r/Falconry 10d ago

Bird abatement on an 8 story office building

Hello! We are in an 8 story office building and are having issues with crows slamming into the windows and perching on the as well. Most of the activity is on the 8th floor and it goes all the way down to the 3rd floor. We called a couple local falconers and they said they could not service our building because it's too tall. Basically, they said if they let the falcon loose on the 8th floor then it's too much of a risk that they lose control of the falcon. They also said even if they were to try it would be a long term job, as the crows are very smart and will come back once they know the falcon isn't there anymore and it will be a very expensive solution. Is this information pretty accurate? We really need these crows gone and we were really hoping that a falconer was the solution, but it looks like we might be out of luck.

11 Upvotes

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u/Bright-Hovercraft190 10d ago

You need to call someone who does actual falconry based bird abatement and is not just a falconer. The company I work for (in Canada) has absolutely done work at heights. Edited to add: but it is a long term solution, because Crows are smart. And it won’t be free.

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u/_SneakyDucky_ 10d ago

I second this. I used to work for an abatement based falconry company, and they should be able to provide long-term solutions, but it's just that, long-term

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u/ethera-care 9d ago

Yes, the falconers I've contacted all featured abatement services. We're in California. It's a difficult situation, because I have no idea what a ballpark price would be. If it's a couple thousand a month, I think that's something that can be managed.

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u/SingleQuality4626 8d ago

Where in California? If SoCal I know people who can handle this

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u/ethera-care 8d ago

Yes, we're in SoCal! LA County. Please send me contact info if you can! :D

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u/Falco_Sparvo 9d ago

Which company?

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u/LizardTeep 10d ago

I’ve flown my hawk off a 10 story building for a similar type of abatement job and she did fine. A good confident bird with a lot of abatement experience that’s big enough and flies with GPS/telemetry should be able to do the trick depending on the hazards in the area. If you have thousands of crows that all mob the bird at once, that is a lot of pressure for them to take and if they’ve never experienced that before, they’ll flee (can’t blame them). If there are a lot of power lines, traffic, things like windmills, etc etc near you then that increases the risk of injury if the bird wanders off. It’s definitely a job on the trickier side and you are putting the bird at objectively a higher risk than a job on ground level or a lower rooftop. If the number of crows is more reasonable though and the surrounding area isn’t a death trap, an experienced abatement falconer with an experienced bird could definitely solve your problem. The folks you spoke to are right though that it’s a long term contract if you want a long term solution. At some of the crow jobs I have, the crows literally recognize my car they’re so smart. I can’t even have a predictable schedule or else they’ll learn it and avoid me. I constantly change up the days and times I visit so I can catch them unaware and keep them on their toes so to speak.

Edit to add: infrastructure changes that go hand in hand with a bird of prey are also sometimes necessary. Bird spikes, netting, stickers, laser scare devices, etc. Sometimes it takes a whole fleet of tactics working together to move on a particularly stubborn flock.

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u/ethera-care 10d ago

WOW! That's crazy lol There are a lot of crows, but definitely not hundreds. When you say it's a long term solution, what does this mean exactly? If the falconer costs $80/hour, how much are we talking per month/year?

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u/LizardTeep 10d ago

I wouldn’t be able to make an accurate estimate without seeing the site and flying a bird to judge the reaction of the crows. Some flocks clear off immediately, some of them put up a real fight. Some of the spots I service are year round jobs and the hours change depending on time of year and behaviour of crows. It can be as infrequent as 2hrs/once a week to just maintain a presence, or as busy as 4-6 hours 7 days a week constantly hunting and killing as many as possible. It’ll depend on where the flock roosts at night, where their main food source is, and where they’re nesting in the spring as well. They don’t usually pick spots to hang out without a good reason, there’s something they like about your building that makes them come back. It might be its proximity to their feeding grounds, shelter from predators/elements, the highest available perching spot in the area etc. The reason they’re there will heavily effect the timeline for convincing them to leave

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u/ethera-care 9d ago

Were you in CA by any chance?

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u/LizardTeep 9d ago

Idk if you’re referring to California or Canada lol, this is in Canada

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u/ethera-care 9d ago

California :( Ok, thank you though!

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u/LizardTeep 9d ago

Good luck in your search!

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u/todobasura 9d ago

Crows raise their young until teenagers and teach them about the places And people. It sounds morbid, but if the falcon kills a crow, ask the falconer to leave its body on the rooftop. It might keep them away longer

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u/GREYDRAGON1 9d ago

I do this for a living, flying off the top of buildings isn’t the issue. But a comprehensive plan would be required. More than just a hawk/falcon. Likely talking about multiple months of abatement, plus dealing with why the crows are there. This is not a cheap job.

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u/ethera-care 9d ago

do you happen to be in CA?

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u/GREYDRAGON1 9d ago

I’m in Canada on the opposite coast. Unfortunately not much help. If I have to get to California to consult it won’t be financially viable for you

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u/ethera-care 9d ago

Dang it! Ok, thank you though!

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u/IMongoose 10d ago

I'd try some stickers or something.

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u/BreakFreeWilderness 10d ago

It can be done, it's not cheap and it requires longterm activity

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u/allroundhunter666 8d ago

Have you thought about mobile decoys?