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Pesky carrion eaters

Don't get me wrong...I love having birds around the house! It's one of the things we like best about our wooded property.

But...we are getting pestered by vultures. Black vultures and turkey vultures come to eat the food we put out for the other birds. At times, we have 10-12 or more in our back yard. And in trees surrounding our house, and on our roof, on our chimney caps, and on my weather station (actually pulling the screws out of the mounting bracket with their weight). They just hang around, waiting for something to die I guess.

Enough! As interesting as they are, I don't like their $#!+ deposits all over my roof, my deck, my grill (the final straw!). And, as the LOML and I are seniors, there is something ominous about vultures hanging around our house! :001_huh:

As an aside, these large birds flying over the skylights and landing (thump!) on the roof over our bathroom are a definite hazardous distraction for me whilst shaving...bloodshed results.

How do I discourage these creatures from visiting and lingering?

We have tried making a commotion, such as clapping, yelling, waving towels, etc. This has only a temporary effect on the birds (and an unknown effect on our neighbors who see this...):001_rolle

I have a slingshot, and have tried to annoy them with projectiles, but they just look at me and move out of range. I have not actually hit any, but have hit tree trunks near them, and they duck and move away, continuing to look at me from a little further away ("is that all you've got?")

My thinking is that I should get a pellet gun, so I could actually sting a couple of them, and perhaps they would get the message and find someone else to bother. I don't want to injure them...I just want to teach them that coming here would be uncomfortable.

Any suggestions? Recommendations for a non-lethal pellet gun?
 
Spray them with the garden hose, air horn, get one of those quad copter drone things and chase them, or call your local Fish and Wildlife department and see what they suggest.
 
use owl decoys. i use them to scare other birds of prey away from chicken coops. the vultures will stay away from a an owls turf.
 
Don't get me wrong...I love having birds around the house! It's one of the things we like best about our wooded property.

But...we are getting pestered by vultures. Black vultures and turkey vultures come to eat the food we put out for the other birds. At times, we have 10-12 or more in our back yard. And in trees surrounding our house, and on our roof, on our chimney caps, and on my weather station (actually pulling the screws out of the mounting bracket with their weight). They just hang around, waiting for something to die I guess.

Enough! As interesting as they are, I don't like their $#!+ deposits all over my roof, my deck, my grill (the final straw!). And, as the LOML and I are seniors, there is something ominous about vultures hanging around our house! :001_huh:

As an aside, these large birds flying over the skylights and landing (thump!) on the roof over our bathroom are a definite hazardous distraction for me whilst shaving...bloodshed results.

How do I discourage these creatures from visiting and lingering?

We have tried making a commotion, such as clapping, yelling, waving towels, etc. This has only a temporary effect on the birds (and an unknown effect on our neighbors who see this...):001_rolle

I have a slingshot, and have tried to annoy them with projectiles, but they just look at me and move out of range. I have not actually hit any, but have hit tree trunks near them, and they duck and move away, continuing to look at me from a little further away ("is that all you've got?")

My thinking is that I should get a pellet gun, so I could actually sting a couple of them, and perhaps they would get the message and find someone else to bother. I don't want to injure them...I just want to teach them that coming here would be uncomfortable.

Any suggestions? Recommendations for a non-lethal pellet gun?
High-powered slingshots(Axiom, Hammermil Bunny Buster, Pocket Predator, etc.) with Hornday lead round balls(.50 cal) or .50 cal G25 steel ball bearings. Check out Simple-Shot online.

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Turkey vultures are ugly things. I don't know if there is any laws that restrict what you can do, but you might want to check to be certain.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk
 
@Shiloh Here is a little bit of info I copy/pasted for you. Hopefully it will help you out some.

Why are they in my yard?
It is first important to understand what makes your area attractive. This is not necessarily a food source. Vultures are highly social animals, and they prefer to roost in large colonies. Areas that are conducive to this include the stereotypical dead tree or trees, cell phone towers, and even rooftops or porch coverings. (Removal of such trees is not advisable for many reasons, ie: 1) these trees are often habitats for other wildlife, and 2) without the trees, the vultures may move to rooftops, a far less desirable situation.)

Legal Considerations:
Turkey and Black Vultures hey are federally protected by the USFWS Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This means that their eradication by shooting is only legal if
a) nonlethal methods have been attempted, and
b) they have been identified as a true nuisance to the community (I.E. causing property damage, health risks, etc).

