Belle River Marina keeping bird poop at bay with low-tech wires

A string is the solution to reducing bird poop at the Belle River Marina.

Gary Regnier, a dockhand, said staff at the marina have put up aluminum poles connecting a string from pole-to-pole in an effort to stop seagulls from descending on to the dock.

"Once they learn that there's a piece of string in the way, they won't want to come down," he said, adding it's been a very effective solution.

Sometimes, the strings break. When this happens, the boaters need to quickly reattachthe strings. Failure to do so will result in the re-emergence of seagull poop on the dock.

"When they come down, they get their wings caught, and then they learn," said Regnier. "All the other birds get the idea that we better not get any closer or it's going to happen to us."

Regnier said the strings have helped to keep the seagulls away.

Sometimes, ducks and geese fly from the water under the string and poop on the dock, but according to Regnier, that's much easier to clean.

"You're on the lake. You're with nature. It is what it is."