Marina: Gosport
Graham Bristowe discusses methods used to keep the birds away at Gosport Marina...
I do not pretend to know a lot about birds, well the flying type at least. I have seen Bill Oddie on the television and have even sat through an entire episode of Autumn watch so it is with some reluctance that I have had to learn a bit more about starlings.It is at this time of year that we often find ourselves visited by this somewhat unwelcome guest and we have tried all sorts of methods of keeping them at bay. They arrive year on year and use the masts of the boats as a brief resting point before going home to roost at night under the train station in Portsmouth.
Unfortunately they also eat berries at this time of year which leaves some rather annoying and sometimes damaging mess on the decks of boats in the marina. One berth-holder actually likened them to his son saying "they are never about during the day just coming in at around tea time, leaving their mess everywhere and then going out for the night"
As I said we have tried all methods of keeping them at bay, from an elaborate electronic bird scarer to a starting pistol. Neither are hugely effective and walking around with a pistol opposite a military base is never a great idea.
This is where we turned to the services of Skyline Falconry services. Chris flies a variety of birds of prey round the marina. The purpose of this is to try and create no-fly zones for the starlings and we are starting to see the benefits now.
Flying birds including kestrels and falcons Chris is perfecting the art of pest control within this environment and I hope you will agree that this non intrusive method is a great way of addressing this problem and hopefully keeping your boats a bit cleaner.
Chris can also be seen flying his birds at Port Solent Marina.
