Does any anyone know how to get rid of rooks humanely?

[Wildforms]

Hi,
we have a small beautiful woodland behind our house, but the downside is that it has a rookery and the rooks just dont shut up all day. We love our wildlife and wouldnt hurt anything, but we could do with moving them on to somewhere elso or at least restricting their numbers. Does anyone have any ideas?

[Garden Carpet]

I think you should just enjoy them being there. They can be quite entertaining.
jaki

[Ollie]

We have a Rookery about 150 yards from our house. I can see where you are coming from about the noise, but to be honest I would not not want to move them on. I think we would miss them. They can be as Garden Carpet says very entertaining, and the way I see it they were actually there before my house was built so that's fine with me. Wouldn't know how to persuade them to move on anyway.
Roger

[Paul mabbott]

Only by chopping the trees down. Sadly, quite a lot of people do this .....
Look on the bright side - you could be living under the flight path to Heathrow ...

[Beryl]

We had a pair in a tree at the back of our garden (before I moved) and we used to watch them bring up their young and I have a video with them on the end of it .It was really wonderful because it also taught the children that all birds are wonderful.

[brainfarmer]

im a great fan of the corvids and iwish i had a rookery near me. they may be a bit noisy but if u watch them and enjoy them then the noise seems to be less annoying.

[Madelinew]

Or call in Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall....

:-)

Personally, I love rookeries but my husband was quite relieved when I pointed out that the solitary nest in our oak tree was being built by a pair of crows.

[nightshade]

Some people just do not know when they are lucky! why not study their life
cycle or just enjoy them.Rookeries can be hundreds of years old so you must
have known it was there
When I was a child on holiday in Yorkshire with my grand parents the Highlight
of my day was a half mile walk to watch the Rooks settling down to roost, a
process which could last until darkness settled in,fascinating

[Hobjob]

In the breeding season you would be breaking the law
by disturbing breeding birds - not so sure about the
rest of the year.

[Kayleigh]

We used to live on the main A5 road in Derby, we had lorries and traffic on the rounderbout 24-7 give me rooks any day.

[Wildforms]

To tell you the truth, I dont mind them and find them interesting, its my husband as he works outside in his workshop all day. Of course we we aware of the few nests when we bought the house, but most get blown down in the winter as it is very windy here, so werent aware of just how many there would be. We would much rather have them than a busy road of course, I have lived next to the A27. Its just particulary noisy at the moment where they are squabbling over sites and nesting material, my husband says they are like humans, they live crowded together on estates and do nothing but fight over parking spaces and boundaries.

Does anyone know when they settle down again?

The dawn chorus is beautiful this morning, even with the rooks.

He will learn to live with them I am sure, especially if he studies them and understands them more, yesterday we watched 4 buzzards circling above them, that upset them a bit!

We are very lucky, we live in a very beautiful part of the country and yes we should and do appreciate it very much.

[JeffH]

We live within earshot of a long-established rookery and for me their distant cawing is one of the quintessential sounds of the British countryside, though I confess that I might not feel the same if they were at the bottom of my garden!

I'd certainly agree with what some others have said - this is a great opportunity to observe at close range an extremely interesting species. Corvids are amongst the most intelligent birds on earth and I can well imagine the Rooks giving you a good deal of entertainment and amusement as the birds go about their daily activities (albeit noisily) throughout the breeding season.

For me, as a bird of prey lover, the Buzzards would be an added bonus and it sounds as if the local Buzzards have already identified your rookery as a potential food source for the months ahead. It would make fascinating bird watching to see the buzzards circling overhead with the most daring (or reckless!) of them swooping in to try to snatch a chick from a nest whilst being mobbed by the adult rooks in a cacophony of sound. A bit gruesome I know but this is nature in the raw and the adult Rooks will, in part, be feeding their own chicks on the eggs and chicks of other birds - they've all gotta eat!!

On the subject of 'controlling' the rooks and in response to Hobjob's earlier comment -

Originally Posted by Hobjob

In the breeding season you would be breaking the law
by disturbing breeding birds - not so sure about the rest of the year.

I've no wish to re-ignite the debate on Corvid control generally (as opinions vary widely on the extent to which they damage small bird populations and on the rights and wrongs of 'controlling' them) but I'm afraid Hobjob's comment is not entirely correct as not all wild birds are necessarily fully protected, even during the breeding season.

