Study conditions and gull response data for nocturnal unmanned aircraft system treatments used to prevent gulls from nesting on rooftops during nest material gathering phase

Metadata:
Identification_Information:
Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Pfeiffer, Morgan B.
Originator: Pullins, Craig K.
Originator: Beckerman, Scott F.
Originator: Hoblet, Joshua L.
Originator: Blackwell, Bradley F.
Publication_Date: 2022
Title:
Study conditions and gull response data for nocturnal unmanned aircraft system treatments used to prevent gulls from nesting on rooftops during nest material gathering phase
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: tabular digital data
Series_Information:
Series_Name: Research Dataset Series
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Fort Collins, CO
Publisher: USDA, APHIS, WS National Wildlife Research Center
Online_Linkage: https://doi.org/10.2737/NWRC-RDS-2022-002
Description:
Abstract:
This data publication contains unmanned aircraft system (UAS) operational and general weather data from two building rooftops in the spring of 2021. These rooftops were located in Sandusky, Ohio and Chicago, Illinois and were our study locations for quantifying gull response to UAS hazing treatments in the nest material gathering phase (i.e., March to April). We hypothesized that nocturnal UAS operation, like nocturnal predator disturbance, might reduce gull numbers and, thus, collision risk to aircraft. Operation of UAS is weather dependent, hence we collected data on precipitation, average wind speed, as well as wind gusts at each study location and used these data to determine if UAS operation was feasible on a given day. If we were able to operate an UAS, we collected data on site-specific weather and gull reaction.
Purpose:
These data were collected to understand and quantify the role of UAS relative to wildlife hazing for aviation safety.
Supplemental_Information:
For more information about this study and these data, see Pfeiffer et al. (2023).

These data were published on 12/16/2022. On 01/10/2023 the metadata was updated to include citation information for the newly published article Pfeiffer et al. (2023).
Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date: 20210314
Ending_Date: 20210408
Currentness_Reference:
Ground condition
Status:
Progress: Complete
Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency: As needed
Spatial_Domain:
Description_of_Geographic_Extent:
The study location in Sandusky, Ohio was a large picnic shelter (0.22 hectares [ha], 5 meters [m] tall) with a metal roof along the shores of Lake Erie. The study location in Chicago, Illinois was a large industrial warehouse building (2.4 ha, 6 m tall) with a tar-pebble roof surface.

Bounding coordinates for Sandusky:
min/max longitude: (-82.682, -82.680)
min/max latitude: (41.478, 41.479)

