KOTA KINABALU: City Hall has done the right thing in trimming the tree branches at Gaya Street as it could help control the bird population and thereby reduce the risk of diseases transmitted by these birds.
Deputy director of Sabah Wildlife Department, Dr Sen Nathan, said reducing bird droppings in urbanized areas would help to reduce the risk of disease transmission.
“There are always risks that any species of birds can be carriers of any diseases, like H1N1 in the past. For me personally, what City Hall did in terms of managing the city to control the bird population, is the right thing to do, especially to reduce risks of disease transmission,”he said when contacted yesterday.
City Hall has undertaken a major trimming exercise to remove tree branches along Gaya Street in an effort to reduce bird droppings.
On whether the birds will lose their resting place, Dr Sen believed that the birds would find another place to roost for the night as they could fly between 10 and 15 kilometres radius.
“I think the reason they are roosting in this area (Gaya Street) is because they are used to it.
“I don’t think it is a serious issue (cutting down the tree branches) because we have many trees on Signal Hill, besides the number of trees around the city.”
Dr Sen gave the assurance that City Hall had not destroyed the nesting place of the birds, as birds normally prefer to nest in quieter and more secluded areas where they feel safe.
“So, I think the birds would now be nesting in the Signal Hill area, as long as they (the people) don’t keep reducing the size of Signal Hill, (as) I can see more and more buildings are coming up.”
At the end of the day, he said there is no way to completely stop the birds from roosting on the trees along Gaya Street, unless they were chopped down, which he disapproves.
Meanwhile, most of the thousands of birds are said to be roosting on the trees at the nearby Suria Sabah shopping complex.