In fact, there are several DEFRA General Licences in current issue (ie. licences that apply generally and without the need for application) which, subject to certain conditions, allow a number of species of wild birds to be killed, taken or their nests and eggs to be taken, damaged or destroyed. For more details see – Defra, UK - Wildlife and Countryside - Mammal and bird licensing and advice - General licences

The permitted purposes of any such control include - "...preserving public health or safety"; “...conserving (other) wild birds”; “…preserving air safety” ; “…preventing the spread of disease”; “…preventing serious damage to livestock, foodstuffs for livestock, crops, vegetables, fruit, growing timber, fisheries or inland waters” so whilst there is certainly not a ‘licence to kill’ for any reason, the legislation concerned clearly recognises many legitimate and legal reasons for controlling certain species or for destroying the eggs/nests of such species.

The species list varies for different types of licence but currently includes most of the British Corvids, being - Crows, Jackdaws, Magpies, Jays and Rooks. Other birds listed within the licences (but again with some slight variations between different licence types) are - Greater Canada Goose, Collared Dove, Great and Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Herring Gulls, Feral Pigeons and Woodpigeons.

My main point, however, is that this is the 3rd time in the past week or so that I have seen inaccurate or incomplete advice/comments about wildlife legislation on WAB and although I am sure that all concerned meant well and made their comments in good faith, I would urge anyone offering advice on the interpretation or application of the law in relation to wildlife to thoroughly research the point beforehand and to make sure that their understanding of the relevant law is accurate and up to date.

Much of the relevant legislation is complex and poorly drafted but, as in any other area of law, the giving of inaccurate or incomplete advice can be dangerous for all concerned.

Similarly, I would suggest that anyone intending to take part in any sort of activity which might disturb or have some other adverse impact on any form of wildlife (eg. trapping, photography, etc) to check with an appropriate body or organisation (such as DEFRA, Natural England, Wildlife Trust, RSPB, etc) beforehand in an effort to ensure that one does not unwittingly fall foul of the law.

Jeff

[eeyore]

Would I be right in thinking that you are a lawyer jeff

you are definitely right that no one should take legal advice (or indeed any other kind) given on here as gospel truth but that doesnt necessarily mean that people shouldnt give it especially if they err on the side of caution as hobjob did.

without wishing to be a pedant even your post is not completely correct and could lead people into wrong doing , in fact more easily than hobjobs,

the species on the general licences list may be killed , or have their nests and eggs destroyed by the landowner, agents of the landowner or those who have the landowners permission

and also with the proviso that those engaged in their control do not employ means that are cruel or likely to cause excessive or unwarranted suffering

this means that if for instance you stood in your garden and shot birds on someone elses land without their permission you would still be commiting an offence even if the birds were on the general licence list

and equally if you used, for example, a leg hold trap to catch birds even with the landowners permission and even if the bird is on the general licence list because the use of leghold traps is absolutely prohibited for control of any wild bird.

like jeff i would urge everyone to get propper advice on these matters from the RSPB or from DEFRA and not to take any advice you read here as being legally definitive

[JeffH]

Originally Posted by eeyore

Would I be right in thinking that you are a lawyer jeff

OK I admit it Pete!!!

Originally Posted by eeyore

you are definitely right that no one should take legal advice (or indeed any other kind) given on here as gospel truth but that doesnt necessarily mean that people shouldnt give it especially if they err on the side of caution as hobjob did.

without wishing to be a pedant even your post is not completely correct and could lead people into wrong doing , in fact more easily than hobjobs,

the species on the general licences list may be killed , or have their nests and eggs destroyed by the landowner, agents of the landowner or those who have the landowners permission

and also with the proviso that those engaged in their control do not employ means that are cruel or likely to cause excessive or unwarranted suffering

this means that if for instance you stood in your garden and shot birds on someone elses land without their permission you would still be commiting an offence even if the birds were on the general licence list

and equally if you used, for example, a leg hold trap to catch birds even with the landowners permission and even if the bird is on the general licence list because the use of leghold traps is absolutely prohibited for control of any wild bird.

Point taken, but which is why I used the words "..subject to certain conditions..." and directed people to the DEFRA website for more details - it is simply impractical to detail all of the conditions here

Originally Posted by eeyore

like jeff i would urge everyone to get propper advice on these matters from the RSPB or from DEFRA and not to take any advice you read here as being legally definitive

I agree entirely, subject to the point made in the new thread ('Wildlife and the Law')
I started soon after my earlier post and in which I give an example of how even the wildlife organisations get it wrong!

Jeff

[crowman73]

hi there
we love rooks as we run a crow and corvid rescue centre in the west mids if you ever find an injured rook or orphaned 1 then please contact us immediately, and we will help rescue itf or you
many thanx mark edgescrows@hotmail.co.uk