Airborne Bird Control

Anna is thought to be among the best female gyr x peregrine falcons in the United States for harassing other birds. You might consider Anna petite, at no more than 2 feet tall when her 3½-foot wingspan is contracted. Set loose on a strawberry farm being terrorized by European starlings, though, she’ll corral and chase off up to 5,000 birds on her own, flying at more than 150 miles per hour. A flock of starlings can decimate 80 percent of a berry crop in about five hours; that’s why Anna’s work is valuable. She’s one of about 20 birds of prey flying for Adam’s Falconry Service (http://AdamsFalconryService.com), a bird abatement business in Southern California that uses birds of prey as nontoxic, nonlethal bird control.

“It can look like a scene from ,” says Adam Chavez, owner and master falconer of Adam’s Falconry Service, describing the typical job site before he or one of his 15 crew members shows up. Each type of facility tends to attract a particular set of avian pests: Gulls, crows, and ravens plague landfills; starlings target agricultural land; and pigeons infest industrial sites. Every facility manager has tested numerous