Recent complaints from local residents about buzzards roosting on the Carson Street water tank set Tim Glisson on a mission.

“I knew they were a protected species, so I got in touch with the Alabama Game and Fish Department. They sent me to the U.S.D.A. Animal and Plant Inspection Services,” Glisson, the director of water and sewer operations for the City of Andalusia Utilities, explained to the Utilities Board recently.

“Buzzards,” which are actually vultures, are migratory birds protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, state laws, and regulations. There are two species native to North America: black vultures and turkey vultures. According to the USDA, both raptor species play an important role in the ecosystem, feeding mostly on carrion, or already-dead animals. However, their sharp nails and highly acidic stomach acid and urine also can cause damage.

Because they are a protected species, the birds, their nests, and eggs cannot be killed or destroyed without a Migratory Bird Depredation Permit. However, the USDA can provide site-specific vulture management assistance when this is property damage or health and safety concerns.

By the time the USDA’s Officer Jason Terry visited Andalusia, Glisson had identified 12 locations where vultures regularly roosted. Terry recommended hanging constructed effigies of vultures in the locations, and Glisson agreed to purchase them from the USDA.

Terry returned to Andalusia on Wednesday and watched for flocks of vultures to who up in the sky. Shortly before dusk, he noticed a large concentration of vultures going to roost between Opp Avenue and Ellis Street.

Glisson said Terry got permission from an Opp Avenue resident to enter the large wooded area behind his residents, where he shot off a screaming pyro round to scare the vultures away. Terry believes this wooded area is the main roosting area and that the water tank and other buildings were being used for twilight sunning. 

Thursday, Glisson and Terry called on the Andalusia Fire Department for help. Using the ladder truck, the effigies were strategically placed in the 12 roosting locations previously identified. 

As of late Thursday afternoon, the vultures were reported to be circling their usual roosting spots, but flying away once they spotted the effigies. 

“We hope this fixed the problem,” Glisson said.