Adsibob Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 Anyone had any success installing something to deter pigeons. We have a beautiful lilac tree that gets eaten by pigeons. I tried spraying it with a chemical deterrent but it didn’t do a great deal. Now considering something ultrasonic, came across this but looks too good to be true: https://pigeon-deterrent.co.uk/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA3JCvBhA8EiwA4kujZs17JYzMjWHGlq2jPqA2rdOe-SrxKSOXftRsvt85bbQsQCzcAGuhMxoC45YQAvD_BwE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Thomas Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 (edited) Hmm, I don't know, but am also interested - I was hoping to get something like this to pop in the loft and deter the pigeons that are eyeing up my solar panels as a nesting area! Rail stations in the region are using audible discouragement: https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/transport/northern-to-broadcast-hawk-calls-over-loudpspeaker-at-yorkshire-railway-station-to-fight-pigeon-poo-4371318 Edited March 3 by Nick Thomas add rail station hawks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markc Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 Problem with pigeons is they soon get used to anything that initially scares them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Laptony-Scarer-Flying-Protector-Telescopic/dp/B096MTVQ6D/ref=sr_1_8?adgrpid=532402 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToughButterCup Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jilly Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 (edited) I think I’ve read about raptor shaped garden ornaments helping a bit. Or actual raptors. Might not fit with your garden aesthetics tho’… To be fair, I’d rather the pigeons sat on the bushes than pooped on my car. Stoping them nesting nearby can help, however, as someone said, they can be determined and quite fearless. Sorry Joe, I didn't follow your link! Edited March 3 by Jilly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adsibob Posted March 3 Author Share Posted March 3 1 hour ago, ToughButterCup said: Seriously considered this. Probably not lawful though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Thomas Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 2 hours ago, Adsibob said: Seriously considered this. Probably not lawful though. Hah, me too. I think it'd be legal - just about - as long as I hit the target. Bit risky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 (edited) You watch, pigeon,s will be protected next after bats and newts 🤷♂️. Oh, they are. courtesy of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (Chapter 69), which effectively reports that it is illegal to kill or injure any wild bird, including pigeons ... Edited March 3 by joe90 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Thomas Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 https://merlinenvironmental.co.uk/blog/pests/birds/can-you-shoot-pigeons-in-the-uk/ goes into a bit more detail. It's fine as long as you've tried non-lethal methods first and they've failed, and you also stick to all the rules governing air weapons (like not shooting beyond the property boundary). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 https://www.amazon.co.uk/OFFO-Stainless-Windows-Deterrent-Seagulls/dp/B0BL7PF3WG/ref=asc_df_B0BL7PF3WG May help in the surrounding area. Maybe a cat, though there are new laws about encouraging the neighbours' cat to stay away from home now. Maybe some sort of electric fence weaved into a few branches. Or a noise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToughButterCup Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 With proper permissions, and a bit of care a good deal of practice, it's fine to shoot pigeons. The problem I have is getting it past SWMBO: hence image intensifier and night shooting: Shoot> recover> bag> bin> pub> return all smiles. "Nice time sweetheart? " "Yep" "What are those feathers stuck to your boots? " "I cleaned out the chickens earlier today" Pheeeewww . Close. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpmiller Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 shouldn't that be shoot> recover> bag> sell in pub> return all smiles? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 51 minutes ago, dpmiller said: shoot> recover> bag> sell in pub> return all smiles Pulling the shot out is a pain, much better strangled. Here is how a mathematician deals with them. Maybe @Garald can knock up a suitable ditty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToughButterCup Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 17 hours ago, dpmiller said: shouldn't that be shoot> recover> bag> sell in pub> return all smiles? There's a good deal of competition in our deepest-darkest-Fylde-Coast-desert-with-wind-in-it-tumble weed-pub. A while back a deer jumped onto a passing car late one evening. By the following morning it had already been distributed into local freezers. Pigeon anyone? Yawn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 (edited) 11 minutes ago, ToughButterCup said: Pigeon anyone There are whole articles about eating road kill. