Magpie Mansion HELP!

[Danisaurus]

Hi everyone,
Im at a wits end and in desperate need of help!

I am a garden centre customer advisor and horticulturist at B&Q and over the last few years we have had resident magpies who, have taken it upon themselves to nest in the most inconvenient places! Emergency exits and customer entrance doors for instance. This year they have decided to nest in a very ingenious spot amongst the trellis.

I am very pro-magpie after having spent many entertaining hours outside pruning under the watchful eye of Mr Magpie and his Mrs. However not everyone shares my opinion! Management demand that the nest be removed regularly to ensure health and safety. Now I fully understand that this is a fruitless task as they just rebuild it and in record time! The magpies do not seem to pose a threat as there is not really any other local wildlife, just a nuisance in the eyes of retail. My predominantly male colleagues have taken it upon themselves to throw sticks and stones to chase it off which I have informed them this will only make it more aggressive and have educated them of the fact they have no legal right to shoot the animal as we do not own the land. I would be horrified at the thought of them killing them anyway!

My question is, if I were to get some sort of shelter built no more than 10 feet away from the current nest site and placed the nest inside so that they were out of harms way would the magpie use it. If so what should this shelter look like. Also any tips on protecting customers from the male magpie swooping at them as they enter the garden centre. Please help I am desperate to save the magpies and keep my manager happy!

Denise

[Cowgirl]

Ooh poor you! There is a device which emits random rook distress calls which discourages them to nest in the area (I heard someone talking about it on the radio once). I wonder if there is something similar for magpies, or if you can get a recording which may work in a similar way?

Sorry can't think of much else

[posie]

If your Boss has mentioned Health and Safety, I think you will have to accept that the Magpies cannot nest there. So you will have to accept it, it won't hurt them in any way, they will just find somewhere else to nest. So this is where Cowgirl's idea comes in, get a Repeller Device, and kindly move them on.ASAP......Posie....

[Jason Green]

Morning Denise, and welcome to WAB!

If the female Magpie hasn't laid any eggs, and the manager won't have it any other way - now is the time to act.

If you can, just pick up what's there and if possible, find somewhere suitable nearby and relocate it - minding out for the parents. It'll be a lot worse if they lay their eggs and pest control are bought in with the adults having swooped on a customer! I assume the swooping is because the incoming customers are passing closely to the nest site?

Take care,

Jason

[Danisaurus]

Thank you all for your advice. Yes Jason the nest is located in a very high customer flow area outside next to the nursery plants, trellis and fencing, as you can imagine it is bursting with people at the moment due to the recent spate of good weather and Mr Magpie is throwing daily hissy fits! I will try relocating the nest to a quieter location for the time being as I think the female is due to lay her eggs any time now and since Im such a softie I will spare her the panic of finding her nest gone or the stress of losing her territory. After the fledglings have gone I will try playing magpie distress calls, they've been around a while and dont suspect they're going anywhere anytime soon. I didnt think they would take to the nest after I'd moved it but more than willing to try anything.

[posie]

Hi Denise and Jason, that sounds like a good try at compromise Jason..

Denise, if you read thread called 'Nest Disaster Urgent' by POP, you will see that he remade a Dove's nest that had fallen, albeit he put it in the same place, but he built a platform, so there was quite a lot of 'interference' and that worked, and she's started laying, so as Jason says it might work for your Magpies. I do hope so, but even if it doesnt, they will have the nesting material at hand so it won't take them long to rebuild...Good Luck..Posie..

[faz]

the wild life and countryside act 1981
section 1 (1)(b) makes it an offence for any person to intentionally damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while it is being built

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by faz

the wild life and countryside act 1981
section 1 (1)(b) makes it an offence for any person to intentionally damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while it is being built

true but magpies are listed on general licence 7 "to kill or take certain birds to preserve health and safety" which makes exception to the above - to whit

"THE PURPOSE(S) FOR WHICH THIS LICENCE APPLIES
1. Subject to paragraph 2 and the licence conditions, this licence is granted to preserve public health or public safety
WHAT THE LICENCE PERMITS
2. For the purposes set out in paragraph 1 above, and subject to the terms and conditions, below, this licence permits:
(i) Authorised persons to kill or take any of the wild birds listed at (a) and (b) below, to take, damage or destroy their nests or to take or destroy their eggs: "

authorised persons in this context is the landowner and his agents (ie anyone to whome he gives permission)

[faz]

thanks for that

[Danisaurus]

Just a wee update everyone!

I think by the time I posted it was too late. The female was displaying signs that she was about to lay her eggs. She was incredibly fat and spent a few days surveying the nest making sure for certain it was a safe haven.

She has now firmly planted herself inside the nest and is sitting proud, on at least 4 eggs. I was alerted by a female customer on Friday, to her horror that there was a small starling completely pecked free of feathers and almost decapitated. I can only attribute it to the magpie, judging by its injuries, the local foxes would have eaten it I guess.

Luckily the magpie is no longer swooping at me or customers, I left some crumbs of dog biscuit when I was being closely monitored which seems to have worked nicely so far. Actually I have not seen much of the male at all, only his trail of distruction. The magpie is being allowed to stay for the time being, just a little concerned about what happens next?