Bird attacks. My biggest concern when flying

Deleted member 103366 · Jul 17, 2020

More likely a Swift Missle, lol. Oh dear

I'll get my coat

John Gowland · Jul 18, 2020

Birds are incredibly agile way more than any drone. I do not think it is a problem at all. The best thing to do is remain where you are and pan to follow them. Done it so many times I lost count. Not once have they bothered any of the drones I have. They can avoid your drone and move with in milliseconds. So, stay stationary and eventually they will fly off. Don’t forget to hit the record button.

tlap · Jul 18, 2020

I live near Atlanta in GA, US. Turkey vultures are all over the place, but I agree, they are not likely to be interested in drones...too much alive

. On the other hand, I'm more concerned about hawks and crows. I RTH if birds of prey are near.

John Gowland · Jul 18, 2020

Yes, tlap the only birds that have taken notice are juvenile hawks that have done fake attacks. But they soon get bored and fly off.

itsneedtokno · Jul 18, 2020

Pedwards said:
A few days ago I tested the way-point function. During the flight the UAV remained in sight and could see the bird, but it was difficult to see how close to the UAV the bird was. When I reviewed the video I was surprised by the birds actions.

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I can ensure the drone is serviceable and safe to fly, but birds remain my biggest concern when I fly.

Where was this?!

Flynz · Jul 19, 2020

I have pigeons come and have a look. They circle but keep their distance. Sea gulls are a problem. They seem to get wound up by the drone and start getting too close. If you run they follow. So stop, go into sports mode and fly vertically rapidly. No bird they know does that and they lose interest. However if it is large flock you may have challenges. Again fly up, stay at 400 ft and come home. I have only been defeated once in a river through a coastal town where there are stacks of gulls. Got some good low shots of a bridge but eventually gave up.

Flynz · Jul 19, 2020

Someone mentioned animals reacting to drones. In new Zealand we have a lot of farms. We typically use dogs to help us round up sheep or cattle.

DJI have stuck on a speaker on the drone and you can play dog barking and us it to round up livestock. The barking drone!

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I have a friend who rounds up sheep with a standard Mavic Pro. He only has a few and sits on his veranda and brings them up from the back of the paddock.

John Gowland · Jul 19, 2020

excellent }

timlyg · Jul 20, 2020

Just don't do this in front of a gang of bird watchers.

John Gowland · Jul 20, 2020

Yup that is about the only danger, timlyg

Pedwards · Jul 20, 2020

itsneedtokno said:
Where was this?!

UK, Bristol Channel.

NJT · Aug 18, 2020

Just last week I had a very determined crow try to take out my Mavic 2. He took around 3 minutes to get up to the right height by doing big upward spiraling circles. If you think about it, most birds can't fly directly up, they have to fly forwards like a jet plane especially if they want some speed to attack. So as mentioned above the best way to avoid them if you see them is to fly up at full speed then away from them then come down. If an eagle is tracking you, I don't think you have much chance...

You can see in the video the crow does 3 loops and then gets pretty close! I managed to escape.