It is a sadly memorable moment. You spend hours diligently cleaning every inch of your car until it looks as good as new.
Unfortunately, this is the exact moment the birds in your area arrange a meet-up over your vehicle, and by the morning, your shiny new car is covered in bird droppings. This is a universal problem.
But don’t worry. Car enthusiasts worldwide have put their heads together over the years and devised clever tips to avoid unsightly bird poop on your car.
It is universally accepted that birds are beautiful and largely harmless creatures, which we should strive to protect at all costs. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t tackle the nasty price we have to pay with their unsightly and stubborn poop stains all over our cars.
Luckily, we can utilise many valuable techniques, from parking more strategically to covering your mirrors. Some minor adjustments to your routine can go a long way to solving this pesky problem in no time.
There may be affiliate links in this article. You can read more about this in my disclosure.
Why Do they Do It?
Birds are present on every continent and are said to be some of the most versatile creatures on earth. So it is even more remarkable that they still manage to poop all over your vehicle with access to the entire planet.
Well, there are many interesting reasons, not just out of spite!
Birds have been around for millions of years. They achieved this predominantly by utilizing inventive techniques to avoid predators and keep their young safe.
One method was to poop in water to disguise the smell and sight of their waste, which would often attract predators. However, this means that the shiny surface of your car looks incredibly appealing to an average bird who thinks it could be a small pond.
Alternatively, like many mammals, birds use waste secretion to mark out these controlling territories. With the abundance of modern sprawling suburbs, you will likely be parking your car in a defended territory of a particular bird or group.
So now your immaculately clean vehicle looks like unclaimed land, which must be conquered with a fresh coating of bird poop.
If you are fond of buffing your car to a near mirror shine, you may have more problems with bird poop than most. Birds are often on high alert and have swift reaction times, which is why they are so effective against predators.
They have a speedy stress response, allowing them to escape potentially deadly situations. But, unfortunately, when they spot your shiny mirror-like car, they often mistake their reflection for a predator.
Their immediate response is often to poop instantly as a defence mechanism and to reduce their body weight to get away faster, which is good for them but not for your car!
A modern vehicle can essentially be any color imaginable! Although this benefits us as car owners, it has paved the way for a confusing experience for our flying friends.
Birds are often attracted to colors similar to their plumage, which is how they find a suitable mate. However, cars are a relatively new phenomenon to bird species who haven’t learnt to easily differentiate by anything more than their once unique colors.
So you may find that bird with similar feather colours to your car will spend a lot of time investigating it as a potential mate. The longer they hang around, the greater the chance of nature calling.
There has been a massive surge in encouraging green spaces within cities and suburban areas. This is to prevent the total erosion of our natural environment from where we live and work.
More trees and green spaces are now thoroughly peppered throughout our living environment, which has a host of benefits. However, the downside is that birds now have ample trees to nest and proliferate.
It may seem like a small price to pay, but the reality of an increased bird population is that they will be poop. Everywhere!
With massive housing blocks also comes the need for more powerlines. More often than not, they are positioned throughout every street and extend over your driveway to get to your home.
Powerlines are the quintessential resting area for birds, now set perfectly to lay their droppings all over your street and driveway.
How to Avoid Bird Popping On Your Vehicle
Although birds rarely cause us any harm, more just a minor annoyance, it doesn’t mean you should not try and prevent them from going about their business on your car.
Ultimately we do not want to get rid of birds, which just want them to stop ruining our vehicles with their evident and hideous poop. Fortunately, several methods you can employ to help tackle this problem that will cause no harm to your local bird population.
Ultrasonic Speaker
A specialised and specifically designed solution is an excellent option to take on your friendly neighbourhood birds. You can now purchase a purpose build speaker that emits an ultrasonic sound only birds can hear.
You can simply plant this device in your garden, and it will periodically emit a sound which will scare off birds within its local vicinity. They are also often solar-powered, so you can simply install it and forget about it.
It is worth considering how close you live to a park or green space, and maybe consult your neighbours before installing to ensure you are not disturbing a well-used nesting area first.
Bird Deterrent Statue
A less invasive option compared to the ultrasonic speaker, a physical predator statue might be a more appropriate option for you. These are purely physical deterrents that will only affect birds in a more specific area.
They act a bit like a scarecrow but have been proven to be very effective. They can come in various animals, including owls, foxes, coyotes and eagles.
In addition, birds generally have exceptionally good vision and are well adapted to spotting silent predators. Therefore, these forms of deterrent can be instrumental in persuading birds to stay away from your beloved vehicle.
Consider Your Vehicle Color
There have been some studies to suggest that birds are more attracted to red cars and, by extension, fall prey to more pooping divebombs. This could be a serious consideration if you live in an area with a large bird population.
As mentioned above, birds often attract colours similar to their feathers. So, it may be worth considering what birds are local to your area and assessing what colors they usually are.
Of course, this is not as well-proven a method, but anecdotal evidence has suggested some surprisingly promising results.
Consider Where You Park
Modern living requires people to live and work in cities. So whether you live in an urban jungle or just have to commute there, you should seriously consider where you are parking.
Birds will always prefer to perch in the area where they get great visual vantage points to spot predators and detect food. That is why you should avoid bird hotspots near parks, edges of tall buildings, and light poles.
The more time you spend near these heavily populated areas, the greater the risk of your car being decimated by bird poop.
Cover Your Car Mirrors
This may seem like an odd option, but as I said earlier, birds are susceptible to reflections. Have you ever noticed scratches on your side mirrors?
Often birds will perch on your side mirrors which will likely lead to them catching their reflection and attacking it, thinking it is a territorial rival.
While they are fighting their reflection, they will become very territorial over the area you park your vehicle. The more interest they have in the area, the more time they will spend in it, inevitably bringing lots of unpleasant birds dropping on and around your car.
The best way to avoid this is to cover your mirrors with cardboard or old clothes to prevent confused birds from turning your car into a battleground.
Summary
No matter how much we love our flying friends, birds pooping on our nice clean cars will always be an uphill struggle. It is likely that no matter how hard we try, from time to time, birds will poop on our cars.
It is a small price to be blessed with these beautiful creatures, but it is still a problem worth addressing. There are several harmless and effective methods in this article which can quickly help with the nasty bird poop problem.
From purpose ultrasonic speakers to eagle statues, there will be a technique which you can quickly adopt to help prolong the shine of your car for years to come.
Last update on 2023-12-01 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
