The Halifax Waterfront has hired a special constable to keep some unwanted loiterers from hanging around.

The number of seagulls, and the waste they produce, is down thanks to Nova, the Harris Hawk. She was hired along with her handler Scott Jackson from Atlantic Falconry Services about a month ago to keep the seagulls at bay.

The five year old beauty doesn't have to do much to get the job done.

“Nova doesn't really have to do too much to scare the seagulls away,” Jackson said. “Just her presence alone sends them out to the water."

The Harris Hawk usually has other birds on her menu so seagulls tend to keep clear. If one sees Nova, it will send a distress call that will essentially tell all the other birds to keep their distance.

“Each time we come down, the birds see us and they'll start moving,” Jackson said. “They'll even start fleeing when they see my truck now that they know the threat is coming out of the truck."

Adam Langley with the Waterfront Development Corporation brought in Nova less than four weeks ago.

"I've heard of other areas using falcons, particularly airports, to scare the birds away from the runways,” he said. “So we just thought we'd give it a shot."

Langley said it has made a remarkable and noticeable difference.

Nino Kovacevic is a food vendor who appreciates Nova’s services.

"He walks by and the seagulls just kind of, you know, fly away,” he said. “And I'm not talking two or three seagulls. It's like 30, so he does a good job.”

Nova doesn’t scare away all creatures. She attracts plenty of attention from tourists and onlookers who ask to take pictures.

The Waterfront Development Corporation says she's on the payroll until the weather turns colder.

They say they'd like to have her back for next year.