Church uses dead vulture effigy to ward off live ones

A North Carolina church has a dead vulture tied to its steeple. The strange but effective strategy is meant to ward away live birds that were destroying the church’s roof.



Bethlehem Baptist Church in Jacksonville has contracted with the US Department of Agriculture to use a vulture effigy - a taxidermist-prepared vulture body attached to a decoy head because real bird heads disintegrate too quickly.

The dead bird went up about a month ago and worked instantly. Vultures that used to flock to the church roof have found other places to roost and eat. “The birds were tearing the roof up,” church secretary Susie McBarn said. “They were actually breaking pieces off the roof and eating it.



“That couldn’t have been good for them.” She said the church has received no negative comments about the dead bird. The effigy not only fools other birds, but some people as well. One person contacted the church because they believed the bird was alive and tangled in an electric line.