Robop

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"Robop" is short for robotic bird of prey and is the name for a mechanical peregrine falcon that squawks, flaps its wings and sounds like the real bird. The purpose of the Robop is to scare away pigeons. The product is manufactured by Robop Limited of East Lothian, United Kingdom, was invented by Bob McIntyre and developed by his company since 2001.

In April of 2007 the Liverpool city council purchased 10 Robops in an attempt to rid the town center of unsightly pigeons. The cost per Robop is 2,000 pounds (4,000 USD). The results of this effort are pending but a smaller scale effort at Swansea University has been effective. However, according to Director of PiCAS UK, the leading independent advisory body on the issue of bird control in Britain said her organization had done studies with mechanical deterrents and had found them to be completely ineffective. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in the UK have applauded the initiative as a means to get away from attempts to poison and starve pigeons, citing the eradication program in London under Mayor Ken Livingstone.

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De Lara, Eyal & Ebling, Maria (2007), “New Products / A scarecrow for the 21st century”, IEEE Pervasive Computing 6 (3): 15-17, DOI 10.1109/MPRV.2007.62