Source
r/drones•
WinTurkey

Drones and Birds?

I'm just wondering what people's experience with flying around birds is? I have a Spark which I like to take out around waterways, rivers and coasts, I fly away from people or private property so my only real fear is hitting a bird. There tend to be seagulls in the places where I fly, and I swear they take an active interest in my drone. I've seen videos of birds-of-prey like eagles attacking drones, but are gulls a threat? The Spark is quite small, do the bigger drones like the Mavic or the Phantom scare them off?

Posted Aug 27, 2018, 10:58 AM UTC

14
Spl4tt3rB1tcH•

Well, once I was flying above my city some months ago, and there was literally a swarm of birds (mostly pigeons) going around my Mavic Pro and following it.

I was actually scared of flying fast, because it could hit one.

I think this is a legit question. I didn't know what to do, do I have to be scared? I mean, if a bird flies into my drone when it's 300-500m away, I will firstly don't find my drone anymore, and secondly, that poor bird man.

2
A_Crunchy_Leaf•

It depends on the bird. I've never seen gulls go on the offensive.

1
XelfinDarlander•

I've yet to have an issue with my Mavic Pro. It could be that it's much larger than the Spark. I do have some hawks in the area that take an interest in it but just watch, they've never attacked it and I don't go near the nests.

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1
ArtofTheHustle•

I had my Mavic Pro attacked by birds when I was flying in Croatia. It made for some interesting shots of birds flying in and out of view but it made me nervous since I was flying over water and in an area I knew I wouldn't be able to find the drone if they knocked it out the air.

1