PREVENT SMALL ANIMAL DEATH PIPES AN EASY FIX CAN MAKE THEM SAFE!

Death pipes are everywhere. Any open-top, vertical pipe can be a death trap to birds and other wildlife.

This is a nearly invisible problem. Unlike birds colliding with buildings, windows or other structures where they remain visible and obvious to people, birds trapped in pipes die a slow death completely unnoticed in sewer systems, septic tanks or other hidden locations. It is not just the occasional bird trapped in certain situations. We have found hundreds of bird carcasses in a single, six-inch steel pipe. Pipes immediately attract curious birds. Twice we have found dead birds in three-inch steel pipes that were leaned against a building for only a few days; and, in one example, a California Audubon Society employee discovered a single irrigation pipe that contained the bodies of more than 200 birds.

It is not just cavity nesters. Forty-five species of birds (and several species of lizards and small mammals) have been documented being trapped in pipes. They enter to investigate pipes as small as one and one-half inch in diameter as a potential nest site or for food. There is no escape. They dehydrate and die.

EVERY residential building (your house) and most commercial buildings have multiple vent pipes protruding from the roof. Farms, ranches, construction sites and other structures often have open vertical pipes in a variety of situations.

PROBLEMS/SOLUTIONS:

Remove any pipe that can be removed. This is a permanent solution!

Cap or fill pipes that can’t be removed. Nevada state regulations require that PVC claim markers be capped; however, PVC caps get knocked off or don’t hold up to the elements. Make certain that caps are permanent.

Determine legality of PVC mining claim markers. Open-top PVC pipes are not legal in Nevada. PVC pipe is not legal for marking claims in California. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and individual states regulate this, and regulations may vary by state. If you locate an open-top mining claim marker, you can fill it with sand or rocks or cap it with a large, well-fitted rock. GPS the location, and contact your region’s BLM office. Often these are markers on abandoned claims and can be removed by BLM.

Cover residential rooftop plumbing and heating vents. These are steel or PVC pipes protruding from rooftops. They must remain open to allow plumbing and heating systems to vent properly. These can be covered with one-half inch galvanized hardware cloth held in place by stainless steel pipe clamps (there is some concern that raptors’ talons can be caught; in addition, the wire mesh may get clogged with debris). There are also commercially available vented caps that can be installed (one possible source is http://savepipey.net/).

Cover steel pipe used for fence posts. Typical chain-link fence posts are one and one-half to two and one-half inches in diameter. These can be covered with off-the-shelf caps available at any hardware store or fencing supplier.

Cover underground irrigation system vents. These are tall, vertical steel pipes that vent underground irrigation systems. We have seen these six-inch diameter pipes, ten to 20 feet tall, one of which held hundreds of bird carcasses. These pipes are common on large agricultural properties in the central valley of California. Similar systems may be in use in other regions.

Cover larger diameter pipes. Eight- to ten-inch diameter pipe (often old well casing) is commonly used to make gate posts on ranches and other large properties. Similar-sized pipes are used as signposts on federal lands and commercial properties. These can be filled with sand, gravel or concrete, capped with a concrete plug or fitted with a welded steel plate.

Miscellaneous. Outhouses have vents. Tractors and other heavy equipment have vertical exhaust pipes. Old wells often are not closed. These are death traps for MANY species.

Other Solutions:

Educate citizens and your planning and zoning department to insist on installing caps or screens.

REFERENCES:

American Bird Conservancy 2011. http://focusingonwildlife.com/millions-of-bird-deaths-

Teton Raptor Center (TRC)

P.O. Box 1805

Wilson, WY 83014 307-203-2551 raptors@tetonraptorcenter.org www.tetonraptorcenter.org/poo-poo-project

Teton Raptor Center designed a vent screen that effectively prevents birds from entering vent stacks without compromising efficiency.

The TRC vent screen is easy to install and affordable and effectively prevents birds from becoming trapped.