Entrepreneur claims technology is the answer to menace
An entrepreneur who has developed equipment to scare away birds believes he has found the answer to Bath's gull menace.
Bob Painting, who has designed scarers which use recordings of real bird alarm cries, said the technology was the only answer to the problem.
Mr Painting originally developed the equipment 40 years ago for farmers looking to protect their crops, based on the theory that birds are deterred by the sound of one of their species in distress.
He has now set up the business Wingaway, selling the technology to individuals and companies.
The cries that are played were initially produced by the Ministry of Agriculture and are used by the Royal Air Force and commercial airports to clear the skies.
Mr Painting, who lives in Dauntsey, near Chippenham, said he had visited Bath recently and had noticed how bad the problem had got.
He said: "There is no other way of getting rid of them. I'm not a person in favour of culling birds, not because I don't like killing them, but because it doesn't work."
Mr Painting stressed that feeding the birds deliberately or inadvertently through litter was contributing to the problem and said it needed to stop.
He said: "Bath has got a problem and it is because people do feed them.
"They leave too much litter and food about, which they [the birds] like."
Bath and North East Somerset Council has said it will not issue fines to people who feed the birds, but the authority has ordered signs advising people not to do so.
The signs, which will be put up in gull and pigeon hotspots, are due to go up in two weeks' time.
5 Comments
by Ali, Bath
Friday, September 03 2010, 4:47PM
“If you don't kill them off (with egg tampering or an old-fashioned shot-gun), then you'll just relocate them.
Potentially this equipment will scare them away from where food is abundant and they'll starve to death. Surely a swift cull would be more moral way of reducing numbers.”
by Abogado, Bath City Centre.
Friday, September 03 2010, 10:30AM
“Increduously, not only do Bathonians have to tolerate live Seagulls, But it would appear that the city council are none too bothered about clearing rotting carcases of the dead ones.
I am presently looking at such a sight in James Street West which, not withstanding many calls to council connect, has been there for over a week.
As can be well imagined this has attracted Rats and other Seagulls.
Is this an example of the way that the council are prepared to allow our city to degenerate whilst those who rule and manage bleed us dry?”
by Vernon, Bay Tree Road
Thursday, September 02 2010, 7:22PM
“So is Bob Paining going to prove that his equipment really works by setting up scarers in and around Bath?
If he clears the gulls of Bath he will be a millionaire in no time as other cities and towns around the world look to buy his Wingaway products.
But could he make sure that Fairfield Park (especially Bay Tree Road) is in the testing area. I wouldn't want to see the centre's gulls just migrating to the outskirts of Bath.
Put your money where your mouth is Bob, please.”
by Ann, Bath
Thursday, September 02 2010, 5:40PM
“I have read that using bird scarers only results in the gulls depositing more of the stuff we are trying to clean up !”
by Pete, Gull Central (aka Western Riverside)
Thursday, September 02 2010, 2:09PM
“"culling birds...doesn't work."
Why does this bizarre claim keep getting repeated? Let's put it to the test.
If a gull is culled, it can no longer cause a nuisance!
And if, a few years after a cull, the gull problem re-emerged, as more gulls bred or moved in to Bath, then cull them too.
Our councillors and town hall bureaucrats just look for excuses to avoid decisive action - oiling the gulls' eggs and flying a falcon over the city centre are totally ineffective - a pathetically cosmetic and superficial response to an ever-growing problem.
Too many of our so-called local councillors/public servants (whose salaries we pay) seem to be burying their heads in the sand in dealing with this problem. Do they think that if they keep ignoring the gull menace year after year - a 1,000 breeding pairs in Bath, appparently, increasing by about 7% each year - the gulls will suddenly decide to go elsewhere, and leave us all in peace?
Come on, get real; get culling!”