Health Concerns:
You will be happy to know that the feces of the turkey vulture contains strong acids that kill many of the bacteria commonly associated with bird feces. Because of their diet, these birds are able to kill harmful bacteria and viruses with their stomach acids, and halt the potential spread of disease from rotting carcasses.

IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION:
When should I NOT discourage vulture roosting?
You must carefully consider the circumstances surrounding your roost before making the decision to discourage roosting in a particular area. If vultures are roosting in wooded areas near homes, but not causing property damage, you may decide to leave them where they are.
Why? Turkey Vultures exist in healthy numbers throughout the states. They have also adapted well to human presence. If and when they are successfully discouraged from a roosting site, they often move only a short distance. The nearest and next-best roosting site may turn out to be a home, office building, or shopping center, which would severely exacerbate the problem. Leaving them in a wooded area, where they cause minimal disturbance, is always the best solution.
If the birds are roosting over structures or in yards, or causing damage to property, however, read on.
To learn more about the vulture’s positive traits, and ways they can benefit your local environment, please contact the Turkey Vulture Society. In addition to education you, we may also provide you with pamphlets, a powerpoint presentation, and other educational materials that will help you to make your neighbors aware of the importance of these birds.

When SHOULD I discourage vulture roosting?
If your vultures are roosting on or directly above homes or other buildings, or are causing property damage, you should consider the following measures for discouraging roosting behavior.



Measures for discouraging vulture roosts:

(be sure you have read the important consideration above!)

Vultures roosting on or immediately above houses and buildings:

The best way to discourage vultures is to create an inhospitable environment. Before you resort to expensive or otherwise difficult measures, try simple deterrents. The following suggestions are listed in order of expense/ease, not necessarily effectiveness.:

1) Shake the trees
After the vultures have settled into their night roost at dusk, go out and shake the trees they are roosting in. Disturbing their comfort on a regular basis may encourage them to move elsewhere.

2) Make noise
Frequently run outside, clapping and shouting, or set off firecrackers throughout the week (if legal in your area).

3) Hang shiny, fluttery objects in the roost to frighten them away.
If you wish to try this, but the trees are too high, one way is to tie the objects (such as CD’s) to helium balloons, and release them into the trees where they will catch.
Note: This can backfire if your vultures are too curious and playful, as they have been known to be. After a while, the vultures may discover that the objects pose them no risk, at which point they will instead become fun toys. So it is best to initially accompany this tactic with noise or blasts from a garden hose, and to be careful not to hang these items somewhere that you would find to be a particularly undesirable secondary vulture roost.

4) Ordinary sprinkler systems (the kind that squirt high-powered jets of water)
If you can get a sprinkler jet to reach into the middle of the roost, and turn it on whenever they look like they are making themselves comfortable, you may find success.

5) Taut Lines
Vultures roosting on peaked roofs, rafters, and radio towers can be eliminated with the installation of a taut line. Wire or fishing line, stretched tightly 6 to 8 inches above the perching surface will make it difficult for the birds to land or perch comfortably. The line must be tight enought that the birds cannot weigh it down, and high enough that they cannot straddle it.

6) The SCARECROW ™
This is no ordinary scarecrow. It is a motion-activated sprinkler maufactured by Contech. It is the BEST means we have tested that has successfully deterred long-term problem vulture roosting. (For more information on SCARECROW, read the article printed at the bottom of the page).
 
Spray them with the garden hose, air horn, get one of those quad copter drone things and chase them, or call your local Fish and Wildlife department and see what they suggest.
Well..the garden hose would take me about 15 minutes to get operational -- and I don't believe it would reach my roof or the trees..and the birds would be watching and laughing...

Air horn might work, but would scare all the birds.

Now the quad copter is intriguing...I was thinking it would be good for squirrels...but maybe the buzzards, too.
 
use owl decoys. i use them to scare other birds of prey away from chicken coops. the vultures will stay away from a an owls turf.
I would expect that the birds would soon figure out that the owls weren't real...and I didn't realize that owls preyed on vultures..:001_huh:
 
There are. They are protected.
I want to annoy not kill...I think I'm legal with that...as long as I don't interfere with nesting/breeding...not an issue with this crowd. They just come and hang out to be a bother.
 
If you call the EPA they may side with the vultures and force you to move because your encroachment on a protected species.
 
How do you get the bird to get into the cannon?...and how far does it propel the bird? :001_rolle
I forgot about those. Some farms in my area use these. They sound like someone shooting a shot gun or something slightly louder, but it just a blank and no shot or projectile of any kind. But as stated, it will scarecall birds.
 

Intrigued

Bigfoot & Bagel aficionado.
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