Bird Control & Solutions

Birds can be a nuisance for businesses. Not only do birds pose a risk to your property with acidic droppings and blocked ventilation systems, many carry diseases that can have a lasting effect on your employees, clients, the public, and any animals that come into contact with your property. Additionally, a bird’s nest is flammable and if built under certain circumstances, such as in electric signs, there is a severe risk of fire.

Some birds are extremely mobile and can become trapped inside buildings while others establish their nests on the outside walls. It is important to note that many birds are beneficial to the environment, while others are legally protected by various levels of government, even if they have become a nuisance to a business owner. You want to ensure you address a bird infestation in a humane manner.

A flight of pigeons can often become overwhelming to a business, especially a secluded business where there is very few options for the birds to live and eat or where the public teaches the birds to come near for morsels of food. Not only can the pigeons be unsightly, hanging out on the property, but their droppings can accumulate. Unfortunately, those droppings can quickly add up and they are difficult to clean.

One option for pigeons is live trapping and relocation. To do so, Greenshield technicians set up live traps in high traffic areas. The traps are humane with sufficient food to keep the birds nourished until we can relocate them. In the end, both hatchlings and adult birds can be relocated without injury.

For trapping to be effective however you must have a strict policy for feeding them. You cannot have someone enticing them into a different direction when you’re trying to lead them to the live trap. Greenshield will establish an easy protocol for you and your staff to follow so you can properly limit the populations. We will also establish a plan to remove the droppings so you, your clients, your employees, and the public will be safe and won’t have to deal with it.
Some birds are extremely mobile and can become trapped inside buildings while others establish their nests on the outside walls. It is important to note that many birds are beneficial to the environment, while others are legally protected by various levels of government, even if they have become a nuisance to a business owner. You want to ensure you address a bird infestation in a humane manner.

The most effective method of control is to exclude sparrows from the area with 3/4″ StealthNet, making sure there are no gaps or crevices for the birds to pass through. The only ledge deterrent systems that are truly effective against sparrows are electrified ledge systems that use an intermittent pulse like Bird-Shock Flex-Track. New 2-chambered Sparrow Traps are quite effective at trapping small quantities of sparrows. The best trap has an elevated second chamber that keeps the birds happy and so content that they actually sing, attracting others to the trap. When practical, the trapping program should be combined with a nest removal program that will greatly reduce the population over time.

Along with trapping, mist nets can be installed in the flight paths by certified personnel to capture these birds in enclosed areas. A new technique that has found some success for moving populations is to fog problem areas with Avian Control. This method is most commonly applied when sparrows gather in flocks. Sparrows generally do not react to audio and visual products except occasionally in areas to which they are not very committed (new to area).

All Swallows enjoy special protection under the law. You cannot disturb them once they lay their egg in the nest. The only way to eliminate cliff and barn Swallow problems is to take down the nests in the winter after they are gone and exclude them from returning by using 3/4″ StealthNet. The netting needs to be angled across the eaves to prevent access to any sharp building angles. Several strands of Birdwire can also be run under eaves in strategic patterns at angles to prevent nest build up as well. BirdSlide can be inverted under eaves to prevent nest building.
Along with trapping, mist nets can be installed in the flight paths by certified personnel to capture these birds in enclosed areas. A new technique that has found some success for moving populations is to fog problem areas with Avian Control. This method is most commonly applied when sparrows gather in flocks. Sparrows generally do not react to audio and visual products except occasionally in areas to which they are not very committed (new to area).

Non-migratory Canada Geese are difficult to remove. Once established, immediate corrective landscaping and behavioural modification is imperative: Remove cover shrubbery; use herbicides to eliminate aquatic vegetation; and reduce fertilizer, especially around pond area, to make grass less nutritionally attractive.

Visual scare products like Flash Tape combined with Avian Control taste deterrent should be employed as soon as the birds enter the area, varying in location and type. For more established flock’s audio scare devices like Bird Gard or Extreme Ultrasonic System that project a variety of sounds through several speaker locations in a random pattern should be set up at strategically placed intervals. All systems require constant re-enforcement and should be relocated frequently to remain a convincing threat to the birds.

Physical barriers such as overhead Gridwire and 4″ mesh StealthNet can be extremely effective barriers but are site specific. These grids can be installed above water surface to prevent landing. Fencing made of Gridwire (.96mm) provides a discrete barrier to dissuade geese from entering property (especially from water areas) and can be electrified for increased effectiveness. Wire fencing applications should begin approximately 1′ off the ground with successive strands approximately 1″ above the last to a height of at least three feet. Four-inch mesh StealthNet with 1/2″ reflective Flash Tape hanging from it can also be utilized above and around ponds and grassy areas.

Gridwire systems and large 4″ mesh StealthNet will deny access to large open areas. Bird-Flite spikes, 5″ Bird-Coil, and Bird-Shock Flex-Track are very effective on ledges depending on the level of bird pressure. The Daddi Long Legs is a great product to dissuade Gulls from landing on silos, street lights, A/C units & large flat rooftops. For feeding sites such as dumps, a wide variety of Audio and Visual Deterrents like the Scare Eye Ballon and high tech multiple and random sound distress call units like the Bird-Gard units should be combined with exclusionary products such as Gridwire systems, TowerGuard or 4″ StealthNet.