Are you a fan of bird watching? Do you love listening to the chirping of birds in the morning? Everybody, no doubt, likes to wake up to the chirping and tweeting of birds.
However, I am sure you would not like this background music when you are trying to sleep. Not only does it spoil your sleep, but it also irritates when you are exposed to the noise for longer intervals.
Be sure that you will start to hate these small birds if they have been nesting around your homes during the mating season. So, have you ever tried to get rid of these birds and felt guilty?
Then this blog post is for you; how to get rid of mockingbirds in 5 simple ways will teach you both how to co-exist with these birds and also some tactics on how to fool them, so they flee their settlement.
If you are the soft-hearted human who believes every being has its place on earth, then you can use the co-existing technique using earplugs or merely getting used to the noise.
I bet this is rather difficult. If the noise is bothering you, resort to methods such as scaring, water attacks, etc. Before we proceed, make sure to which one of the two categories you fall into.
What Are the Things You Will Need to Get Rid of Mockingbirds?
Get ready with the following tools or weapons to shoo away this noisy visitor from your surroundings. For some of the scaring techniques, you might want to be a bit creative.
- Water soaker – Bribe your little one into lending his large water gun, so you wouldn’t have to invest in one. If you happen to own a water hose that can shoot water a couple of meters high, you can use them as well. Do not use any BB gun or pellet gun. I am sure you wouldn’t want to harm these birds.
- Water – to load your water soaker or hose. You can use the water faucet outside for your lawn watering needs.
- Flash lights – Before aiming for the bird with the water guns, you need these lights to zero in on the bird’s hiding place. You will need the lights to also make sure that you are not going to hit any of the power lines or other dangerous objects while targeting the bird.
- Binoculars – will help you spot the bird and its nesting place amid thick leaves.
- Cut outs of owls of hawks – this is where we were talking about creativity. You will need a large cardboard. You can use large cartons that you get along with your online purchases.
- Ultra-Sonic Pest Repellents or strong magnets.
- Pruners or net – to maintain your garden or cover the trees that can turn host to these birds.
- Ear plugs – the co-existence thingie? Yes, this is it.
Now that you have all the weapons for combat and self-defense let us get started with how to go about shooing away from its nesting place, so you get to enjoy the tranquility that you once enjoyed.
A point to keep in mind before the combat, be sure not to act in anger, as it might harm the bird. These birds are a protected lot by-laws, so be very sure of each step you take to get rid of them.
Moreover, they are lawn and garden friendly in the sense that they feed on the insects and pests, giving way for natural pest control.
Detailed Steps on How to Get Rid of Mockingbirds
1. Argh! Load the Water Gun
Form an army, you can take your family or friends along as you will need help managing to get water to the hose, turning the faucet, and so on. Load the water soaker and aim for the bird.
You can use the binoculars and flashlights so that you aim right. Apart from helping you to identify the bird’s location, this will also help you avoid any untoward incidents while taking on the mockingbird.
Be cautious of any live electric lines passing by, as this can lead to a major disaster. Now aim high and shoot. If you are using a water hose, make sure the faucet is on max. There should be enough force to hit the target.
2. Use the Scarecrow Tactic
You could use huge cut-outs of predators such as owl or hawks to scare the mockingbirds. This is not a very effective technique as these birds are quite smart and mostly territorial.
They are ready to put up a fight if required. So, then the birds stand to win at 0-1 and you better try other tactics to keep him from bothering you. However, there is no harm in trying as it is sure not going to cost you much. Besides these cut-outs are easy DIY’s and also can wake up the creativity in you.
3. Use Outdoor Ultra-Sonic Pest Repellants
These electronic machines work by creating high-frequency sound waves that can deter most birds away. The disadvantage is that you might end up repelling all the other birds as well. Besides, it is also an expensive option compared to all the other techniques we have.
4. Cutting Off All Ties with The Bird
Attention all soft-hearted people who do not want to trouble these noisy creatures even though they have troubled you enough.
If you still want to make peace with the mockingbird, you can use some of the techniques like ignoring its presence altogether until it moves away after the mating season. This is quite a tough thing to do but since you are more on the ahimsa side, you can give it a try as well.
You can use earplugs that cancel outside noise to give you a peaceful sleep minus all the noise outside. One thing I find annoying while using earplugs is the pain in the ear but I guess good quality earbuds will do away with this drawback.
You could use earphones to listen to music so that you are no longer hearing the noisy chirping of the mockingbird. This way it is a win-win situation for you as well as your enemy. Truce at the end!
5. Attend to Your Garden Maintenance
Dense foliage is sure to attract these birds to make your garden their sweet home. Make your garden less attractive to the mockingbirds by pruning the trees that can be a likely nesting place for these winged visitors.
You could also cover the trees with nets prior to their mating season to avoid them from perching on your trees. No perching means no more of their singing to impress their potential mates. So, there you get some elusive serenity just enough to drive you to blissful sleep.
Here I personally vote for garden maintenance as a harmless and effective way to put an end to this noisy problem. It also does not involve much cost, if you have a garden then you will also have all the essential garden implements.
All you need is time and effort. You may also find the ultra-sonic bird repellent not so nature-friendly and expensive option. However, it again depends on you to decide which one you would like to go for.
Leave it your discretion. Either ways what you should always bear in mind is to not act in anger to avoid harm to the bird and also to save you from any legal hassles. Care for trivia on these mockingbirds?
Final Thoughts
We hope you will find this article useful; we have tried to keep it as fun and interactive as possible. We also aim at making the world a better place and have encouraged only those tactics that would not be any fatal or cause injuries to the bird.
After all, we all believe in the philosophy of living and let live. Some key points that require more care in this process are:
- Do not cause any harm to the bird (it is a protected species by law).
- Ensure your safety while on the chasing spree.
- Harmless scare or chase tactics for the hard willed.
- Reduce the chances of the bird finding a nesting place around your home.
Remember the bird is not your enemy, it is hanging around to find its mate. So do not use very harsh means to get rid of him. We are eager to know which of the tactics worked best for you.
Do share your experiences in the comments sections. Also, let us know if there are any other hacks you have which we have not included here.
Looking forward to the reader’s responses and feedback on this article.