Blackbirds have a reputation for being noisy and destroying crops as they love to eat apples, berries, sunflowers and corn, and the list goes on. Because they travel in numbers, the damage is often substantial. Tactics abound to scare these creatures away, such as loud horns and traps. According to the Delta Farm Press, it can provide some temporary relief. “Once scared away, the problem birds usually remove themselves from that location until the next year, and often don't reappear in the same area for several years,” they write. You can build a simple blackbird trap yourself using a basket and a few other items.
Square wicker basket 2 feet by 6 inches,15 inches high
Bent stick that forms a T.
U-shaped stick with notch
Apples
Cut a door in the bottom of the basket to remove the bird once it is trapped underneath. Choose a spot where blackbirds tend to go like shrubs or a hedge a level, flat ground.
Place the basket upside down. Tilt the basket up at a slant, one side up about 2 inches off the ground using the T-shaped bent stick to hold it up.
Insert the tip of the long end of the T into the ground. Rest wicker on top of one of the short ends of the T and the other end of the T sits underneath the U shaped stick at the notch of the U. The ends of the U stick are fixed into the wicker and hold up the T stick, so that the sticks fly inward when the basket falls.
Place fruit such as apples, or berries such as strawberries or cherries underneath the U stick. When the bird walks into the trap and steps on the U-shaped stick, it knocks the basket down over the blackbird, leaving the bird unharmed. Remove the bird safely through the door you made on the bottom of the basket.
Items you will need
References
Writer Bio
Based in Calgary, Alberta, Kelly Smith has been writing since 1997. Her articles have appeared in the "Daily Hampshire Gazette" newspaper, "Artscene" Sedona, Larson Newspapers publications, "Electronic News" and Independent Newspapers publications in Arizona. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in journalism from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
