The Amberley residents claim a bird repellent gel was used to discourage the birds from perching on the railings at the Brackenfields shopping centre. But instead of encouraging the birds to leave the area, it killed several of them.
The birds, understood to be welcome swallows (warou), gathered each evening outside the development. They would wait for the lights to go on in the car park which attracted moths and other flying insects for them to feed on.
Over Easter weekend, small pots of the gel were placed along the beams supporting the awnings on the southern side of the development.
Then when residents visited the fast food shops on Tuesday evening, they noticed large numbers of birds hanging from the undersides of the rafters.
"It was horrible," said Amberley fish & chip shop owner Stu Manley.
"There were birds hanging off the beams upside down, obviously dead or dying.
"Others were shuffling and flapping around in obvious distress on the footpath, their feathers, wings and legs stuck together, unable to fly.
"It was very distressing for the children, and when people went to aid of the small birds, they felt their hands burning from contact with the gel.
"While we managed to remove most of the glue from one bird and got him to the vets, I sadly had to euthanise another who was too far gone. It was just horrible."
Manley said word of the birds' condition quickly spread around the community, with many people expressing their displeasure and shock online.
"Sadly, they started blaming us for it all, but we (the business owners) had nothing to do with it. We knew nothing about it."
Several business owners spoken to by the North Canterbury News say they didn’t have a problem with the bird poop.
"I just either turned the hose on or brushed it away with a broom, there wasn’t much of it anyway," says Manley.
He and Crafty Barber owner Zanie Louw say the property manager visited them about a week before the incident.
"I might sell chicken nuggets, but I didn’t want to harm any of the birds here, as there are many cheap and more efficient ways to deter birds from roosting under awnings.
"It was just senseless how they did it, somebody didn’t think about what they were doing here," Manley said.
He said a mix-up in identifying the birds meant initial calls for help from the Hurunui District Council, MPI, SPCA and other agencies were largely discounted.
That was until many of them were identified as welcome swallows.
Manley said DOC, the SPCA and others were now coming out to look at the issues with the gel.
"Some locals took the matter into their own hands and showed up here Wednesday morning with ladders and removed buckets full of the pots, and took away all the dead birds."
Manley called it a senseless waste of native bird life.
Louise Tanner from Point Property Management which manages the centre for owners Brackenfields Property Syndicate, said they had received complaints that bird excrement was creating a potential hygiene issue for food and other retailers and customers at the Brackenfields retail centre.
Tanner said they immediately contracted an experienced local pest control company which recommended a non-toxic gel product that would act as a deterrent.
"This method was implemented to bring relief to the food and other retailers as well as customers at the centre."
As soon as they became aware the gel had harmed a small number of birds, rather than discouraging them to leave the area, they instructed the contractor to remove the gel residue, which was completed yesterday.
"We would like to apologise for any concern the use of this gel has caused and want to reassure customers this product will not be used at the centre again."
Tanner said they are now investigating alternative bird deterrent methods to identify a solution that ensures no harm to the birds, while helping them maintain the highest levels of hygiene and cleanliness around retail stores on the property.