Bounding coordinates for Chicago:
min/max longitude: (-87.862, -87.860)
min/max latitude: (41.919, 41.922)
Bounding_Coordinates:
West_Bounding_Coordinate: -87.86200
East_Bounding_Coordinate: -87.86000
North_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.92200
South_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.47800
Bounding_Altitudes:
Altitude_Minimum: 0
Altitude_Maximum: 120
Altitude_Distance_Units: meters
Keywords:
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: ISO 19115 Topic Category
Theme_Keyword: biota
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: National Research & Development Taxonomy
Theme_Keyword: Wildlife (or Fauna)
Theme_Keyword: Birds
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: None
Theme_Keyword: antipredator behavior
Theme_Keyword: bird strike
Theme_Keyword: colony nester
Theme_Keyword: drone
Theme_Keyword: hazing
Theme_Keyword: Larus spp.
Theme_Keyword: urban wildlife
Theme_Keyword: wildlife damage management
Theme_Keyword: Larus argentatus
Theme_Keyword: Larus delawarensis
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: None
Place_Keyword: Ohio
Place_Keyword: Illinois
Place_Keyword: Great Lakes
Taxonomy:
Keywords/Taxon:
Taxonomic_Keyword_Thesaurus:
None
Taxonomic_Keywords: multiple species
Taxonomic_Keywords: animals
Taxonomic_System:
Classification_System/Authority:
Classification_System_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: ITIS
Publication_Date: 2022
Title:
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS)
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: online-database
Other_Citation_Details:
Retrieved [October, 24, 2022]; CC0
Online_Linkage: www.itis.gov
Online_Linkage: https://doi.org/10.5066/F7KH0KBK
Taxonomic_Procedures:
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Kingdom
Taxon_Rank_Value: Animalia
Applicable_Common_Name: Animal
Applicable_Common_Name: animaux
Applicable_Common_Name: animals
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Subkingdom
Taxon_Rank_Value: Bilateria
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Infrakingdom
Taxon_Rank_Value: Deuterostomia
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Phylum
Taxon_Rank_Value: Chordata
Applicable_Common_Name: cordés
Applicable_Common_Name: cordado
Applicable_Common_Name: chordates
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Subphylum
Taxon_Rank_Value: Vertebrata
Applicable_Common_Name: vertebrado
Applicable_Common_Name: vertébrés
Applicable_Common_Name: vertebrates
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Infraphylum
Taxon_Rank_Value: Gnathostomata
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Superclass
Taxon_Rank_Value: Tetrapoda
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Class
Taxon_Rank_Value: Aves
Applicable_Common_Name: Birds
Applicable_Common_Name: oiseaux
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Order
Taxon_Rank_Value: Charadriiformes
Applicable_Common_Name: Shore Birds
Applicable_Common_Name: Gulls
Applicable_Common_Name: Alcids
Applicable_Common_Name: Plovers
Applicable_Common_Name: Oystercatchers
Applicable_Common_Name: goélands
Applicable_Common_Name: alcidés
Applicable_Common_Name: Auks
Applicable_Common_Name: huîtriers
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Family
Taxon_Rank_Value: Laridae
Applicable_Common_Name: Gulls
Applicable_Common_Name: Terns
Applicable_Common_Name: becs-en-ciseaux
Applicable_Common_Name: goélands
Applicable_Common_Name: labbes
Applicable_Common_Name: mouettes
Applicable_Common_Name: Skimmers
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Genus
Taxon_Rank_Value: Larus
Applicable_Common_Name: Gulls
Applicable_Common_Name: Ivory Gulls
Applicable_Common_Name: Kittiwakes
Applicable_Common_Name: Ross' Gulls
Applicable_Common_Name: Sabine's Gulls
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Species
Taxon_Rank_Value: Larus argentatus
Applicable_Common_Name: Gaviota plateada
Applicable_Common_Name: Herring Gull
Applicable_Common_Name: Goéland argenté
Applicable_Common_Name: European Herring Gull
Taxonomic_Classification:
Taxon_Rank_Name: Species
Taxon_Rank_Value: Larus delawarensis
Applicable_Common_Name: Gaviota pico anillado
Applicable_Common_Name: Ring-billed Gull
Applicable_Common_Name: Goéland à bec cerclé
Access_Constraints: None
Use_Constraints:
These data were collected using funding from the U.S. Government and can be used without additional permissions or fees. If you use these data in a publication, presentation, or other research product please use the following citation:

Pfeiffer, Morgan B.; Pullins, Craig K.; Beckerman, Scott F.; Hoblet, Joshua L.; Blackwell, Bradley F. 2022. Study conditions and gull response data for nocturnal unmanned aircraft system treatments used to prevent gulls from nesting on rooftops during nest material gathering phase. Research Dataset Series. USDA, APHIS, WS National Wildlife Research Center. Ft. Collins, Colorado. https://doi.org/10.2737/NWRC-RDS-2022-002
Data_Set_Credit:
This project was funded by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA, IA No: 692M15-19-T-00017) and United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services National Wildlife Research Center (USDA, APHIS, WS NWRC).


