We are just hurting ourselves... Wildlife harassment, illegal flights on campus, and BVLOS flights.. all in ONE

[Chaosrider]

Despite the misgivings I have over Remote ID, accounts like this make it very hard to argue against it. I do hope that, once implemented and mandated, RID starts to significantly cut down on the number of asinine flights like this that are way too often reported in the press today.

With the exception of the Karen Snitch Function, I support RID.

I think it will both cut down on idiotic behavior, and provide additional freedoms for those who act responsibly.

But the Karen Snitch Function has got to go.

TCS

 

[BigAl07]

I've heard of several cases that seemed like the drone was attacked but nothing was confirmed.

I've flown with circling hawks and they were completely unimpressed and never reacted. The geese I just flew with didn't deviate or act unusual at all. Horses don't even look up when I'm just above their heads. I had a dog bark once but I haven't seen any evidence of animals being harassed by my flying.

Nothing confirmed? We have numerous "Confirmations" here on these forums. If you wanted to read more you could just do a search on this forum and see many times birds attack or at least threaten//appear to.

I've got a video where the operator saw the large bird but didn't think it was going to actually attack until it did. Somehow the DJI Inspire recovered (it was over water so it would have been lost) and he landed with no issue.

A year or so ago I was flying at the end of a runway (had hard ceiling of 100') and I set my Max Height at 99' just to be safe. While orbiting around the new building I was attacked by a pair of Crows.... first time I've ever seen Crows act aggressively before so this one caught me off guard. I went to climb (Climbing is our SOP for bird interference) but at just 99' I hit the "Virtual Ceiling". I realized I couldn't outrun them so I was just trying to get the UAS back as close as possible to me before they struck the aircraft. All of a sudden a pair of SPARROWS (if you don't know, they are very small birds especially compared to Crows) came darting up and literally ran the Crows off. Last time I saw them they were several hundred feet away getting pecked by the Sparrows LOL. all I Can figure is we flew near a nesting site for the Sparrows and they felt the Crows were a threat to the nest or something.

 

[Chaosrider]

I'm confident humanity will end itself long before the universe finds a way.

Why draw a distinction between the two? Is humanity not part of the universe?

;-)

TCS

 

[Chaosrider]

In all fairness, unless you are familiar with the fact those birds are there, good chance there was no evil intent. And I agree with BigAl07, the campus has NO...absolutely NO authority to restrict flight over it. That being said, it is a big campus so VLOS would basically mean you could legally only fly over the outer regions. I think they need to be more proactive and make sure that the students all are 100% aware of the falcons and why drones within a few hundred yards of them are not acceptable.

If someone discovers that they have accidentally disturbed wildlife, and backs away from it, I have no problem with that.

TCS

 

[Chaosrider]

I heard what you're saying but there will always be buttheads and the powers that be will always use the actions of those relatively few buttheads to tighten control over everyone. It becomes a never ending slippery slope.

Which is Evil. Whack Bad Guys, don't restrict Good Guys.

Stick it to Butthead, but leave Beavis alone...

;-)

TCS

 

[Chaosrider]

A lot of assumptions are being made in this story.
1) Harassing wildlife. Flying in the vicinity of widelife is not harrassment. It could be the pilot was unaware of the presence of these birds, but it does not automatically mean he was intentionally harrassing.

It was harassment whether or not the pilot intended it.

In a legalistic linguistic sense, perhaps, but accidental harassment, which is ceased when discovered, is an accident, and not Evil.

*Intentional* harassment is Evil.

"It's not a blanket statement - it's the law, and your concept of what is and isn't common sense is completely irrelevant."

Partially correct. It is the law, but common sense is not irrelevant.

Thx,

TCS

 

[snowghost]

I see crows buzz and hit the flying hawks around here, so not surprised they'd go after a drone.

 

[Chaosrider]

I see crows buzz and hit the flying hawks around here, so not surprised they'd go after a drone.

I see smaller birds actively harassing the eagles around here. One of them does a fine job of that, but sometimes I'll see two of them double-teaming some hapless eagle, who generally then departs at high speed.

Harassment of wildlife!

