Big Birds on Mast

[Mrs_Skipper]

We had an interesting encounter with an Osprey which apparently thought our mast was a dead tree suitable for resting and perhaps building a nest... you see their nests built right at the top of dead pine trees all around Lake Tahoe. We were anchored out on the 4th of July, having a lovely quiet evening when suddenly this BIG bird swooped over our heads and landed on top of our mast. Perched on our delicate plastic wind vane! We tried flashing lights, pounding on the mast, slapping halyards, etc. and failed to scare him/her off. We finally went to bed. The next morning we found our wind vane broken off and about a half gallon of Osprey poop on deck.

Other than firearms, any ideas about scaring such a bird off? I suppose we could have used a blast on the air horn, but the slumbering occupants of neighboring vessels might have been very unhappy.

[kmclemore]

I guess I would have made a sling-shot out of a couple of bungee cords tied around the winches (acrosss the open hatchway), and then fired off anything I could grab at hand that might upset his perch.

Alternative #2... penetrating ballistics. When I was in grade school we used to make a rather nasty little item that nowadays would get you expelled for sure... blow darts... but they'd be perfect for zapping birds without serious injury. You'd need a square of paper (Post-Its work well), tape, a conventional pin (like the kind that hold the collars on wrapped shirts), some white glue and a straw. Roll the paper into a very steep cone and tape it with a small bit of tape. Drop the pin into the sharp end of the cone and push it through until the head is tight against the end of the cone. Drip in a drop of white glue to secure it, and let stand until dry. Once dry, insert the dart into the straw and cut off the bit of the cone that won't fit into the straw. Now, with your mouth *off* the straw, take a deep breath and then blow it into the straw. The dart will go an amazingly long way with enough power to stick into a piece of wood, so I'd imagine it would sting a bird pretty nicely.

I take no responsbility for anyone making these, of course. Don't try this at home. Remember, we're professionals.

[Wind Chime]

what about lowering the mast ???

[Hardcrab]

How about rocking the boat side to side with the boards up for a few minutes?
The swing at the mast top might have encouraged him to find a more stable perch.

Might break the vane, but it did that anyhow.

[David Mellon]

Send him back to Sesame Street!

[pokerrick1]

Send him back to Sesame Street!

David beat me to it - - - I was going to say call the producers of Sesame Street and complain.

Rick

[waternwaves]

I found slapping his YYYYYYY with the main halyard with 3 ft. of slack whipped was very disconcerting to any bird up there.

ON EDIT

Utilizing the loose slack in the main halyard by snapping the slack up the line at any fowl alighted upon my mast, also tends to discourage the landing of any subsequent seabirds and the following deposition of digested materials upon the waxed and polished surfaces of my trailerable cabin.


sorry.....

[kmclemore]

!	kmclemore:
	Gents, let's all remember that there are ladies present, please, and conduct ourselves accordingly. Nuf said? Thanks.

[Highlander]

Oop'S

Sorry Kev !

J

[Retcoastie]

How bout your handy dandy "Super Soaker"? Doesn't everybody carry one of those.

Failing that, How bout a rubber band and paper wads??

[Chinook]

Birds on the boat can indeed pose serious challenges, as this unfortunate panga owner in Santa Rosalia Harbor on the Sea of Cortez has learned. It looked like he just surrendered. The other photo, of ospreys roosting atop cardon cactus arms along the shore of the Sea of Cortez, suggest that simply putting spikes on top of ones mast may not do the trick.

[pokerrick1]

Hey - - - I think that's MY panga

Rick

[puggsy]

How about a piece of wood with stiff wire or long nails sticking up from it...and fixing it to the flat surface of the mast cap...It leaves them no where to plant their little...or big...webbed feet...It could be shaped to fit 'around' any other mast top fittings, like the wind vane...cheap stiff wire from a coathanger comes to mind...
And they really HATE any sort of mesh...and even better when it moves in the wind...

[Kelly Hanson East]

Not a problem on a cat boat of course....

[Mrs_Skipper]

I like the super soaker suggestion the best. I have a small one I use at home in the spa to shoot the Skipper. I used to use it in my friend's 22 Catalina, but it was easier to reach the water than in the Guess I'll have to go to West Marine and get the longer model so I can load easily and for more power.

We've got one of those really difficult to attach CDI furlers, so lowering the mast is an unattractive option as is anything that requires installation.