Trees in a Great Yarmouth street have been cut back after residents’ suffered from noise, smell and mess as starlings repeatedly returned to roost in the area over winter.
Five Holm Oak trees in Kent Square in the town have now had their canopies cut back to previous pollard points, suitable growth points or branch collars.
Because the trees are covered by preservation orders, planning permission had to be received ahead of the work taking place. Recommendations from the borough’s arborist team were followed to ensure the future health of the trees. It said the work was good tree management and allows the oaks to be retained at the site.
A spokesperson for Great Yarmouth Borough Council said: ‘’Starlings roosting in the Kent Square trees has been an ongoing issue. Residents have suffered with mess and odour building up significantly on the road, cars, the green space and railings and we needed to find a solution which would help improve the situation for people living nearby.’’
Over recent years, the council tried a variety of things to deter the birds and sought expert advice on the most appropriate course of action. However, none of the things tried were as successful as pollarding – which had previously been carried out several years ago.
The spokesperson said: ‘’We tried using a bird-scaring laser but this was ineffective given the number of starlings. We also tried using an audible deterrent, but again the number of birds simply drowned out the noise. Professional advice was that the best – and probably only – solution would be the cutting back the trees again.
‘’Holm Oaks respond well to this level of work and it is common practice to manage this species of tree in this way when they are close to buildings. The same approach is taken in many seafront towns where these trees are common.’’
The council hopes the work will deter large numbers of starlings from roosting for several years, in which time it is hoped the birds will find alternative sites to roost at every year.
Images courtesy of Great Yarmouth Borough Council