Author Information:

Morgan B. Pfeiffer
USDA, APHIS, WS NWRC, Sandusky, OH
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1079-5295

Craig K. Pullins
USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services, Chicago, IL

Scott F. Beckerman
USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services, Springfield, IL

Joshua L. Hoblet
USDA, APHIS, WS NWRC, Sandusky, OH

Bradley F. Blackwell
USDA, APHIS, WS NWRC, Sandusky, OH
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4664-8227
Cross_Reference:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Pfeiffer, Morgan B.
Originator: Pullins, Craig K.
Originator: Beckerman, Scott F.
Originator: Hoblet, Joshua L.
Originator: Blackwell, Bradley F.
Publication_Date: 2023
Title:
Investigating nocturnal UAS treatments in an applied context to prevent gulls from nesting on rooftops
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: journal article
Series_Information:
Series_Name: Wildlife Society Bulletin
Issue_Identification: e1423
Online_Linkage: https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.1423
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Data_Quality_Information:
Attribute_Accuracy:
Attribute_Accuracy_Report:
Study Conditions Data

Wind speed, gusts, and precipitation data were taken from the Windy (Windy.com) cellular phone application. In the USA, Windy pulled weather data from the NAM CONUS, and three global models (ECMWF, GFS, ICON Global).


Treatment Data

Wind direction, wind speed, and temperature measurements were taken using a calibrated external weather station (Kestrel 5500 Weather Meter). The meter was calibrated on 16 March 2021.
Logical_Consistency_Report:
Data were checked for inconsistencies compared to the paper datasheets used in the field to record data.
Completeness_Report:
Study Conditions Data

There was one day (03 April 2021) in which wind and precipitation data were not gathered from the Windy application because the first author was preoccupied with study logistics related to an UAS mishap. Reason was recorded as NA if we were able to apply all UAS treatments on a given day.


Treatment Data

LandingTime was not recorded for RunNo 11 in Chicago because the UAS crashed and did not land. For gull reactions to UAS approach, NA relates to Not Applicable because no gulls were present to collect these data from. For RunNo 11 from Chicago, gulls were not counted after the treatment because incident reporting took precedence. GullRemainingIndex was NA when no gulls were present before an UAS treatment. BirdsReturnOrNot was NA when no gulls were present before an UAS treatment. WindDir was NA when windspeed was 0.00, since wind direction was recorded in degrees of a circle. For RunNo 11 in Chicago, WindDir was not collected because incident reporting took precedence. Temperature and weather data were not recorded for RunNo 11 in Chicago because of the UAS mishap.

We attempted to fly for at least 10 nights over a 14-day period: 14-27 March 2021 in Sandusky and 28 March-10 April 2021 in Chicago. The start dates were 2 weeks prior to historical first egg laying dates (2 April for Sandusky [Blackwell et al. 2000] and 16 April for Chicago [C. Pullins, WS personal communication]), however our hazing treatments were not allowed to be conducted when eggs were present per, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16 USC §§703–144 712).


Blackwell, Bradley; Seamans, T.W.; Helon, D.A.; Dolbeer, R.A. Dolbeer. 2000. Early loss of herring gull clutches after egg-oiling. Wildlife Society Bulletin 28(1): 70-75.
Lineage:
Methodology:
Methodology_Type: Field
Methodolgy_Identifier:
Methodolgy_Keyword_Thesaurus:
None
Methodology_Keyword: animal behavior
Methodology_Keyword: weather conditions
Methodology_Description:
Study Locations

We conducted nocturnal UAS hazing treatments at 2 building roofs historically used by ring-billed and herring gulls for nesting: 1) a large picnic shelter with a metal roof in Sandusky, Ohio along the shores of Lake Erie and 2) a large industrial warehouse building with a tar-pebble roof surface in Chicago, Illinois. The Chicago roof was 3 miles southeast of the O’Hare International Airport (ORD) and the nesting colony has been managed by the USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services (WS) Illinois operational program as part of ORD’s airport wildlife hazard management plan. The Sandusky roof was in Class G airspace; thus, we did not need an Airspace Authorization to fly an UAS. We had an Airspace Authorization to fly in Class B airspace at the Chicago site (2021-P107-CSA-05238). At both target roofs, the UAS remained within vision line of sight in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration operational rules for UAS (14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 107).


