Starling attack in Limerick leaves council scratching around for answers

A SENIOR council official has admitted the local authority is scratching around for answers to a problem which has ruffled the feathers of members.

Starlings have been flock-ing to the city centre, and members are absolutely at their wit’s end with the fowl droppings the birds are leaving behind.

It’s particularly a problem on Bedford Row, and metropolitan district leader Daniel Butler jokingly said: “We’re going to have to buy a lot of small nappies”.

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Limerick writer and satirist Blindboy Boatclub recently highlighted the “prodigious laminar of birds**t” on the street, after an incident on his bike.

But at the moment, it appears council officials are winging it when it comes to finding ways to solve the issue.

“If anyone has the answer to the starlings, I’ll bring you all out to dinner,” said director of service Kieran Lehane.

“We have an ecologist upstairs. I’m working closely with him,” he confirmed.

He asked: “If we have an ornithologist on the council, let us know!”

Cllr Butler said: “It’s causing serious issues for people who are eating outdoors. It’s going to need to be taken on. I know it’s been made a joke of online, but it has to be sorted.”

Independent councillor Maria Donoghue said: “A lady who manages shopping centres told me if she was managing Bedford Row, she would cut the underside of the trees so it would make it easier to clean underneath. It would also help people see the names of the shops. In shopping centres, where shoppers do not see the names of the shops, traders can feel they are less visible.”

Fine Gael councillor Sarah Kiely asked: “Did you consider fake predators? I know that works for someone I know in another area.”

The information about the starlings was made in the context of an update given on clean-ups and maintenance of the city centre.

Mr Lehane pointed out that as a part of this, the famous Sylvester O’Halloran bridge - which links the Potato Market with the Hunt Museum - had enjoyed a clean-up and a lick of paint.

Mr Lehane also highlighted the clean-up of trees, bins, benches and rails as part of the council’s efforts to keep the city centre looking at its best.

Following his election to the role of metropolitan district leader, Cllr Butler had requested that updates on the city centre become an integral part of these meetings.