300 vultures spew corrosive vomit, poop on border agents' Texas radio tower, feds say

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/state/texas/article239172483.html

300 vultures spew corrosive vomit, poop on border agents’ Texas radio tower, feds say
By Jared Gilmour
January 10, 2020 02:05 PM

Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds” is nothing compared to what U.S. Customs and Border Protection workers are enduring at an outpost near the Mexico border.

Roughly 300 vultures are roosting on a radio tower that federal agents operate in Kingsville, Texas, “nesting on the tower structure on the railings, catwalks, supports, and on rails and conduit throughout,” U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials said in a plea for contractors to submit “vulture deterrence system” ideas.

And the plague of vultures is extremely messy, according to Quartz, the outlet that first reported on officials’ request for “vulture deterrence” proposals. The request was issued Thursday.

“They will often defecate and vomit from their roost onto buildings below that house employees and equipment,” a CBP spokesperson said of the birds’ six-year conquest of the tower, according to Quartz. “There are anecdotes about birds dropping prey from a height of 300 feet, creating a terrifying and dangerous situation for those concerned.”

Responses to federal officials’ plea are due Jan. 30.



Kingsville Vulture Deterrence RFI is at
https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/6615777/Kingsville-Vulture-Deterrence-RFI.pdf