Bird Spikes (BARRIERS for Pigeons, Seagulls, Starlings & Crows)

bird-spikes

Birds are beautiful, winged creatures that are well-worth watching and learning more about. Unfortunately, they can also be tremendous pests once they have set up camp on your actual property. People who have unchecked populations of birds on their businesses or homes are often subject to ridiculous amounts of bird droppings and a range of other issues.

More importantly, like all other living species, birds can play host to invasive insects and parasites that could cause problems for humans living nearby. This is why it is often to have an effective method of exclusion in place.

Bird spikes are among the most common repellent method against unwanted bird populations.

What Bird Spikes Are And Why They Work

If you have never seen bird spikes before, simply take a closer look at the exterior of one of your favorite fast food restaurants or on the upper platforms at a local bus depot or train station.

These are small collections of short, metal spires that are situated in upward-facing clusters. They are placed on all horizontal surfaces that might provide acceptable landing nesting grounds.

Although they certainly look imposing, these spikes are not actually meant to harm birds. Instead, they are a very effective, visual deterrent. Birds see them and know that they must move on to more habitable grounds.

Restaurants commonly use these spikes in order to ensure that their customers feel safe. Certain species of birds can be surprisingly aggressive. If there were no bird spikes in place, avian populations would proliferate and people would have a hard time getting to their cars with their foods.

Spikes are also effective for ensuring that eggs are not laid on any part of the property. This keeps unwanted bird populations in check. Birds spikes additionally ensure that birds are not congregating near waste collection receptacles or forcibly taking food out of customers’ hands.

Nothing is worse than paying for a meal only to have an aggressive bird swoop down out of the sky and fly off with it.

Using Bird Spikes In Conjunction With Other Forms Of Pest Control

There are actually a number of additional ways to deter birds from congregating on or near a property. For instance, many restaurants also have large, owl statues that are situated right near their bird spikes. 

This is commonly referred to as the scarecrow method. Birds are not likely to congregate near owls and thus, adding a few of these statues to your property is an effective way to make your bird spikes doubly effective.

Owls can be posted in areas in which it is neither feasible nor safe to use spikes. With each of these methods, there is absolutely no need to cause physical harm to the birds. Rather than hurting these creatures, you are simply giving them a reason to go somewhere else.

There are even a number of potential benefits that birds can gain from an effective exclusion strategy. For instance, birds that would otherwise congregate near a fast food restaurant will have to take up lodging elsewhere.

If all commercial businesses within the local area have bird spikes set up, these winged creatures will likely return closer to their own natural habitats and will begin eating foods that will best support their health.

Ultimately, birds are meant to subsist on insects, worms and nectar rather than discarded french fries. Thus, while bird spikes have a look about them that might make them seem painful or cruel, they can be just as advantageous to avian creatures as they are to the humans who use them.

Why Use Bird Spikes?

Bird spikes could be right for your residential or commercial property if passing birds are constantly choosing to nest on or within the actual building structure.

Wherever bird nests exists, droppings can become problematic and this is all the more true when birds opt to nest in areas that are right above cars with costly paint jobs.

Rather than paying to constantly wash this debris off the windows and hood of your car, you can instead implement a cost-effective and much longer-lasting solution that will keep your property clean and sends birds back to where they belong.

As a commercial property owner, you are liable for any accidents or injuries that are sustained on your property. When any animal populations are allowed to swell unchecked, this increases the amount of risk that you carry.

Not all birds are aggressive, however, some are. This is definitely true of bird populations that are prone to congregating near garbage bins or businesses that have a constant supply of food. Bird spikes could be essential for preventing unpleasant encounters and unnecessary accidents and injuries.

Why Bird Spikes Are Preferable To Other Pest Control Methods

If properly installed, bird spikes are not likely to have any significant impact on the aesthetic appeal or structural integrity of your property.

They will limit the amount of bird droppings that are present on the property exterior, thereby protecting the curbside appeal of the building.

This, however, is hardly the sole reason why bird spikes are preferable to other pest control methods.

Also referred to as “porcupine wire”, bird spikes are easy install and can be placed on all horizontal surfaces to inhibit landing. Plastic netting or chicken wire devices are aesthetically unappealing, difficult to install and not generally as effective.

When compared to bird spikes, plastic netting is also much more likely to trap additional debris that must be manually removed over time. Properly installed “porcupine wire” or bird spikes can be easily pressure washed with the remainder of the building as needed, or simply rinsed clean with a regular garden hose.

Published
Categorized as Birds

By David Jackson

I enjoy learning about new pest control strategies and sharing what I learn at NeverPest.com. I aim to create a reliable resource for people dealing with all sorts of pest issues.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I accept the Terms and Conditions and the Privacy Policy

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.