I've had birds zing across the field of vision from my Mini-2, but never close-up. An eagle did check it out once, but from a substantially higher altitude.

TCS

 

[Dynamic Learning Machine]

Safe flying starts with respect for all that share the skies.

 

[Photo Booth]

Thanks to greater access to education, I think we have a lower percentage of idiots in the world than, say, 100 years ago. What has actually changed is that the growth of electronic communication (the internet) has given the idiots a better chance of being noticed by more people.

Mark

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

With smaller birds harassing eagles etc, that's obviously a predator deterrent thing going on.
Drones are much more likely to be 'attacked' by other smaller birds in a similar way, while larger raptors will attack one as a territorial matter, they see the drone as a predator too, invading its 'air space' and poaching in its 'home'.

I've had raptors like hawks and falcons interested in my drone, but so far no seagulls, or our dreaded magpies.
The magpies here are famous for buzzing anything coming into its territory, mostly around mating / hatching season.
Many other birds species do this too to protect their eggs / fledgling young.

I personally think drones in general aren't a big problem for most birds, you just have to be aware of the really sensitive areas etc . . . raptors, just treat them like manned aircraft and 'leave the area or land asap when you become aware of their presence'.

 

[Chaosrider]

Thanks to greater access to education, I think we have a lower percentage of idiots in the world than, say, 100 years ago. What has actually changed is that the growth of electronic communication (the internet) has given the idiots a better chance of being noticed by more people.

Mark

I don't use Facebook for exactly that reason.

There will never be a shortage of idiots. But you can arrange your comm feeds so that you rarely see them, except on the news.



TCS

 

[Chaosrider]

With smaller birds harassing eagles etc, that's obviously a predator deterrent thing going on.
Drones are much more likely to be 'attacked' by other smaller birds in a similar way, while larger raptors will attack one as a territorial matter, they see the drone as a predator too, invading its 'air space' and poaching in its 'home'.

I've had raptors like hawks and falcons interested in my drone, but so far no seagulls, or our dreaded magpies.
The magpies here are famous for buzzing anything coming into its territory, mostly around mating / hatching season.
Many other birds species do this too to protect their eggs / fledgling young.

I personally think drones in general aren't a big problem for most birds, you just have to be aware of the really sensitive areas etc . . . raptors, just treat them like manned aircraft and 'leave the area or land asap when you become aware of their presence'.

One of the eagles in my canyon scoped out one of my Mini-2s once, from substantially above it.

The eagle apparently concluded my drone was neither food nor a threat, and moved on to looking for something more appetizing.

TCS

 

[dart106]

The things new rules and regulations are made of.

 

[Photo Booth]

I don't use Facebook for exactly that reason.

There will never be a shortage of idiots. But you can arrange your comm feeds so that you rarely see them, except on the news.



TCS

I use the tools that Facebook provides to control who I interact with. Unlike so many people, I do NOT friend someone that I have not met in person or have at least had a few conversations via telephone. Meaning, all of my Facebook friends are people I genuinely know. I also keep my own Facebook page private to only those that I have friended. Complete strangers have zero access to my Facebook page beyond my name, a cover photo, and my profile photo. Due to my other hobbies and interests, I *do* interact with people in various Facebook groups and sometimes on other people's timelines. But anyone reading those posts can only see what I posted in that group (or friend's timeline), they are not able to backtrack and read my own timeline.

I kind of chuckle when I read posts on public forums from people that are anti Facebook or anti social media. THIS VERY FORUM is social media.

Mark

 

[eEridani]

I use the tools that Facebook provides to control who I interact with. Unlike so many people, I do NOT friend someone that I have not met in person or have at least had a few conversations via telephone. Meaning, all of my Facebook friends are people I genuinely know. I also keep my own Facebook page private to only those that I have friended. Complete strangers have zero access to my Facebook page beyond my name, a cover photo, and my profile photo. Due to my other hobbies and interests, I *do* interact with people in various Facebook groups and sometimes on other people's timelines. But anyone reading those posts can only see what I posted in that group (or friend's timeline), they are not able to backtrack and read my own timeline.

I kind of chuckle when I read posts on public forums from people that are anti Facebook or anti social media. THIS VERY FORUM is social media.

