A drone delivery business in Canberra, Australia, has had to battle with ravens protecting their nests by attacking its gadgets.
Wing, a division of Alphabet, Google’s parent company, has been delivering coffee, medicine, and office supplies to Canberra citizens since 2019.
However, it stated Tuesday that it will cease deliveries to a portion of the city following numerous complaints of ravens bearing down on its drones, according to The Canberra Times.
Due to Canberra’s ongoing coronavirus lockdown, demand for delivery drones is on the rise.
The most recent attack was recorded on film and shared online by Ben Roberts, a resident of the area who uses the service to purchase coffee every morning.
According to The Canberra Times, he stated: “They are only a matter of time away from bringing one down. They believe it is Terminator or something akin.”
The birds known to attack drones in the past have included magpies, hawks, and wedge-tailed eagles, among other species.
According to ABC News Australia, Wing stated in a message to consumers in the immediate region: “We’ve discovered several birds in the vicinity displaying territorial characteristics and diving at moving things.”
According to a Wing spokeswoman, the drone in the video finished its delivery and retreated to its home base following the incident.
According to the spokesman, Wing drones include “several redundancies that assist in ensuring safe operations in the event that anything like this occurs.”
Wing stated that it has halted delivery to a “small number” of clients, without specifying how many. The remainder of Canberra’s activities were unaffected.
According to ornithologist Neil Hermes, while ravens are extremely territorial, they have never targeted a drone previously.
“They will dive on dogs and other activities near their nest,” Hermes says, but “targeting drones is unusual.”
Wayne Condon, UAV Training Australia’s principal pilot, and instructor advised the network that drone pilots should avoid identified nesting places.
“In essence, this is their sky, and we’re just flying through. You may be able to save your aircraft and prevent hurting the bird if you act immediately!” Condon explained to The Canberra Times.
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