A fleet of drones patrolling New York City’s beaches for signs of sharks and struggling swimmers is drawing backlash from an aggressive group of seaside residents: local shorebirds.
Since the drones began flying in May, flocks of birds have repeatedly swarmed the devices, forcing the police department and other city agencies to adjust their flight plans. While the attacks have slowed, they have not stopped completely, fueling concern from wildlife experts about the impact on threatened species nesting along the coast.
Veronica Welsh, a wildlife coordinator at the Parks Department, said the birds were “very annoyed by the drones” from the moment they arrived on the beach.
Y’all are making a joke out of this headline but it really sucks
But he was quick to raise a far more dire possibility: that the drones could prompt a stress response in some birds that causes them to flee the beach and abandon their eggs, as several thousand elegant terns did following a recent drone crash in San Diego.
It’s honestly so horrible that this was approved. Drones are banned in National Parks for a reason. Birds have very few beach areas left where they can nest.
Up voting because this kind of thing needs coverage.
Now we are going to need some green pigs to counter the angry birds.
Nobody tell Cody JohnsTon
Drone on drone warfare! Makes you wonder what sort of cold war is playing out.
#BirdsArentReal
Fucking drones. I don’t care what they’re being used for, every time one is being flown at the beach I frequent it’s a nuisance.
“the drones could prompt a stress response in some birds that causes them to flee the beach and abandon their eggs”
Solution is self evident:
Use the drones to hatch the eggs and raise the chicks. :) Very, very, confused chicks…
I wonder what semi-autonomous aircraft have the least impact on birds. Fixed-wing (planes) are much more efficient and, not coincidentally, often a lot quieter. For patrolling and looking for sharks/swimmers, seems like they might work as well or better.
Also I wonder if drones offer any demonstrated benefit over lifeguards.
Balloons, probably. Like a WWI reconnaissance blimp. With modern optics that thing could survey the entire beach without moving.
Based gulls
Well now you need to make drones to fight off the seagulls. Those things are fucking vile anyway so, have fun lol
Gulls are an integral part of the beach ecosystem, and far less obnoxious than nature-hating people.
