It appears that the program to keep the vultures away from the boat landing at
Dutch Gap has hit a snag. The propane cannon that was mounted on one of the
towers and was fired to keep the vultures from roosting at the dock is no
longer in use. According to Mark Battista and others, there were complaints
from nearby residents because the cannon was malfunctioning and going off
around 5:00 AM. .
There have been between 60 and 70 vultures at the boat dock for the last
several days. Mark thinks these may be different vultures cycling though. He is
frustrated that so little is known about the habits of the vultures and, as a
result, no one really knows what to do.
I understand that there will be meetings this week to consider options,among
which are putting porcupine quill-like spikes on the lamp posts that the birds
like to perch on and cutting down some of the trees that they perch in. The
danger here is that if you cut down the trees and spike the lamp posts, that
pretty much leaves the cars and boats as the only available perches.
Also at Dutch Gap, the osprey nest is gone. One of the branches that held the
nest broke off. The chick had already fledged and all three were sighted today.
Jim and Beth Creamer
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