ムクドリの見事なダンス…でも、ふんはごめん　伊ローマ

【ローマＡＦＰ＝時事】イタリアの首都ローマの日暮れ時、白い作業着姿の５人が並木の陰に入る。鋭い鳴き声が混じった音を発するスピーカーを振ると、ムクドリが一斉に空に舞い上がった。（写真はイタリア・ローマ、チンクエチェント広場の上空を飛ぶムクドリの群れ）
　毎年、冬になるとローマ上空では、ムクドリの大群がそろって急降下する見事な光景が繰り広げられる。
　何世紀も前からある教会や宮殿、遺跡の上で演じられる一糸乱れぬ舞は、行き交う人々を魅了する。
　だが、木に止まって休む群れが落とすふんは、下の路面や車をびっしりと覆う。ふん害のために、晴れていても傘をさして並木道を歩くローマ市民の姿も珍しくない。
　１０月から翌年２月にかけて、越冬のために北欧からイタリアに渡るムクドリは数百万羽に上る。
　鳥のふん害を防ぐために市当局は毎年、ムクドリ対策を行っている。ただし、市内からムクドリを追い出すのではなく、群れを小さくして対処しやすくするために音と光を使用するのだ。
　環境問題に取り組む協同組合「ファウナ・ウルビス」のバレンティーナ・デトンマーゾさんは、ムクドリを移動させるのに音は「最も簡単で効果的な」方法だと説明する。
　だが、住民のアレッシオ・レイティさん（１６）は「ムクドリは見事です」となぜ追い払わなければならないのか理解できないと語り、「そういう習性なのです。おしめをはかせるわけにはいかないでしょう！」と続けた。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】

〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2022/02/17-11:21）

As the sun sets over central Rome, five figures in white overalls move under the trees. They wave speakers emitting a mix of sharp cries, and the birds rise into the air.
Every winter, the skies over Italy's capital are filled with the mesmerising sight of thousands of starlings swooping and diving in unison.
But when they stop to rest on the trees, their droppings coat the pavements and cars below -- prompting the city authorities, every year, to try to scare them away.
We act on their fear reflex by using their own alarm call, said Marianna Di Santo, clad head-to-toe in white protective clothing and heading towards the birds gathered in trees around Termini central train station.
It's as if they were warning each other that this is a dangerous place and they should move away, said Di Santo, whose company, Fauna Urbis, is hired by the Rome authorities to disperse the starlings.
- Up to one million -
Between October and February every year, millions of starlings migrate from northern Europe to Italy in search of warmer temperatures for the winter.
Their synchronised ballets -- murmurations -- over the Eternal City's centuries-old churches, palaces and ruins entrances passers-by.
I've never seen such a thing in my life. It's spectacular, said Spanish tourist Eva Osuna, taking out her phone to capture the magic.
The glossy dark-feathered birds, which measure up to 20 centimetres each, spend the day feeding in rural areas before heading back into town to sleep, explains ornithologist Francesca Manzia from Italy's League for Bird Protection (LIPU).
In the city, the temperatures are higher and the light helps them find their way around, and protects them from predators, she told AFP.
Warmer temperatures in northern European caused by climate change have shortened the starlings' stay in Italy, but their sheer numbers make them a force to be reckoned with.
Between 500,000 and one million are believed to be in Rome this year, according to one expert.
Naturally gregarious, according to Manzia, they stick together at night, creating collective dormitories in the trees.
She insisted the starlings do not carry diseases but pose problems because of their droppings, which make the roads slippery and smell very strong.
- In their nature -
Such is the problem that, even on a clear day, it is not uncommon to see Romans walking along tree-lined streets with umbrellas as protection against the birds.
City authorities use sounds and also lights not to chase the birds out of the city, but to split them up into smaller, more manageable groups.
Sounds are the most simply and effective way of moving the birds on, said Valentina de Tommaso from Fauna Urbis.
She works two or three times a week near Termini, which -- with its lights and shelter from the wind -- is a comfortable place for the birds to rest.
We play recordings for about 10 minutes, with breaks in between so they do not get used to the noise -- a tactic that aims to be annoying but harmless, she said.
The piercing noise draws a small crowd, some of them approving, others less so.
They pose lots of problems. Walking around under flocks of starlings is not really ideal, said Francesco Fusco, a 55-year-old engineer.
They are magnificent, counters 16-year-old Alessio Reiti, saying he does not understand why they need to be scared away.
It's in their nature. We are not going to make them wear nappies! he said, laughing.