How To Get Rid Of Grackles & Keep Them Away

This guide deals with how to get rid of grackles, discussing the various control methods and their implications.

Grackles are noisy birds that are considered a nuisance not only due to the noise they make but also for the mess they leave behind.

People residing in the Texas and Florida area of the United States are worst hit by this problem. But the good news is that solutions are available and we will show you how to get started in grackle control.

Here, you’d find easy-to-follow methods to control the pest bird problem.

Should I Be Worried about Grackle Birds?

Yes, you should. Grackles are known to live for more than 20 years! This is bad news as they can adapt their feeding patterns to get around restrictions or control.

But no matter how difficult they are, you can still beat them to the game. And we will show you shortly.

Why Is Grackle Control Necessary?

If you’ve experienced or are experiencing a grackle problem, you would need no one to tell you of the problems they present. However, for the benefit of the first-timer, it will be necessary to make mention of the most common damages.

Grackles move in large flocks. To make matters worse, they cause damage to food crops, as well as to properties.

Farmers and property owners are left with huge losses to contend with. For property owners, grackle droppings cause significant corrosion to paints and metal surfaces. This can be a nightmare if urgent control solutions aren’t found.

The health risks caused by inhaling airborne bacteria from dried droppings are yet another reason to seek immediate removal.

Thankfully, we have provided everything you’ll need, in this guide.

How to Get Rid of Grackles and Keep Them Away

Are you faced with a grackle problem? As long as you’re currently reading this, chances are that you do.

No matter how difficult such a problem is, we’re glad to tell you that you’ve got options to drive them away. Options in the sense that several strategies can be deployed to contain grackle infestation.

To begin, you’d have to know what method works best for you. This guide will help you choose from the strategies provided. What more? Each of these methods has been proven to be effective.

We’ve also included preventive and natural measures, as well as how to use commercial repellents in the fight against grackles.

How you proceed is entirely up to you. You’ll just need to find what works best for your situation.

• Call a Pest Bird Control Company

This is the most convenient option for busy people. But you can also be less busy and yet have little or no knowledge or expertise in grackle control.

For this category of persons, finding a professional will be the best option. Wildlife and pest control companies provide a range of services. These services are all aimed at achieving a common objective; to keep grackles away. The experts understand grackle migratory patterns, breeding behavior, and more.

You don’t have to deal with a full-blown grackle infestation yourself as professionals get the job done within a shorter time. Their services are also backed by a guarantee. So, you either get a refund or repeat treatment if the problem persists.

• Reflective Bird-Scare Tapes

These tapes are readily available grackle repellents you can find in hardware stores. They are designed to scare not only grackles but other types of birds too.

Birds are scared by sudden movements. And this is what reflective tape does. Its reflective property also enhances its effect. This, plus the noise it generates from being blown makes it an ideal low-cost grackle repellent.

Installing a reflective tape isn’t rocket science. In other words, reflective tapes can easily be hung on a variety of target areas. You only need to find out where grackles nest to install. Fascia boards, trees, sills, etc are some of the areas to hang them.

The point is to set them in areas identified to attract grackles. It only needs to be blown in the wind to frighten them away.

• Polypropylene Bird Net

This net is widely used in bird control. It can also be applied for grackle control.

Polypropylene nets come in various sizes. The various sizes are meant for different uses. We recommend going for those with half-inch openings as they are ideal for heavy-duty exclusion jobs.

The good thing with using nets is that they can be left permanently or reused whenever the problem arises.

By creating a barrier, you are actively excluding grackles from your garden, farm, or property. In addition to that, the nets aren’t visible from a distance. So, grackles only find out too late and are bounced off of the nets. The size of the area you wish to barricade will determine the cost incurred.

Popular bed netting products include Bird Busters, Bird Barrier, FlyBye, and Bird B Gone. These have racked up positive reviews from users. This is not to say that they are the only good ones, as many other great brands exist.