Study Conditions Data

We checked Windy.com (https://www.windy.com/?37.751,-97.822,5) at 1900 hours each day for the study location wind speed, wind gusts, and precipitation data. Based on these data and personnel considerations, we would make a decision to conduct UAS treatments at the study locations.


Treatment Data

We conducted UAS treatments at gull nesting locations from 14-27 March 2021 in Sandusky, Ohio and 28 March to 08 April 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. In Sandusky, we flew a white DJI Phantom 4 Pro quadcopter (Da-123 Jiang Innovations Shenzhen, China). In Chicago on 3 April 2021, we flew a black 3DR Solo quadcopter (3D Robotics Berkeley, CA, USA) but experienced a software problem, so during 6-7 April 2021, we flew a black/gray DJI Inspire 2 quadcopter (Da-Jiang Innovations Shenzhen, China). DJI platforms were flown in the “offline” mode. Given our limited sample size and the applied context, we did not attempt to control for airframe appearance. At least once every hour for 6 hours a night (i.e., total flight time > 1.5 hours/night for a maximum number of 12 treatments per night), starting at 2000 local time (Sandusky was in Eastern Daylight Time and Chicago was in Central Daylight Time), we flew the UAS in a hazing pattern at loafing gulls on the roofs for 15 minutes. We launched the UAS from beneath the nesting locations to increase the perceived risk of the approach to loafing birds. The hazing pattern involved flying approximately 4 m directly above the gulls and then descending at a rate of roughly 4 meters per second (m/s) to within 1 m of the gulls. We flew as close as possible to loafing gulls while avoiding a collision. If gulls flushed, we immediately maneuvered the UAS out of the way of the flushing bird(s) to avoid potential collisions. We maintained this defensive flight pattern for the entire treatment, even if all gulls were dispersed. We repeated the treatment procedure at least once every hour for 6 hours, regardless of whether gulls were present on the roof.

We counted the number of gulls on the roof before the treatment using binoculars (Zeiss Conquest 8x30, Germany). At both target roofs, there was enough ambient light to detect the light-colored gulls, but not enough light to distinguish species; therefore, total number of gulls was recorded. Due to the visual limitations of operating at night, we made general notes as to time into the treatment that gulls reacted to the UAS. After the UAS was landed, the number of loafing gulls on the roof was counted again.

We also used an external weather station (Kestrel 5500 Weather Meter, Kestrel Instruments, USA) on a tripod with a weathervane to record wind speed (m/s), wind direction (degrees), and temperature (degrees Celsius). The weather station was located on the ground at the launch site in Sandusky and on the roof in Chicago. We were able to obtain weather data from the elevated position in Chicago using the Kestrel Link Application (Kestrel instruments, version 1.5.6.2) connected via Bluetooth technology. If it was raining, snowing, temperatures were below freezing, or if wind speed or wind gusts were over the recommend UAS platform thresholds of 10 m/s, we canceled our operations.


For additional information see Pfeiffer et al. (2023).
Methodology_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Pfeiffer, Morgan B.
Originator: Pullins, Craig K.
Originator: Beckerman, Scott F.
Originator: Hoblet, Joshua L.
Originator: Blackwell, Bradley F.
Publication_Date: 2023
Title:
Investigating nocturnal UAS treatments in an applied context to prevent gulls from nesting on rooftops
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: journal article
Series_Information:
Series_Name: Wildlife Society Bulletin
Issue_Identification: e1423
Online_Linkage: https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.1423
Source_Information:
Source_Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator: Windyty
Publication_Date: Unknown
Title:
Windy.com
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: tabular digital data
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Czech Republic
Publisher: Windyty, SE
Online_Linkage: https://www.windy.com/?37.751,-97.822,5
Type_of_Source_Media: Online
Source_Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date: 20210314
Ending_Date: 20210408
Source_Currentness_Reference:
Publication Date
Source_Citation_Abbreviation:
Windy.com
Source_Contribution:
Wind speed and gusts in kilometers per hour were gathered from Windy.com (https://www.windy.com/?37.751,-97.822,5) at 1900 each study day. We also gathered precipitation data in the same manner.
Process_Step:
Process_Description:
Study Conditions Data

Wind and precipitation data were obtained from Windy.gov.
Process_Date: Unknown
Process_Step:
Process_Description:
Treatment Data

We calculated the gull remaining index as the proportion of the number of gulls after a treatment/the number of gulls before a treatment.
Process_Date: Unknown
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Entity_and_Attribute_Information:
Overview_Description:
Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:
Below you will find a list and description of the files included in this data publication.

