Dive-bombing bird terrorises Sydney's central business dist

Dive-bombing bird terrorises Sydney's central business district

SYDNEY (AFP) - The yellow barriers are out, with signs warning "Don't run", "If necessary protect your eyes". Sydney is under attack.

The aggressors are a pair of nesting currawongs, sinister looking black birds with long, sharp beaks.

The male of the pair, which is nesting high in a tree in downtown Sydney, has been terrorising passersby, reportedly drawing blood from more than one unsuspecting pedestrian in scenes reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock's 1963 film classic "The Birds".

Male currawongs are known for aggressive attacks which target the eyes and head. Last year a magpie killed an elderly man and seriously injured a South Korean tourist in an attack in Victoria state.

But the swoops in Sydney's central business district have become so frequent the City Council put up the barriers and warning signs along Pitt Street, a busy road in the heart of the area.

Currawongs, a native magpie common in the south and east of Australia, usually inhabit forests and woodlands but apparently are just as comfortable in urban areas.

A council spokeswoman said it was taking advice on how to deal with the problem, which was expected to continue for another two weeks while the female incubated her eggs then fed them when they hatched.

One solution could be to move the male.

"The male doesn't contribute to the growth of the young family... he's the one who's doing the nosediving," Pam Walker said Wednesday.

One local newspaper Wednesday offered tips to avoid being attacked: maintain eye contact with the male bird, don't run past the nesting area, don't wear a hat and try wearing sunglasses on the back of you're head to confuse the attacker.

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