If you thought scarecrows were dated, old-fashioned, and useless, you better think again. Here's a modern day 'scarecrow' being used to keep birds away from the cherries.

Yes, Dorothy, there was a time when scarecrows were made of straw but the birds got wise and we had to change our methods.

We have seen tube men dancing around at special sales and grand opening events drawing plenty of attention to themselves. The folks at Clark Family Orchards in Palisade are hoping this modern day scarecrow will keep the birds away from their cherry trees.

According to Jack, a supervisor at the Clark orchards, some previous bird deterrent systems haven't worked so well.

One of these methods was the sound of a small cannon, that used a small explosion of ignited compressed propane to simulate a large gun or cannon. The problem with that, Jack says, it scared horses, orchard workers, and bicyclists passing by.

Another method was "kites" in the shape of peregrine falcons attached to conduit poles.
Unfortunately, these creations fell victim to the high winds often felt in the area, and they ended up becoming kites.

This is the first year Clark Family Orchards has used the dancing tube man to keep the birds away, so only time will tell how effective it is. The dancing scarecrow is in operation 24 hours a day.

I know if I was a bird I would be staying away from the dancing man and finding my cherries somewhere else.

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