Historic Warship HMS Warrior 1860 Wins Latest Battle
Monday 06 October 2008

Warrior by Name, Warrior by Nature, Nuisance Birds No Longer Pose a Threat

The world’s oldest surviving Victorian battleship, HMS Warrior 1860, has been battling the enemy in the form of the feathery kind. Moored at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard for the last twenty years, the renowned battleship has not only been attracting interest from the public but also from a number of nuisance pigeons, starlings and seagulls.

This jewel in Portsmouth’s crown attracts thousands of visitors each year and a bird dispersal system was necessary to maintain high levels of health and safety onboard. Innovative technology pioneered by Uckfield based Scarecrow Bio-acoustic Systems was installed on the ship; with birds staking claim to the ship’s rigging equipment, a complex system made up of ropes, chains and tackle to control the masts, Scarecrow Marina was installed to effectively manage the situation.

David Atkinson, Electrical Maintainer, HMS Warrior commented; 

“We’ve mainly had starlings and seagulls flocking on the ship, at different times of the year. Problems arise because they can be noisy and create a lot of mess, acidic bird excrement corrodes the decks if left too long and because we host regular events onboard, all year round, keeping decks clean for our guests is important. Our cleaning bill has been significantly reduced since using Scarecrow’s Marina over the last two years; it’s certainly effective as the birds are no longer causing daily problems.”

Scarecrow Marina is a well established and proven dispersal system used around the world, predominantly for maritime applications but it is also effectively used in a wide range of rural and urban environments. It randomly plays the natural distress call of the unwanted bird and, when played at a natural sound level to create a ‘danger’ zone, the birds panic and fly away, almost immediately. Onboard HMS Warrior, distress calls are played from six speakers on three masts automatically and at random without human intervention, an action particularly important one hour before and after sunset, and sunrise, when the birds are most prevalent.

As a pivotal royal navy ship and maritime innovation of her day, HMS Warrior is a ship to be treasured. Scarecrow Bio-acoustic Systems is proud to be working with the Warrior Preservation Trust in supporting the heritage of this famous battleship.