How To Get Rid Of Nuisance Birds

Basic measures to take in order to combat nuisance birds including the professional bird control option, and an overview of the types of nuisance birds found.

Minimising the damage, disease, noise and mess from avian pests

While most of us enjoy seeing birds going about their daily activities in our gardens and in public areas, some birds can prove undoubted pests and are responsible for damage, mess and the spreading of diseases.

Certain species need controlling to minimise damage and disruption in certain environments, and there are measures you can take by yourself or with the help of specialists who can help you avoid the problems caused by nuisance birds.

What birds can be a nuisance?

Common pests include the following:

Pigeons – commonly seen in built up and urban areas, they’re even famous for their presence in popular tourist spots such as Trafalgar Square in London. Their droppings can cause considerable damage to property as can their roosting and nesting habits.

Pigeons are attracted by ready food sources present in many urban areas.

Starlings – cause damage in agricultural and urban areas due to their tendency to roost in large numbers; their particularly acidic droppings can damage brickwork and wood.

Gulls – commonly found in large numbers in and around seaside urban areas and sometimes more inland, they’re expert scavengers and their presence is often enhanced by some tourists in seaside environments feeding them.

Their nesting can cause damage to property as can their droppings. If you have a flat roof they will be attracted to it and make nests.

The crow family – includes ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays and magpies. Their noise – often from a very early hour in the morning – can be especially disruptive, and they can cause considerable damage to property and crops through their nesting habits.

Sparrows – whilst usually harmless when frequenting domestic gardens, they can cause problems in commercial settings involving food storage or preparation due to their droppings spreading disease and nesting habits causing damage.

What you can do to combat the bird threat

Using professionals – large bird infestations will likely require the services of not just a professional pest control service but a company who specialise in combating bird nuisances such as Essex-based Effective Bird Control.

This type of specialist combats various bird threats by putting measures in place to prevent further issues such as deterrents including spikes and bird wire along with effective cleanups after an infestation.

These measures can include the use of birds of prey such as hawks to control flocks of birds, effective bird trapping, and thorough cleaning of bird droppings after an infestation to prevent the possible spread of diseases such as salmonella.

The process will often begin with a survey to assess the extent of the bird infestation followed by the drawing up of a coherent plan to address it.

Prevention – larger build ups of nuisance birds can often be traced to the easy availability of food and favourable nesting areas. If these can be minimised, then the threat of bird infestations can be considerably reduced.

Food – avoid leaving food lying around and clear up spillages promptly, secure waste storage such as that kept in dustbins and bin bags, and ensure it’s removed from the area as frequently as possible.

Some householders like to feed birds using bird tables and food dispensers, but this can attract nuisance birds along with others. It’s possible to control this with the use of modified food dispensers such as the ‘pigeon proof’ type designed to only be accessed by smaller birds as opposed to the usually larger ‘pest’ species.

Nesting – anti-roosting measures can be taken to prevent birds from generally ‘hanging around’ an area with a view to nesting such as stretched netting, spikes and wires.

Slaughter – this isn’t an option in a general sense as most breeds of birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. General licenses can be granted  to allow the holder to control birds through culling and the deployment of other preventative methods, but the casual killing of birds and destroying nests and eggs without authorisation is prohibited.

Prevention is key

If a large bird nuisance is present then clearly remedial measures are required such as calling in bird control experts, but smaller infestations can be controlled through basic prevention such as denying birds an easy supply of food.