Starlings

B

bairdag

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I have a catamaran that attracts starlings onto the rigging. Literally hundreds; thousands of starling poos over a few days. I think the only way to get rid of them is to create an electric fence with my shrouds. The cheapest I can find is http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...iveASIN=B0094QR4RI&linkCode=as2&tag=suebsu-21 with a shock of 0.3 joules

Will this do any harm to the instrumentation? Any advice as to how I can be sure it gets to all the rigging?
 
I don't think that it'll trouble your starlings much. It might make your prop fizz a little, though. And your neighbours' too if you're in a marina.
 
Sadly yes, the only one to get zapped will be you when you grab the shroud to haul yourself aboard. Mind you, there are a few people I'd like that to happen to before they set foot on my boat...

Rob.
 
Funny, I seem to attract less birds as I get older!

But on a serious note - I used to be bombarded by starlings in Gosport; much less of a problem in Port Solent, even makes the confounded lock worthwhile.
 
You don't say what type of mooring you have. This was a major problem in the marinas at the mouth of Portsmouth harbour. In the end, the only thing that seemed to be effective was a real hawk being flown. The marina paid for this, but if you are on a buoy you might be able to club together with your neigbours to get a falconer in.
 
ianfr said:
I think there should be a Royal Society for the Persecution of Birds.......
Ian & Jo
Click to expand...
+1
Just today read in a newspaper that herring gulls are a species regarded as being in decline and a conservation worry. We're infested with the @*%$£ things in Cornish towns and villages.....
 
Have a look on Alibaba under Home & Garden > Pest Control > Eradicate The Four Pests

Strictly speaking it's about sparrows but that should do fine.
 
What has worked for me, although not specifically against starlings, is to run a light line from mast to topping lift a few inches above the boom, and from mast to shroud a couple of inches above the spreaders. I used old fly fishing line. You don't need to hang old cd's or anything off the line, its the line itself that deters them from landing.
 
The hang-in the rigging owls, hawks etc aren't worth a fig, but a motor boat close to mine has a kind of kite with a hawk and it hovers in the lightest breeze - would be interesting to try to adapt it to sail boat.
 
Even though boats around me on a club trot mooring were badly splattered by purple poo last september my boat was totally clear which I think was due to the wind genny putting them off. I have never had a problem with birds in 11 years and moored in lots of places but I did then have 2 wind generators!
 
Not a very nice thought, but do ordinary garden birds flock to an area where one of their number is deceased? If you were to pop one with an air-gun then hang it from the shrouds, it might have the desired effect.
 
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