Keeping Birds out of trees

KentuckySawyer

KentuckySawyer

Participating member
Location
Louisville
I've got a customer who wants a solution for keeping birds from nesting in two smallish Red Maples in her front easement area. She is elderly and this is her only place to park close to her house. You can probably guess the problem the birds are causing with her car.

She has tried some glittery junk in the trees as a visual deterrent, but it doesn't work very well not to mention it looks awful. She suggested us weaving high strength fishing line as a kind of "spider" web which would teach the birds (theoretically) that they don't like roosting in these two trees. The City of Louisville has "wrapped" several Southern Magnolias downtown in a black synthetic mesh trying to achieve the same end result. I worry about the hassle of leaves and debris gathering in this net. Not to mention the fact that we don't have a bucket truck for installation of such a net, and crane rental would make the project pricier than it needs to be.

I wonder how effective just thinning and raising the two canopies would be at solving her fowl dilemma.

Any thoughts?
 
This could help. Click on this--->

Sorry. I couldn't resist. It was the first thing that came to my mind.
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Something tells me you might not want to suggest that to your customer.

However, I do have a practical suggestion. I have personally put a fake snake in my walnut tree to prevent the birds from preventing me from my walnut harvest. I was able to harvest 20 gallons from a 15 year old tree. The year prior I didn't get anything.

So, try several fake snakes.
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If you try a fake owl I am told that the kind with the moving head are more effective. I have no personal experience with this, just what I have been told through the years from people who have.

What ever you do I think thinning the trees should be part of the plan.

Good luck.
 
I have had some limited sucess with thinning and raisng the canopy to help solve a bird problem. Mostly in Red Maples and Ash. It does seem to help. I always tell the client that it will not totally solve the problem, (birds like trees:) but it will be a improvement. Usually the tree is an important part of their landscape and worth saving. Maybe a combination of pruning and the owl, snake idea. Let us kow what you come up with.
 
This is a surreal thread. It reminds me of customers who want trees removed because they're messy... They love nature but not the mess that goes with it.
 
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This is a surreal thread. It reminds me of customers who want trees removed because they're messy... They love nature but not the mess that goes with it.

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Yeah, I know what you mean. Like having a pond and not wanting any ducks in it. We actually have a client with a pond that had a Sycamore planted within 6-8' of the shore line. They didn't want the Sycamore sending roots into the pond. Don't ask why. But we installed a root barrier along the shore to inhibit the trees roots from doing what Mother Nature meant for them to do. You know the saying about a fool and their money...

Anyways, I view this as one of our primary rolls as arborists. Helping people and trees co-exist in an urban environment.


I do like the idea of the artificial snakes or owls in conjunction with prunning.
 
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Try putting a fake owl in tree. It should work.

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Based on gardening experience ..................

If you use fake owls they HAVE TO BE MOVED FREQENTLY. Otherwise the birds just used to them being junk.

Maybe put them on braided nylon line that can be raised & lower to different limbs ?????
 
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Try putting a fake owl in tree. It should work.

[/ QUOTE ]

Based on gardening experience ..................

If you use fake owls they HAVE TO BE MOVED FREQENTLY. Otherwise the birds just used to them being junk.

Maybe put them on braided nylon line that can be raised & lower to different limbs ?????

[/ QUOTE ]
I'll try this one more time. How about this owl? It's supposed to replicate an owl in hunting mode. It moves in the breeze like a wind sock. It's made for boats, but it could work in a tree. whatd'ya think??
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There is a company that sets up lazer light to scare off birds and it does not harm them. We were going to have them installed but the monkeys go crazy , so we just deal with the bird crap..


Later from SO-CAL... Also we had a guest from the Tree Buzz visit us at work... Will post some pic later w/a very large bird.. Big Bird ,, Big Crap....
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The city had a lot of bird problems. We had thin out a whole block of norway maples. If you trin the trees enough the birds should move on.

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Had the same request
Remove limbs so birds wont sit on tree! LMAO
I told them in my best I am listening voice that was not a realistic request and politely declined
Some people don't have a clue
You can hang tin foil in the tree and that might work
Maybe!
 
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We actually have a client with a pond that had a Sycamore planted within 6-8' of the shore line. They didn't want the Sycamore sending roots into the pond.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's because the pond is concrete lined, papa.
 
I put a plastic great horned owl, with no moving parts, up in a large beechtree some years back, to keep the rooks( kind of like a crow, for you americans: corvus frugileus)from nesting in the tree and shitting all over the place.
It worked like a charm. Of course I also had to remove all the old rook nests in the canopy. Anyway, no more nests untill the tree was removed 4 years later because of a fungal infection.
 
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