Health

Birds are known to carry over 60 diseases, including E. coli and Salmonella, in addition to parasites, bacteria and viruses. Bird droppings, feathers and nesting materials aren’t just unsightly. They are also the primary way birds can transfer diseases to humans.

Diseases can be transferred when a customer or employee inhales airborne spores from dried droppings or ingests products that have been contaminated with bird droppings or feathers.

Damage to Your Brand and Product

If your business is third-party audited, birds, or evidence of birds in your facility, can lead to an automatic audit failure or complete shutdown. Birds can also cause costly product damage, by destroying packaging to get to food or seed products, or by contaminating open product through the transfer of droppings of feathers.

The safety of your employees can also be put at risk. In addition to the health risks, bird droppings left untouched can be the cause of slip and fall accidents or cross-contamination when they are tracked in on the shoes of your staff members. A shut down, recall or employee complaints can also damage your brand’s reputation. Protecting your business from birds means protecting your reputation.

Building & Equipment

Birds can severely damage the structural integrity of your building resulting in costly repairs. Birds can dislodge roof tiles, destroy insulation and their nesting materials can block drainage systems such as gutters, which can result in roof flooding and internal leaking. HVAC, cooling systems and vents are all common areas where birds will try to nest, which can lead to fire hazards and carbon monoxide issues if not removed.

Bird droppings are also highly acidic and can cause damage to buildings, equipment and vehicles if not cleaned in a timely matter. Because of the habitual nature of many bird species, even after removing nests and clean-up, some birds may return to your building to nest or roost. The best way to ensure your facility is free of birds is to work with a Copesan bird professional to create a bird program that deters birds from your business.

Financial Impact

Lost revenue due to a shutdown or product damage, or the cost of a major bird waste clean-up can be detrimental to your business. Working with a pest professional to provide ongoing inspections and prevention can be the most cost effective solution to any bird issue you may have.

Sparrows

House sparrows nest in protected areas in, on, or near buildings, such as building ledges, gutters, signs, light fixtures, and under eaves and bridges. They can also be found nesting inside warehouses, airport buildings, stores and stadium roofs.

Sparrows easily enter facilities through open doors, and can even learn how automatic doors work. Because of this, they may enter and leave your facility on their own repeatedly to feed. However, they are also perfectly content to stay inside a building that provides them with a place to nest and an endless supply of food and water.

Pigeons

Attracted to cities where they can nest and roost on ledges and eaves, pigeons can cause damage to buildings and cars with their droppings. Roosting sites, where pigeons rest or sleep, are often high off the ground, such as exposed roof girders, protected ledges, etc., and are sometimes located near nesting, feeding or loafing areas.

Pigeons become challenging to manage in commercial facilities when there is an abundance of favorable roosting sites, spillage or other food sources.

Starlings

Starlings travel in numbers – sometimes in the thousands. This makes them extremely difficult to control and a high risk for property damage. Starlings typically nest in small nooks likes wall voids and gutters.

The biggest threat starlings pose is to your property – especially roofs. Their nesting can cause clogged rain gutters leading to leaks inside your building. Because of their sheer volume, droppings can quickly accumulate leading to slip and fall accidents.