Mark

Except Facebook shares your page, all of your details, and many things about you that you haven't a clue they have sniffed out from you, your friends, and your likes, posts, and interests while your device has Facebook installed (cross app snooping, facial recognition, etc.). The fact you think your are safe and secure ... is funny. The worst part is you are spying for Facebook whenever you walk with your device, take a photo, post something, or read something.

As a society we've put up with this type of thing for a very long time: credit companies being the worst for a while until Facebook showed the world how gullible the average person is. But insurance companies, lending companies, most large marketing companies, etc., have all been deep into personal data collection.

RID is just another clink is privacy. But compared to social media like Facebook and Google, it is so far down the 'I'm worried about it' list that its ignorable. Add that there is an upside, the campus cops would be able to locate and educate Joe Dufus he was being stupid and causing problems for the birds.

 

[Crow Horse]

Why draw a distinction between the two? Is humanity not part of the universe?

;-)

TCS

Yes, but our presence is infinitesimally small, smaller than grains of sand on the beaches. Unfortunately, a significant portion of humanity believes that the Universe revolves around them, which is in direct contrast to indigenous cultures who believe that we are a part of and not a part from all that is. Additionally, they believe that we are caretakers of the natural world and not to exploit it.

I'm new to the UAS world but when I fly I conduct myself as if I was a guest in the natural world. Our avian friends have the right of way and my purposes for being there is secondary. My first serious flight was on a friends farm that had an eagle who was wintering over there and was seen daily. Prior to my flight I inquired about it's presence and was told that it hasn't been seen in several days. I still flew but my eyes were constantly sweeping the sky looking for it. I would suspend my mission as soon as I saw it to avoid any issue or disturb it. The same holds true for other raptors. I feel that I'm here to observe and not engage.

 

[Chaosrider]

Yes, but our presence is infinitesimally small, smaller than grains of sand on the beaches. Unfortunately, a significant portion of humanity believes that the Universe revolves around them, which is in direct contrast to indigenous cultures who believe that we are a part of and not a part from all that is. Additionally, they believe that we are caretakers of the natural world and not to exploit it.

I'm new to the UAS world but when I fly I conduct myself as if I was a guest in the natural world. Our avian friends have the right of way and my purposes for being there is secondary. My first serious flight was on a friends farm that had an eagle who was wintering over there and was seen daily. Prior to my flight I inquired about it's presence and was told that it hasn't been seen in several days. I still flew but my eyes were constantly sweeping the sky looking for it. I would suspend my mission as soon as I saw it to avoid any issue or disturb it. The same holds true for other raptors. I feel that I'm here to observe and not engage.

Perhaps my tribal heritage makes it easier for me to see us as part of the universe. One of my great grandmothers, who I met, was an enrolled member of the Cherokee tribe, by blood. I found a copy of the actual US census enrollment card for her. When I'm not droning, I'm a genealogist!

I'm blessed by the fact that where I live, raptors are like pigeons in New York...they're everywhere! If I never flew when there was a raptor in the sky, I'd never fly.

One time a bald eagle was circling high up over the canyon, and it dropped down a little bit to check out my drone. Having concluded my drone was neither food nor a threat, it went back to it's regularly scheduled patrol.

I've fed the little critters outside my house since I moved in 2 1/2 years ago. Recently, the squirrels have become sufficiently comfortable with me and my drones that they'll come up to eat the food that I put out, while I'm sitting in my chair flying my drone.

Another time a hummingbird zinged by right after I had taken off with one of my Mini-2s. It stopped, turned around, and scoped out my drone for a little bit. It seemed to decide that my drone was just some huge weird mutant cousin, and moved on.

As you correctly pointed out, there's no need to be apart from the natural world...even when you're droning! All that's required, from my personal moral perspective, is that you be respectful of wildlife, and not harass the critters.

Thx,

MM

 

[Crow Horse]

A hummingbird "friend" of mine......

 

[Crow Horse]

I see crows buzz and hit the flying hawks around here, so not surprised they'd go after a drone.

Just an FYI,,,,It's a behavior called mobbing and many birds use it to defend their territory, their nests, and their food sources.