Runway safety solution has wings

A bird of prey has been hired to help improve safety at Prestwick Airport in Ayrshire.

Jasper, a four-year-old Harris hawk, has been unveiled as the latest weapon used to scare away seagulls.

A colony of the birds, which can pose a threat to aircraft, has taken up residence on the roof of the nearby Scottish Water building.

The firm said it wanted to tackle the problem humanely by using the bird at points during the breeding season.

Seagulls can cause problems for planes during take-off and landing, but special netting installed a month ago led to a number of birds being trapped and injured.

Now Jasper, one of a team of hawks from pest control contractors Rentokil, will circle the building and its surrounding area to try and scare away the seagulls, who habitually use the roof as a breeding ground.

'Breaking the cycle'

Rob Crusher, head of energy and facilities management at Scottish Water, said: "We hope that using the hawk, in addition to the netting, will halt them this year, break the cycle and encourage them to nest elsewhere in future."

Steve Thomson, airfield operations manager at Prestwick Airport, added: "The action Scottish Water is taking is excellent because the gull colony that was there was a severe hazard because it was so close to our runways."

The method of dealing with problem has been welcomed by the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelly to Animals (SSPCA.)

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