Crows! Ugh...

[Chocaholic]

Walked down to the dock on Friday afternoon and see a large crow (blackbird...I’m assuming it’s a crow) on top of the rolled up Bimini top on our (new) boat. As I approach he flies off. I look in the boat and it’s an absolute mess. Not sure if it was birdshlt or regurgitated food but it took me an hour to get it all cleaned up. Purple/yellow slime with various seeds, etc. Yuck. I lowered the Bimini top to rest on the engine cover hoping to take away his perch.

Fast forward 24 hours. I go to the boat...no bird this time but clearly he had been there. Another complete mess with the added bonus of two holes poked into the vinyl seat back near the bow. It looked like two pencil holes, perhaps done with a beak.

This time after cleanup I put the full boat cover on (a PITA) and as of now, no more mess. We use the boat routinely so keeping the cover on is not ideal. It’s on a boat lift in a covered dock.

What can I do to make my dock undesirable for Gods little creature? There’s already an owl decoy in plain view but he doesn’t seem impressed.

[billybek]

Sucks.
See pellet gun thread...

[dar636]

Originally Posted by billybek

Sucks.
See pellet gun thread...

+1, though go sniper style lest the rest of his "murder" sees you. Then all hell will break loose as they exact revenge. Ask me how I know...

[svandamme]

Don't mess with crows.. they are stupid smart and will get back at you if you take one of them down.

It's better to teach em you are a cool hoomin and that you reward em for not messing with yer chit.
I got Jackdaws here.. they are bit smarter even then crows..

They know my cars and won't dook on em, cause I occasionally give em nuts.
And having Jackdaws around means there are no stoopid pigeons around.. and those are to stoopid to be taught not to dook on my cars





Jackdaws can be taught to become pet.. they can talk and bond very close to their hoomin.
To the point they become jealous of other pets in the house, and start picking on the cat or dog.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by dar636

+1, though go sniper style lest the rest of his "murder" sees you. Then all hell will break loose as they exact revenge. Ask me how I know...

That sounds like a story that we need to hear!!

[cabmandone]

Starlings here are TERRIBLE. Been whackin em as much as possible but they just keep coming! Worst part is, I have a terribly gun shy dog so I can't break out much more than my pellet rifle or he'll spend the rest of the day scared.

[craigster59]

Sounds like a Raven. Bigger than Crows. We have them here. About 24" tall, clucking and cawing all the time. Smart birds.

[Chocaholic]

Just ordered a wind chime that I’ll hang on the dock just above the boat. Maybe the sound will be more annoying to them than it will to me.

[Seahawk]

Crows and Ravens, as stated, are the Enrico Fermis' of bird land.

Get smart on the clean up side. We have so many birds all around the farm that the cars and equipment do take a hit.

I bought this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07M7L1WKK?tag=duckduckgo-ffsb-20&linkCode=osi&th=1&psc=1



Battery powered, suctions water from a bucket (or lake water), just the right PSI. I have a gas powered pressure washer I'll probably use once a year now.

Great for house uses as well.

Edit: In Washington State, the capitol of tree/fruit in this country, crows and Ravens laugh at wind chimes, random air guns that sound like rifles, etc. The tree/fruit folks have tried everything.

They adapt, over come: Clint Eastwood with wings.

[svandamme]

agreed, wind chimes won't bother em even the slightest bit

[Chocaholic]

Ok, cancelling wind chimes! Interestingly, with the boat cover on and the Bimini down, he has not come back.





Yet.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by Chocaholic

Ok, cancelling wind chimes! Interestingly, with the boat cover on and the Bimini down, he has not come back.

He is reading your thread right now on his or her iCrow.

Seriously.

[cabmandone]

Since the birds are smart, try yelling "How'd ya like it if I come sh.t all over your stuff pal? And I'll be comin over on Taco Tuesday!"

[rfuerst911sc]

Get a hot female blow up crow doll and dress it up all sexy with red lipstick on the beak . Place it in neighbors yard ............ problem solved

[Jeff Higgins]

Yeah, that really sucks. We deal with crows around here all the time. We are midway on their flight path from their nests to the local shopping mall where they do all of their dumpster diving. It seems our neighborhood is one of their favorite stops on their morning and evening commutes - sometimes we have what must be literally thousands of the damn things hanging out.

Shooting them is not the answer. You'll run out of ammo before you run out of crows. That, and they are remarkably tough to kill. And, as others have noted, remarkably intelligent - and vengeful. When I was still young and stupid (o.k., more stupid) I made the mistake of shooting them in my yard. The only result was that, for a time, my wife, two sons, and I could not sit out in the back yard - we would get attacked by crows. Real deal, Bodega Bay style. Literally pecking at our heads.

So, I think "defense is the best offense". Cover your stuff, don't give them places to perch, and that kind of thing. Here in the PNW, seagulls are an even bigger problem, at least around our docks. I'm not sure you've seen this, or if it would even be acceptable, but here is how we keep seagulls off of our stuff:



Granted, you can't cover your boat like this, but using something like this to reduce the other places they can land seems to be effective. Kinda ugly, though...

[RWebb]

Shooting them is also illegal. Federal law. You may not go to prison, but it will NOT be fun.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by cabmando

Starlings here are TERRIBLE. Been whackin em as much as possible but they just keep coming! Worst part is, I have a terribly gun shy dog so I can't break out much more than my pellet rifle or he'll spend the rest of the day scared.

In Houston, we have grackles and starlings (they come through together) almost year round, but they do also migrate through past. I have at times seen a line of them in the sky from horizon to horizon that looks like this



Working downtown, there are years that downtown looks like a scene from "The Birds" with every stationary spot used as a perch.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by RWebb

Shooting them is also illegal. Federal law. You may not go to prison, but it will NOT be fun.

Not true. They are not protected under federal law. State law applies, both with regard to shooting crows and where one can and cannot discharge a "firearm", the definition of which varies widely state to state.

Here in Washington, we used to only be able to shoot crows when caught in "an act of depredation". It was open season all year, no license required - as long as they were stealing or damaging something. Of course most of us could tell they were about to, or were at least thinking about it, which to us was "close enough". An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure and all of that...

In light of that, the real inability to police these matters, the state relented. It's now open season, year round, no requirements, no limits. Anytime, anywhere, for any reason. At least as far as the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is concerned. The only thing to be mindful of is that "discharge of a firearm" thing. In my town, an air rifle is a "firearm". It is, however, legal across the state to dispatch "nuisance wildlife" by any means at your disposal, including discharging a firearm in the city limits.

[john70t]

Davis,CA downtown is on the migration path. All the downtown cars turned spotted white and the bare trees turned black.
And we've gotten the flocks occasionally here in Mich as well. What a mess.

I second the idea of making the dock a more unwelcome place to hang out.
Get a motion activated sonic or water spray device.

Talk to them while walking forward and let them know it's yer turf. Claim the space. They are smart.
If that doesn't work clap hands, and yell 'go away' a little.
Animals understand even when they don't seem to care.

[RWebb]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

Not true. They are not protected under federal law. .

wrong

Crows are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The Act covers almost all song birds in the US (passerines).

You can however apply for a permit.

They are also protected under many state laws.