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/may/27/accidental-meat-should-carnivores-embrace-eating-roadkill But what I want to know is why there are so many mustelidae having a sleep on the side of the A30, is there a pub nearby, maybe called The Badger. Edited March 6 by SteamyTea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Thomas Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 On 03/03/2024 at 17:19, SteamyTea said: Maybe a cat, though there are new laws about encouraging the neighbours' cat to stay away from home now. Pretty sure my cat's been reading this - he brought home a pigeon on Monday. These are wood pigeons, too, not the little feral ones. We didn't eat it, but the dog had a go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bozza Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 I used to live in a city centre apartment complex that was plagued with seagulls. bought a plastic hawk off the internet, put it up high in the roof. Was surprised at how effective it was. Eliminated the issue permanently. *plastic hawk as in a moulded plastic bird with reflective eyes, not as in what you would use for plastering. The latter probably wouldn’t work and your neighbours may think you’re mental* 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adsibob Posted March 7 Author Share Posted March 7 I've bought this: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00QQTRPXO?psc=1&smid=A08231583FSHJCK2HXZMY&ref_=chk_typ_imgToDp Let's see if it does the trick. The next challenge will be how to mount it securely near enough to the tree I want to protect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Temp Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 I'd mount it on a pole that you can lean up against different parts of the tree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 10 minutes ago, Temp said: a pole A few short years back you could have employed one. Trouble is they stole all the high skilled, high paid, pidgin scaring jobs, but they did learn Pidgin English. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adsibob Posted March 7 Author Share Posted March 7 47 minutes ago, Temp said: I'd mount it on a pole that you can lean up against different parts of the tree. That's not a bad idea, although then I'd need to find a way to secure the pole, given wind etc. I was thinking of mounting it on a concrete fence post that is quite close to the tree. The pigeons often sit on the fence (literally, not figuratively) before attacking the tree. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Thomas Posted September 6 Share Posted September 6 (edited) How's the fake peregrine falcon going, @Adsibob? The pigeons here are still nesting under the solar panels and it's driving me a bit mad. They lay eggs, the eggs roll straight off the roof and I get yolk or fetus all over the front of the house. And then there's the droppings. Siiiigh. I got a mini drone (<250g) and have been flying that up when I see pigeons to scare them off, which has seen mixed results so far. It does make them leave, but doesn't seem to stop them from coming back again. A touch off the original topic, but I was thinking about hiring a scissor lift for a weekend and DIY-fitting something like https://www.birdspikesonline.co.uk/Bird-Spikes/Defender-Bird-Solar-Panel-Spike to the perimeter (the panels themselves are apparently not suitable for fitting wire mesh to directly). These just attach with silicone adhesive, but I have a few doubts about their longevity, and with the eaves at 6M high, it's a slightly scary proposition ^^. Better ideas appreciated. Edited September 6 by Nick Thomas add pics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marshian Posted September 6 Share Posted September 6 On 03/03/2024 at 11:27, ToughButterCup said: This was my solution We never had a problem with pigeons on the close I’ve lived for 33 years till recently….. 3 years back English Heritage repointed up a local church ruins - all the nooks and crannies were filled up and all the ledges covered in spikes - so the population of pigeons and doves decamped 50 yards to the nearest houses Each house got 4 to 5 new roof top occupants The first year they decimated all the fruit trees and so we pruned them back the second year they destroyed every single young plant in the veg patch the other half does every year The other half tried feeding them to save her veg patch this year - they pulled the young plants up and left them The territorial males constantly fight for the right to f (party) - they s (defacate) over everything - windows cars patio decking it’s everywhere and I have one modern car with water based paint and the laquer coat is utterly ruined in places The doves I leave alone - the feral pigeons unfortunately I don’t - there is a “bird table” in the garden now that has a substantial back stop (6 inches thick) They soon get used to feeding from there They get a weeks worth of free food then they get despatched Downside is that as they seem rather territorial more move in But numbers are going down…… about 4 a fortnight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Ambrose Posted September 6 Share Posted September 6 PV panels are often fitted with little screens on the side for exactly this reason. You can probably find some to retrofit.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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