Controlling starlings

[Bella_vista]

Wondered what works best if anything does. Starlings been here about a week, more every day.
Turn up as it's coming light, away by dusk. We feed on the outside of the sheds so they have plenty to eat. They perch on every bar, every gate. The cows are covered.
Been banging the 12 over there backs but they just fly round and back in again. I see lasers and sonic speakers for sale, looking for recommendations please

 

[Jerry]

@Bald Rick has the T shirt on this subject

 

[Werzle]

A mixture of gas bangers,shotguns, fake birds of prey and real ones perhaps.

 

[Woody j]

They are nearly impossible to shift, just keep coming back

 

[copse]

Just keep shooting they should eventually get to message.

 

[som farmer]

on another thread on here, some costings about how much it costs you, a lot.

we have managed to keep free, for 3 winters. Our 'method' is simple, you just keep moving them, bangers, 12 b etc, but best deterrent, man.

as soon as they start, keep moving them, never let them settle. They then cannot eat enough, and moving increases their energy needs, they are not daft, so they have to move on. Might take a week, damn sight cheaper than buying 'gadgets' and losing nutrients.

the other thread, was talking costs of £30,000 on a big unit. But you have to start, as soon as they 'find' you.

 

[Sparkymark]

Keep a few big cockerals roaming about the place here.
Starlings think there a bird of prey and dont come near. Works well for me.

 

[davidroberts30]

Don't feed in daylight!
Feed after dusk

 

[Bald Rick]

Wondered what works best if anything does. Starlings been here about a week, more every day.
Turn up as it's coming light, away by dusk. We feed on the outside of the sheds so they have plenty to eat. They perch on every bar, every gate. The cows are covered.
Been banging the 12 over there backs but they just fly round and back in again. I see lasers and sonic speakers for sale, looking for recommendations please

All in here …

Infested ... and helpless. Ideas?

Unbelievable. 2,000, 5,000, 10,000, more?? (Photo taken at 7.45am this morning) Never seen this number before & totally helpless. Running bird scare alarm, laser and bangers but they don't care anymore and frankly I have run out of ideas other than to feed towards dusk but I am doubting this...

thefarmingforum.co.uk

Unfortunately, they quickly become habituated to any control method until you give up.

I have to say that this year is the worst so far in terms of the disregard to any method so roll on March 20th

 

[Suckndiesel]

on another thread on here, some costings about how much it costs you, a lot.

we have managed to keep free, for 3 winters. Our 'method' is simple, you just keep moving them, bangers, 12 b etc, but best deterrent, man.

as soon as they start, keep moving them, never let them settle. They then cannot eat enough, and moving increases their energy needs, they are not daft, so they have to move on. Might take a week, damn sight cheaper than buying 'gadgets' and losing nutrients.

the other thread, was talking costs of £30,000 on a big unit. But you have to start, as soon as they 'find' you.

This here , we don’t diet feed here so the problem was never as bad but in simple terms you have to make your yard less desirable for starlings than your neighbours yard.

 

[som farmer]

This here , we don’t diet feed here so the problem was never as bad but in simple terms you have to make your yard less desirable for starlings than your neighbours yard.

exactly
last winter we had few even try and come in. Even though maize TMR.

the buggers have to eat, TMR is a quick and easy feed for them, and pretty certain they 'learn' the best feeding areas from their parents etc. So once they 'learn' no easy feed here, they go elsewhere.

keep them moving, they need more nutrients, so after a short period, they move on, and don't come back. But its a commitment, you have to really keep them on the move. Once done, we use bangers to make 'sure' for a few days.

if the cost is true, £30,000 for a big unit, which seems a lot, but at 70 grams per bird, per day, x several thousand little buggers............... You could employ a person to just keep walking round the feed racks, all day, we reckon it takes about 1 week of real effort to shift them.

now just entering the 'arrival' stage, and sods law will say it won't work this year ! But it has for the last 3 winters. And plenty fly over, neighbours get them.

 

[Ducati899]

This here , we don’t diet feed here so the problem was never as bad but in simple terms you have to make your yard less desirable for starlings than your neighbours yard.

my neighbour has lovely shed for his straights with doors and everything but as luck would have it…..,they never shut the doors!!! I can watch the starlings filling up every day safe in the knowledge they won’t touch my place

 

[Spudley]

We used to have a neighbor like that, the sky was black above their sheds. They stopped milking in 2018 and this is probably the first year the starlings haven't come looking.
We only feed silage and cake in the parlour so they don't even stop here!

 

[Fieldbarn]

We had someone walk around chasing them with a high powered laser pen bought off ebay for a tenner. Cost a few quid but within 5 days of this they cleared off, then if any scouts were spotted just move them on asap and no more issues

 

[Spudley]

@Bald Rick do you find all the starlings affect your staff morale? I couldn't do it. The sound of them cheeping gives my the heebie jeebies!

 

[Bald Rick]

@Bald Rick do you find all the starlings affect your staff morale? I couldn't do it. The sound of them cheeping gives my the heebie jeebies!

I suppose it must do as virtually every surface and the cows have starling sh!t on them. Certainly pecks my head despite carrying a laser pen and a bang bang

 

[som farmer]

We had someone walk around chasing them with a high powered laser pen bought off ebay for a tenner. Cost a few quid but within 5 days of this they cleared off, then if any scouts were spotted just move them on asap and no more issues

easy, works and cheap.

and yet people still spend a fortune on attempting, and failing, to oust them.

see huge flocks fly into our neighbours, both sides. 1 feeds at night now, the other just moans, we just smile.

 

[Bald Rick]

easy, works and cheap.

and yet people still spend a fortune on attempting, and failing, to oust them.

see huge flocks fly into our neighbours, both sides. 1 feeds at night now, the other just moans, we just smile.

Doesn’t work though … well not when you’re the only farm doing a proper job of feeding the cows (rather than a spring herd bunged a bit of bale silage) for miles around.

Like any deterrent, they work for a few days then the starlings get habituated

 

[Fieldbarn]

Doesn’t work though … well not when you’re the only farm doing a proper job of feeding the cows (rather than a spring herd bunged a bit of bale silage) for miles around.

Like any deterrent, they work for a few days then the starlings get habituated

We only found out after spending a fortune on squawkers, kites and anything else that people said would work.
Found the key was keeping them moving for a number of days all day. Paid an old boy who air rifle shoots on the farm to walk around with the laser chasing from shed to shed and silage clamps. As said this was for a week then all of a sudden they gave up and cleared off. Now the scouts come in annually and if we're straight on it and don't let numbers get up it only takes a day or two. We are a housed system with high input.
Just saying it worked for us and I was at my wits end for a number of years

 

[vantage]

We only found out after spending a fortune on squawkers, kites and anything else that people said would work.
Found the key was keeping them moving for a number of days all day. Paid an old boy who air rifle shoots on the farm to walk around with the laser chasing from shed to shed and silage clamps. As said this was for a week then all of a sudden they gave up and cleared off. Now the scouts come in annually and if we're straight on it and don't let numbers get up it only takes a day or two. We are a housed system with high input.
Just saying it worked for us and I was at my wits end for a number of years

I remember going to a Keenan meeting years ago, Jimmy Mitchell, Kennetsideheads, was the speaker. Hugely entertaining and impressive, plus wasn’t bothered by starlings. He‘d employed someone to walk around constantly with a shotgun and had great success. I think @Fraserb may work there.