Students who may have noticed the bird droppings outside Popejoy Hall and the loud crack of small explosions every night near dusk might not think they are related -- but they are.
The UNM Physical Plant Department is in the middle of a crow abatement program to rid campus of the pesky migratory birds that have been bombing campus with droppings -- most heavily outside of Popejoy, University House and the University Chapel.
The program consists of several techniques to scare the birds away, including the launching of small explosives that sound similar to the firework M-80. The explosive reports are fired from a .22 caliber starter pistol by Physical Plant staff every evening. Department officials said workers may fire up to a dozen each evening.
Gary Smith, associate director of the Physical Plant Department and supervisor of the abatement program, said the program's goal is to force the birds to leave campus without physically hurting them.
"For years they have used the campus as a roosting spot," he said.
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Both the problem and the solution are nothing new to UNM, or other college campuses, Smith said. The technique of using fireworks at UNM began before 1995.
However, University police have been inundated with phone calls from concerned citizens reporting shots fired on campus.
Despite the inconvenience for campus cops, Smith defends the technique because for any type of abatement program to work, it must actually be effective.
"It (the explosion) irritates them and they don't like that," Smith said.
He explained that some other techniques, such as loud speakers in trees and hanging dead crows in areas where the birds congregate are cruel and not feasible.
Killing the birds is out of the question, Smith said, because the University does not wish to harm any wildlife on campus and because the crows, which fly south from around Idaho for the winter, are migratory birds and thus are protected by federal law.
Although some may view the technique, described by Smith as being effective so far, as cruel or damaging, he says that the problems created by the bird droppings are issues of both aesthetics and safety.
"Our mission is to make campus as safe and as aesthetically pleasing as possible," Smith said. "No one wants to walk through crow feces to get to their building on campus, and I don't want them to either."
Although the department is exploring other options to use in the program, such as placing sprinklers in trees or using spotlights during early morning hours, Smith said the explosive reports are the most effective.
Smith said the launching of the devices will continue through the birds' migratory season, which should see their departure sometime near the end of February.
