Crows again roosting at University Park

Crows again roosting at University Park

Credit: Annemarie Mountz As dusk fell on Penn State's University Park campus on Wednesday, Nov. 24, crows began to roost in the trees outside of Old Main. To see the full-size photo, click on the image above.

University Park, Pa. -- Crows again have begun to roost on Penn State's University Park campus, creating unsanitary and unpleasant conditions. To move the crows away from central campus, the Office of Physical Plant (OPP) will resurrect its crow relocation program.

The program will begin during the evening on Tuesday, Nov. 30, and will last throughout the late fall and winter as necessary. Pyrotechnic bangers and screamers will be employed as in past years. These noise-making activities will occur early in the evening shortly after dusk and could continue for a couple of hours each night. Specific dates and locations will be determined based on roosting patterns and will occur only if needed. All relocation activities will be conducted by highly-trained and experienced Physical Plant employees.

Last year about 3,000 migrating crows landed on the campus. The University's goal is to discourage this mass roosting and the accompanying sanitation problems.

Physical Plant is again partnering with Penn State researchers and the USDA Wildlife Services to relocate the migrating crows. Penn State also will work closely with the borough of State College to jointly find solutions to this continuing problem. This year OPP will not make announcements each time harassment activities are scheduled to take place, but will provide occasional updates as needed.

OPP crews are monitoring crow concentrations as they return to campus. The public can report bothersome crow activity or clusters by contacting Paul Ruskin at pdr2@psu.edu or by calling (814) 863-9620.