From the Rochesterians for Crows fb page
Hello Mayor,
Is there some explanation for why the city spent $21,000 (if media reports are accurate) getting rid of one on the most wonderful aspects of my neighborhood? I live on Walton Street and I love the crows. They are part of this city and have been for years. My daughter and I watched the Nova special on PBS about how wicked smart they are. It is (or was) part of our life to wake up to them and enjoy their energy at twilight when we walk the dog. They are (or were) part of the fabric of our daily life. Now, they are just gone. Is it true that crows destroy windshield wipers (another media claim)? Is it true that clean-up costs a lot? I have never seen city crews cleaning up any of their waste, but we were recently disturbed for hours at a time, night after night, by whatever fireworks and laser pointers that were employed to get rid of them. How come nobody asked us if we wanted that? Was there a warning that I missed? Is it OK for me to come to your neighborhood and simply remove something you appreciate, without even talking to you? With all the problems this city faces, economic and otherwise, I find it outrageous that this action was taken. And, on top of it, no one seems to care enough to even address the concerns that so many of us in the South Wedge, and elsewhere, have about this situation. The spokeperson for the effort said on the radio that it would probaly, ultimately, fail. So, we're all out 20 grand, but what will the City's response be if they come back?
...and the response...
Thank you for your recent email sharing your concerns about our recent efforts to reduce the number of crows that are nesting in our center city this winter. The feces generated by the large winter crow roost, which numbers from 15,000 to 20,000 birds in downtown Rochester, poses a public nuisance to people and property, as well as a potential health threat. The City has researched methods for mitigating the problem. Among those methods is habitat modification, which includes the removal of healthy trees. In fact, the problem was so severe that private property owners downtown have understandably already cut down dozens of mature, healthy trees. At the recommendation of and in conjunction with the USDA’s Division of Wildlife Services, the City is currently pursuing non-harmful scare tactics to disperse the roost. Similar tactics have been used successfully in other municipalities.
So far, this effort has been successful in our city. After five nights of working with the USDA the population of crows nesting in our center city has been greatly reduced from an estimated 20,000 to less than 2,000. We are hopeful that this number stays low so that we will not have to repeat this work anytime before spring.
...and my response...
Thanks very much for your reply. I appreciate it. Some people told me I'd never hear anything, but I was confident that there would be an openness to dialogue on this. I'm happy you proved me right!
That one line you set in boldface ("In fact, the problem was so severe that private property owners downtown have understandably already cut down dozens of mature, healthy trees.") is indeed alarming, but I think we might differ on the reason. I think the idea of cutting down trees so birds won't land in them is like something out of the Twilight Zone. And, of course, as you know, there are many private property owners who would not only never consider such an option, but actually welcome and enjoy the presence of the crows, feces and all. I'm interested to know why their view was not taken into account, and also about the particulars of the health threat. What exactly happens when there's crow waste on the sidewalk? I'm also curious about what other methods were researched by the city. Did they include effigies, as described here...
http://ddr.nal.usda.gov/bitstream/10113/23402/1/IND44157887.pdfThis seems insane, not to mention cruel, but if there are people not at peace living in the world around them, wouldn't this enable those property owners a choice short of clear cutting, and short of a blanket ruling that affects the entire neighborhood?
I hope this option, among others, can be examined with community input. To simply replay this whole drama (when and if these remarkable creatures return to the trees that belong to them) would be unfortunate, to put it mildly.
Thank you again. I look forward to hearing back.
...and the latest...
In addition to being a nuisance, crow feces on the sidewalk and on park benches on the order it was happening is a potential health threat. There are a number of different diseases which can be present in crow feces. Because of the time frame in which the problem occurs (winter), it is often not possible to clean it up when it needs to be cleaned because of freezing temperatures. The problem with the feces at St, Mary’s was that it was being tracked inside the church and the stench from it was offending people, so it is more than understandable why St. Mary’s went to such lengths to solve the problem.
The use of crow effigies is an option of which we and the USDA are aware and will likely use in conjunction with the lasers, pyrotechnics, and distress calls that have been effective thus far. It is our hope that these non-lethal means will be an effective way to deal with this issue in the future.
