Birds

For the property owner feral birds can be a serious menace, especially in concentrated urban poulations they pose a real risk to health, damage foodstuffs, deface buildings and increase property maintenance bills.

Pest birds are vectors of disease carrying a wide range of bacteria such as salmonella, psittacosis and ornithosis (a potentially fatal type of influenza in humans). Their nests also promote secondary infestations of unpleasant insects and mites. Then there is the increased risk of accidents from slippery, bird fouled pavements and staircases.

For many organisations where the maintenance of good hygiene standards is vital to corporate image, bird fouling on or around premises can threaten both reputation and customer goodwill.

Nesting material, fouling and accumulated debris frequently lead to blocked gutters and downpipes, damaging overflows and possible water ingress. Bird droppings also contain harmful acids that actually erode stonework.

In the food industry birds can cause untold damage, particularly in the light of today's stringent food safety regulations, by contaminating foodstuffs with their droppings, feathers and dirt.

Bird fouling mars many building facades especially those with ornate features and this means expensive maintenance work to clean masonry, windows and paint work and to repair resultant damage.

Spring wire is a stainless steel post and wire bird repellent system which works because it creates a physical barrier at the point where a bird attempts to land. The angled first row comes into contact with the bird's breast, and gently expels it from the area. Because the wire is sprung the bird is not harmed and is prevented from landing.

Usually the bird will try to overcome this obstacle and this is the reason that subsequent rows of wires become necessary. These are special variants of the spring wire system which can be applied to tricky areas such as gutters, there is a special gutter clamp. For along leaded cornices etc. there is a long pin which may be applied horizontally.

The spring wire system is highly effective against pigeons but when it comes to starlings, an alternative system should be used. This is because starlings have been known to actually sit on the wires, even though the diameter is only 0.45mm. It can be used though, to some effect, against gulls where the longer and more robust 250mm post should be used. Sometimes it may be necessary to omit springs when using against gulls.

The bird point system is a ready assembled anti-roosting system designed to keep both feral pigeons and gulls off buildings. It is applied to buildings using a neutral silicone adhesive.

Plastic Base - The heavy duty base can be readily snapped off into small sections and the holes in the base can be used to screw it to wooden or similar like surfaces.

Cap nets - used to seal off open internal light well areas of buildings where birds have become a nuisance due to nesting and roosting activity.

Screen nets - used usually for the underside of canopy areas where birds are interfering with the loading activities of a company or are using the area as a perching point whilst awaiting entry into the factory.

Drop nets - used to encapsulate areas of the fronts of buildings either decorative features or indeed the total area when species such as starlings are involved.

Roof nets - these need particular considerations of their own. Fixings may be difficult to place, tiles and ridges do not make good anchor points, yet generally chimney stacks can be utilised, each instance is different.

Stainless steel is to be used in all instances, galvanised fittings are not to be used due to their poor life expectancy.

When installed correctly, netting is the most effective way to deny birds access to given areas. The mesh sizes are specifically chosen to suit the bird pests involved.

Net comes in various gauges (i.e. the size of the square) and is carefully chosen to combat the pest bird species involved.

The risks associated with bird droppings vary according to the location, so a risk assessment should consider the potential presence of all infectious agents.

It is always advisable for anyone entering potentially infected areas to wear appropriate personal protective equipment.

Anyone involved in clearing up after feral birds, droppings or their nesting materials in the course of their work, should be aware of the risks of 'ornithosis'.

Ornithosis is an acute, infectious disease caused by the bacterium 'Chlamydia psittaci'. The bacteria live in the gut of infected birds and are passed out in the faeces and in eye and nasal secretions.

'Chlamydia psittaci' can be picked up by humans via the inhalation of faecal dust, or by contact with infected feathers, carcasses or birds nests. The disease organism becomes less infectious with time, therefore active roosts will present the greatest risk to humans. In the early stages, ornithosis exhibits as an influenza - like illness causing fever and bad headaches. The development of a sore throat with a cough, muscle pain, lethargy and depression may follow. If diagnosed early enough, the disease can be successfully treated with antibiotics. However, if allowed to develop, it can become serious, leading to hospitalisation and even death in certain cases.

Of course, ornithosis is just one example of the numerous diseases which can be transmitted to man by starlings, pigeons, gulls and other pest birds.

Any clearing-up treatment should be left to a professional pest control company.

An anti-bacterial solution must be sprayed on the droppings during a clean-up operation; wiped, sprayed or mopped over surfaces as a preventative biocide; sprayed on dead birds and nesting materials prior to their removal; wiped over personal protective equipment, spray tanks and other tools after a clean-up operation has been completed. A G Pest Management has the expertise and many years of practical field experience in clean-up operations.