Plat '^sq.uares of tin suspended "by cotton twine from 4-foot poles 

 pushed into the ground at a 45-degree angle have a marked scarirg effect. 

 This is because they constantly rotate in a slight breeze, reflect flick- 

 ering beams of light from their surfaces, and produce a rattling noise 

 when they strike the supporting pole. These squares which can be made 

 from discarded tin cans, should ordinarily be placed no farther than 50 

 feet apart, but they may bo at greater intervals when the berry erop is 

 thin. 



vlhite cloth streamers tied to poles, or to cords supported by poles, 

 are used by some growers, but the tendency is to use too few streamers. 

 The flat tins are superior to the streajners because of the additional 

 frightening effects connected with the light beams and the rattling noise. 

 By substituting for the cloth streamers heavily oiled strips of paper such 

 as is used in butcher shops, about 2-l/2 by 24 inches in size, the method 

 might be improved. This method is described in detail by Johnson A. Weff 

 in a mimeographed leaflet of the Bureau of Biological Survey (BS-64) , en- 

 titled "Protecting Crops from Damage ''oy Horned Laiks in California." 



Scarecrows have been used by growers with little success. A greater 

 measure of protection can be obtained by erecting more realistic figures 

 and moving them to new sites every few days. 



Shooting 



The use of the shotgun for frightening gulls has little value, since 

 the birds have been obseived to alight again at the same spot within 30 

 minutes after being fired upon. Patrolling with firearms is expensive, 

 but if some gulls are killed a.nd their bodies displayed prominently in the 

 field, a definite decroaso takes place in the nnjaber of those feeding. 

 Dead birds may be suspended from slanting poles at a height of 4 to 5 feet 

 from the ground or placed on the ground at conspicuous spots in the field, 

 belly dovm and wings spread. One dead bird is adequate for every 2 acres. 

 Destruction of the birds, ho?/ever, should not be attempted unless fright- 

 ening devices or other less drastic control measures prove ineffective. 

 Federal and State permits are necessary for killing gulls. 



CONCLUSION 



Damage to blueberries by herring gulls can be reduced, but the 

 farmer must persist in any method used to acconrplish the purpose. Pright- 

 tening devices and shooting seem to be less effective than modifications 

 of present cultural practices. These offer the most satisfactory and per- 

 manent means of protecting this valuable crop in Maine. 



NOTE: The Wildlife Leaflets, beginning with No. 141, are a continua- 

 tion in the Department of the Interior of the series of Wildlife Research 

 and Management Leaflets issued by the Bureau of Biological Survey under the 

 Department of Agriculture from January 1935 to June 1939. 



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