The people of Auburn, NY have long felt besieged by American Crows. Small wonder, considering that this city of roughly 29,000 (where, coincidentally, Core Team family Seth and Christine got married) has to contend with, at last count, over 63,000 crows. In February 2003, they initiated a population control effort, less euphemistically termed a good, old-fashioned crow shoot. The controversy that has raged around this initiative, both for and against, is  well-documented. But credit the good folk of Auburn for at least some measure of compassion, because they haven’t given up on less final ways to be rid of their marauding corvids.
City officials looked into the services of a professional falconer but opted for a population control technique even more thrilling than mercenary birds of prey. They chose to ROCK!
The technique is called hazing and it calls for lasers, pyrotechnics, and loud noise. Sounds like your college years, doesn’t it? Not just for dance clubs and arenas anymore, these tools have been commonly employed by government wildlife managers to chase undesired species from desirable real estate for years. I’m not sure why this technique is called hazing, but I suspect Jimi Hendrix had something to do with it.
Auburn commenced rocking this Monday. They may get rid of the crows, but how are they going to deal with the ravers, stoners, and metal heads that are sure to follow?
Leave a Comment