion feathered fugitives because directors within the organization were “annoyed that birds had been dropping fecal matter on their car windows.” The targets were eradicated between 1959 and 1971 with specially altered B-52 bombers stocked with poison. They were then supplanted with avian-like robots that could be used to surveil Americans.
Sounds extreme but also somewhat fitting, given the landscape of today’s social discourse. By surfacing murky bits of history and the ubiquity of Aves, Birds Aren’t Real feeds into this era of post-truth politics. The campaign relies on internet-fueled guerilla marketing to spread its message, manifesting through real-world posters and Photoshopped propaganda tagged with the “Birds Aren’t Real” slogan.
For much of its devoted fanbase, Birds Aren’t Real is a respite from America’s political divide—a joke so preposterous both conservatives and liberals can laugh at it. But for a few followers, this movement is no more unbelievable than QAnon, a right-wing conspiracy theory turned marketing ploy that holds that someone with high-level government clearance is planting coded tips in the news. Therein lies the genius of Birds Aren’t Real: It’s a digital breadcrumb trail that leads to a website that leads to a shop full of ready-to-buy merchandise.
The creative muscle behind the avian-inspired conspiracy (and thinly disguised marketing scheme) is 20-year-old Peter McIndoe, an English and philosophy major at the University of Memphis in Tennessee. McIndoe first went live with Birds Aren’t Real in January 2017 at his city’s Women’s March. A video from the event shows McIndoe with a crudely drawn sign, heckling protesters with lines like, “Birds are a myth; they’re an illusion; they’re a lie. Wake up America! Wake up!” The idea of selling Birds Aren’t Real goods, he says, came after the stunt gained traction over Instagram.
McIndoe didn’t break character once during a 30-minute-long phone interview with Audubon. He defended the movement’s legitimacy, mainly by proselytizing about what Birds Aren’t Real isn’t. “The thought that this could be used to make a satire of a dark and tense time in American culture—I find those things to be baloney,” McIndoe says.
What isn’t baloney is the attention Birds Aren’t Real has drawn on social media, thanks to an Instagram account with more than 50,000 followers, a YouTube page with more than 45,000 views, and a Twitter profile with nearly 8,500 followers. McIndoe handles all these accounts and fulfills every order for the Birds Aren’t Real goods he sells online. He declined to comment on how much money he’s made off the T-shirts, hats, and stickers, many of which are out of stock.
Exploiting conspiracists for profit is nothing new, says Mike Metzler, a social media influencer and viral-content creator on Instagram. Amazon sells dozens of styles of QAnon T-shirts that have become a fixture at Make America Great Again rallies around the country. What’s different is that while many QAnon believers wear their shirts in earnest, most Birds Aren’t Real fans seem to wear theirs to be ironic and on trend.
“Birds Aren’t Real is taking advantage of the meme-ification of previous conspiracy theories,” Metzler says. “People really want to believe in conspiracies—but more than that, people want to make fun of people who believe in conspiracies even more. Starting a conspiracy theory and selling Birds Aren’t Real merchandise allows them to sell to both sides,” Metzler says.
McIndoe’s movement got a free jolt of publicity on October 30 after Chicago-based journalist Robert Loerzel tweeted a photo of a Birds Aren’t Real flier he found on the street. The same flier also popped up on Reddit numerous times over the past month. The hectic and cryptic nature of the website makes it an incubator for conspiracy theories like QAnon. The Reddit forum r/conspiracy has 721,000 anonymous subscribers alone.
While some people will draw parallels between QAnon and Birds Aren’t Real (they were both launched in 2017, after all), their popularity on Reddit is the only true similarity, says Brooke Binkowski, managing editor of the myth-busting website TruthOrFiction.com and the former managing editor of Snopes. “Birds Aren’t Real is a good one, but it in no way ranks up there with the incredible complexity of whatever QAnon is,” she says over email. “QAnon has caught on because it’s interactive, it’s always evolving, and it’s completely vague—so vague that anything they say could be ‘true’ if you interpret it the right way.”
How could Birds Aren’t Real gain more dark-web cred then? “Conspiracy theories offer a way for the world to make sense, and they offer a sense of purpose to the purposeless,” Binkowski writes. “If Birds Aren’t Real hinted at some larger, dark pattern, it would really take flight.”
For now, though, this shallow conspiracy seems harmless and may even be a net gain for birds. Jordan Rutter, the director of public relations at the American Bird Conservancy, thinks the intricate history behind McIndoe’s movement is hilarious and thus, something positive. “Anything that gets people talking about birds is a good thing,” she says. “It’s definitely a way we can start a conversation.”
The filmmaker Oliver Stone once wrote that Kennedy’s assassination is “a mystery wrapped in a riddle inside an enigma.” Birds Aren’t Real, on the other hand, is a chimera of conspiracies that wraps satire, modern insecurities, and internet culture into a successful marketing scheme.
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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 Bird Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
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