Shooter with something to crow about

For six years, gun enthusiast David Lim has braved angry residents to help in the effort to control the crow population

By Goh Chin Lian

  VOLUNTEER crow shooter David Lim is likely to be busier in the years ahead if he is called upon to fight the intensifying war against the birds.

It could also mean more late dinners with his wife of 26 years.

''By the time we finish shooting and return the guns to the range in Choa Chu Kang, it's 9.30 pm,'' says the honorary treasurer of the Singapore Gun Club.

''My wife complains, but she understands I'm doing community service.''

The 52-year-old businessman has been trudging home late almost every weekend for the past six years, culling an average of 30 to 40 crows for the authorities each time.

 

Join in the discussion on how to keep crows in check! Click the image. A STUDY by the National University of Singapore's Department of Biological Science estimated there were 172,000 birds here in February last year. The Environment Ministry said they cull 75,000 crows a year in order to keep its population in check. Food spillage is one of the reasons crows infest public places. Crows have been known to attack. In May this year, two men were reportedly pecked by the birds.

As the ''Crow IC'' - as the others call him - he also coordinates the culling and deploys a platoon of more than 20 shooters, whose ranks include company directors, stockbrokers and civil servants.

Lately, they have had to shoot crows on weekdays as well, right after work, from 6 pm to 8 pm.

Mr Lim takes it all in his stride, even though passers-by often harass him and his team. ''Some people scold us for dripping crow's blood onto their cars. Others call us idiots or say we are cruel,'' he says.

But there are residents who offer them cold drinks or let them into their houses to wash their hands, he adds.

A two-year study of the crows commissioned by the Agri-food and Veterinary Authority says a sustained campaign against the birds could slash their numbers to almost a tenth of what they are today, or 10,000, within 10 years.

The Ministry of the Environment is likely to adopt this figure as a target.

According to the study, in a count from May to June this year, the three areas with the most roosting crows were Kitchener Road (2,400) in Jalan Besar, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 (2,000) and Jalan Pelikat in Hougang (1,600).

Coffeeshop assistant Katherine Tay, 40, who works at the Palace Garden Eating House in Kitchener Road, says that at lunchtime, five to six crows usually descend on food left unattended.

''Someone once left a plate of rice on the table to get a drink, and a bird swooped down and flew off with a drumstick,'' she says in Mandarin.

She bangs on tables to scare the crows away. The staff at the coffeeshop also try to clear the tables quickly, she adds.

''Shooting the crows isn't cruel. If you don't do that, they will disturb the customers and the place would get dirty,'' she says.

Retiree S.P. Loo, 67, who has lived in a terrace house in Jalan Pelikat for more than 12 years, is worried about hygiene. ''The wind blows the crows' feathers and the dust of dried-up bird droppings from the pavement and road into the house. That's not good for our health,'' he says.

He suggests pruning the trees so that crows cannot hide there.

Housewife L.C. Khoo, 65, who has lived on the fourth floor of a Housing Board flat in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 for more than 20 years, says the crows started becoming a problem five years ago.

She avoids walking under the Angsana trees lining the footpath when the crows are roosting, for fear of their droppings. ''But they aren't that noisy to me anymore. After so many years, I'm used to all the cawing,'' she says.

How you can help

• AVOID littering or feeding stray animals and birds.
• Food left on the ground will attract crows.
• Dispose of rubbish properly, in litter bins.
• At home, put refuse into plastic bags and dispose of it in covered bins.
• Call the ENV helpline on 1800-731-9222 if you spot crows creating a nuisance.