Invasive pigeon problem solved

The Narrabri Old Gaol Heritage Museum has been dealing with a problem that will resonate with many readers, the problem of vermin pigeons settling in and making their home in precisely the place where you don’t want them to.

After years of continual cleaning out of the Old Gaol outdoor area by past and present volunteers, a permanent solution has been found in the guise of netting cordoning off the pigeon’s entry points.

The challenging pests are descendants of domestic homing pigeons that were introduced to Australia from Europe in the 1600s.

Since then, several traits have allowed feral flocks to increase in numbers and take over urban areas due to the readily available supply of food, fresh water and secure, accessible nesting spaces.

Bringing unwanted risks such as disease and acidic droppings, which are known to corrode metal, over time droppings will accumulate, corroding roofing iron, blocking gutters and defacing artefacts.

There are several methods touted to be effective – bird gel, electric and visual deterrents, bird wires and spikes, sonic and ultrasonic deterrents, bird netting and bird hazers.

But Narrabri Historical Society volunteers have come up with a more practical solution for the outdoor area which houses a magnificent 1950s fire engine, a fire cart that used to be pulled by two men, a telephone box, and other artefacts from years gone by.

Despite, and maybe because of, this area being roofed the pigeons had made themselves at home.

Narrabri Historical Society president Garry Burr, secretary Max Pringle, and Narrabri Rotary Club volunteers Steve Dalton, Chris Cole and Tony Powers set about the task in hand of netting the area in over several weekends, with local businesses generously donating steel framing and mesh used to cordon off the area.

“It is a great solution to what has been a long-term problem,” said president Garry Burr.

“Now we have the mission of a final clean-up of the areas, certainly one which we hope will be our last clean-up after many years of cleaning up the mess created by the pigeons which have increased every year.

“We will continue working on the area, replacing the temporary plastic roof netting with wire netting, I would like to offer a big thank you to our assistants from the Rotary Club of Narrabri – it is a job well done.”