Birds can be a nuisance, or even a serious problem, particularly over farmland or at an airport.

But a solution may have been found in the form of a robotic bird of prey that flies over an area, scaring off intruders.

Called ‘Robirds’ the flying remote-controlled falcons and eagles can be used to make other birds leave an area, possibly for good if they think they are in the stomping ground of a predator.

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A company in the Netherlands has designed robotic birds of prey for pests. Called Robirds (shown) they mimic real falcons and eagles to scare other birds. They are remote controlled by an operator on the ground and they are 3D printed from glass fibre and nylon composite

The Robirds project is being developed by Clear Flight Solutions in The Netherlands.

They actually have two Robirds in development; the smaller Falcon and the larger Eagle, for small and big birds respectively.

Both mimic their real-life counterparts to fool regular birds into thinking they are true birds of prey.

The Falcon robot has a body length of 23 inches (58 cm) and a wingspan of 47 inches (120 cm) and can fly up to 50 miles (80 km) per hour.

The larger Eagle model, meanwhile is twice as long and has a wingspan of 86 inches (220 cm).

To stay in the air the Robirds flap their wings just like regular birds.

While they are remote-controlled for now, the team hope to eventually make them autonomous.



The birds are 3D printed using glass fibre and nylon composite material, which is strong enough that they can be crashed into the ground without breaking.

They are then painted to make them look as realistic as possible.

WHAT IS A PEREGRINE FALCON? The peregrine falcon is the world’s most widespread bird of prey, with its breeding grounds ranging from the Arctic tundra to the tropics. It can be found nearly everywhere on Earth except for the extreme polar regions, high mountains, rainforests, and New Zealand. Although it has been an endangered species, populations have recovered after the ban on many pesticides during the 1970s. Peregrines become sexually mature at the age of one, and mate for life. Peregrines are dimorphic: the females are up to 30 per cent larger than the males. Body length can reach 23 inches (58 centimetres), and the wing-span up to 47 inches (120 centimetres). The weight of a full-grown male is about 1.7 pounds (750 grams), while females can grow to weigh 3.3 pounds (1,500 grams). They are the fastest animals on earth, capable of reaching speeds beyond 200 mph (320 km/h) while diving for prey. The peregrine falcon feeds almost exclusively on medium-sized birds such as gulls, pigeons, songbirds, waterfowl and so on. It is also known for hunting smaller birds of prey such as kestrels. The Robird version of the Peregrine is just as intimidating to birds as the real deal. After a couple of flights, the bird population understands that they are living in a dangerous hunting territory, and will take their business elsewhere. Advertisement





In an interview with Wired, creator Nico Nijenuis explained how making the Robirds actually fly through wing power alone was difficult, as we still don’t truly understand how wings work.

He was also keen to make sure they not only looked like birds of prey but moved like them as well, in order to scare off pests.

‘If it doesn’t look like a predator, they don’t care. And if it doesn’t move like a predator, they don’t care either,’ he said.

Its creators claim that they can reduce bird numbers in an area by 50 per cent, scaring them into thinking they are the target for a bird of prey.

Other birds also will think they are in the nesting ground of an active bird of prey, so they may not return to the area.

The Robirds can apparently withstand being flown straight into the ground. Up to 75 per cent of birds have been scared off in some areas using them. Trials of the Robirds are being continued into next year. To stay in the air the Robirds flap their wings just like regular birds

‘The Robird version of the Peregrine is just as intimidating to birds as the real deal,’ the company writes on their website.

‘After a couple of flights, the bird population understands that they are living in a dangerous hunting territory, and will take their business elsewhere.’

It could also be used round areas such as wind turbines where birds are often killed by the rotating blades.

The team are currently performing trials of the Robirds, continuing into early next year, and say they have seen decreases of up to 75 per cent in nuisance birds in some areas.