• Remove Food Sources or Make Them Taste Bad

Grackles are mostly attracted to food. This is a primary source of attraction for them.

To tackle their presence, focus on the removal of available food sources. Grackles will forage on just about anything they find edible. These include seeds, fish, and fruits.

Other food sources include pet food, garbage, and leftovers from open-air restaurants.

Grackles love it when there are being fed by people. You should discourage all of the above. This is a great way to prevent their activities. Once you get rid of their food source, grackles no longer have the incentive to stick around.

For other food sources like crops that can’t be removed, you can intervene by making them taste bad.

Bird Stop is a bird aversion liquid that makes crops distasteful to grackles. This is among many non-toxic products that can be applied directly to crops.

Once applied, grackles find your garden or farm uninviting. As a result, you find a lasting solution to their destructive activities.

• Make Them Feel Unsafe

Grackles only hang around areas they think are safe. But you can make your surroundings seem or feel unsafe by using electronic devices.

These electronics come prerecorded with predator sounds. The sounds play continually and in the process, scare off grackles. A popular example is BirdXpeller Pro. Sounds emitted cover an area the size of one acre.

But there’s an improved variety of BirdXpeller Pro. The Super BirdXpeller Pro does even more to keep your environment grackle-free. It disorients the birds the more and covers an area of 6 acres. The device also comes with four powerful weather-resistant speakers. In addition to this, you have the freedom to customize the sounds to fit a particular purpose.

Another sonic electronic device you can buy is Bird Chase Super Sonic. It is weather-proof and has pretty much the same effect as the others.

• Bird Gels

For gels to be effective, resting and nesting surfaces used by grackles must be targeted.

Bird gels have a sticky feeling that creates discomfort but won’t kill grackles. The stickiness isn’t strong but sufficient enough to allow birds to fly off to safer zones.

Gels should be applied on railings, trees, sills, and all surfaces grackles frequently.

Although gels are effective, too much of them mess up surfaces. Therefore, only a thin layer is necessary. This should be applied evenly on surfaces.

• Use Grackle-Proof Bird Feeders

Not all types of birds are unwelcome. You can still keep your bird pets while restricting grackles from getting access to their food.

One way to do this is by getting special feeders designed to achieve such exclusion.

Grackle-proof bird feeders will exclude the pest birds from reaching the food. While restricting them, your favorite bird can feed with no interruptions whatsoever.

• Rotating Head Owl Decoy

Owls are grackle predators. It’s based on the fact that this scare device was made.

Owl decoys come with a rotating head that creates the impression that they are alive. This is a great improvement over static scare devices.

Grackles are known to adapt to different situations. So, static scare devices will only be effective for a short time until they find out it isn’t real. But with non-static devices like the rotating head owl decoy, better results are gotten.

This scare device should be installed in the most grackle-prone areas for the best results.

• Ultrasonic Devices

The difference between ultrasonic devices and electronic sound-emitting devices is that the latter emits prerecorded predator sounds. These create fear and warn grackles of the likely presence of predators.

Ultrasonic devices, on the other hand, emit high-pitched sounds. These are above the normal frequencies our ear picks up.

Thus, you need not worry about disturbing your neighbors as they won’t notice. But to grackles and other birds, this sound can be very uncomfortable. It emits such sounds continually until the birds are unable to stay close.

Install these wherever you notice grackle activity. It also works on other birds too! So, you won’t only be keeping grackles away but all other creatures of their kind.

• Spikes

Spikes are very effective in grackle control. They come in both plastic and steel variants.

When installed on surfaces most frequented by grackles, the birds are discouraged from returning. Spikes can be installed for as long as needed. They never cease to be effective. But sometimes, debris like leaves may pile up on rooftops.

Ensure you check and clear these from time to time.

CONCLUSION

Grackles easily adapt to different environmental conditions,  including treatments. But the above steps give you an edge in your bid to drive them out.

Consider using more than one grackle control method, especially when the problem seems to persist.