In an apparent effort to keep sea gulls from scavenging, restaurant managers in Sydney are currently trying different deterrents, including a robot bird to protect patrons who dine along the Sydney Opera House.
The giant mechanical bird worth USD 6500 would prevent the out-of-control gulls targeting or attacking tourists and diners for free food.
The idea was first used by Scotland’s Network Railway to keep Edinburgh’s main train station free from birds and poop by building a robot falcon to scare them away.
The massive predators are made of plastic but they are designed to swivel their heads, flap their wings and shriek.
It may be recalled that singer Hilary Duff was attacked by a flock of seagulls while eating lunch at Sydney’s Opera bar. The population of seagulls increases quite significantly in spring making it tough for patrons to eat at the restaurants around Sydney’s Opera House.
Signs in multiple languages have been installed by management across the the city and beaches, advising the public to not feed birds and prevent them from scavenging.
Management has installed signs in multiple languages advising the public to not feed birds
A spokeswoman for the Opera House said that several deterrents were being explored, adding that setting baits is not an option as seagulls are a native species, protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Act.
“Our venue operators and the Opera House have trialled other additional measures on an ad-hoc basis, including kites that resembled owls and an audio deterrent,” the spokeswoman said. “None, including the mock bird of prey, has proved very effective,” she added.
“We have been advised that the best way to manage them is to take away the food source but, being a waterfront dining destination and a fish market, completely removing the food source is not an option,” the spokeswoman said.
source:delhidailynews.com
STUDIO 3 NEWCASTLE AUSTRALIA 