1. \Data\_variable_descriptions.csv: Comma-separated values (CSV) file containing a list and description of variables found in all data files. (A description of these variables is also provided in the metadata below.)

Columns include:

Filename = name of data file
Variable = name of variable
Units = units (if applicable)
Precision = precision (if applicable)
Description = description of variable


DATA FILES (2)

1. \Data\StudyConditions.csv: CSV file containing study condition data (wind speed, wind gusts, and temperature) that were used to determine if UAS treatments would occur on the specified day. (A description of the variables included in this file can be found in _variable_descriptions.csv.)

Variables include:

Date = Date of experiment (mm.dd.yyyy)
Location = Study location (Sandusky or Chicago)
WeekNo = Week number of the experiment (1-4)
Day = Day of the week
DayNo = Day number of the experiment (1-14 in Sandusky and 1-12 in Chicago)
WorkOrNot = Binary variable categorizing if we were able to apply an UAS treatment on a given day (1 = yes, 0 = no)
FullNightOrNot = Binary variable categorizing if we were able to apply all UAS treatments on a given day (1 = yes, 0 = no)
Reason = Reason why were unable to apply all UAS treatments on a given day
WindMps = Wind speed collected from Windy.com (meters/second)
WindGustsMps = Wind gusts collected from Windy.com (meters/second)
Precipitation.mm = Accumulated precipitation collected from Windy.com (millimeters)


2. \Data\TreatmentData.csv: CSV file containing all treatment data such as treatment date and time, length of flight, number of gulls before and after treatment, and weather conditions during treatment period. (A description of the variables included in this file can be found in _variable_descriptions.csv.)

Variables include:

RunNo = Run/Treatment number
Date = Date of experiment (mm.dd.yyyy)
Location = Study location (Sandusky or Chicago)
HourPerDay = Hour per day of the experiment (1-6)
TreatmentPerHour = Treatment per hour of the experiment on a given day (1-2)
GullsBefore = Number of gulls observed on the target roof before an UAS treatment
StartTime = Start time of the UAS treatment (00:00 - 24:00)
TotalFlightTimeMinSec = Total flight time of the UAS treatment (minute:seconds)
EndTime = End time of the UAS treatment (00:00 - 24:00)
Reaction = Categorical reaction of gulls (all flush, all but 1 flushed, landed during flight)
GullsAfter = Number of gulls observed on the target roof after an UAS treatment
GullRemainingIndex = Proportion of the number of gulls after an UAS treatment/the number of gulls before an UAS treatment
BirdsReturnOrNot = Binary variable categorizing if a gull returned to the roof while observers were present (1 = yes, 0 = no)
WindDir = Wind direction at the study site for an UAS treatment (0-360)
WindSpeedMps = Wind speed at the study site for an UAS treatment (meters/second)
Temp = Temperature at the study site for an UAS treatment (degrees Celsius)
Weather = Categorical weather (clear, cloudy, partly cloudy)
Comments = General notes about each treatment (acronyms used: ORD = O’Hare International Airport, RBGU = Ring-Billed Gull [Larus delawarensis], HERG = Herring Gull [Larus argentatus], MPB = Morgan B. Pfeiffer, CANG = Canada Goose, GPS = global positioning system, RTH = return to home, UPS = United Parcel Service, PIC = pilot in command)
Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation:
Pfeiffer, Morgan B.; Pullins, Craig K.; Beckerman, Scott F.; Hoblet, Joshua L.; Blackwell, Bradley F. 2023. Investigating nocturnal UAS treatments in an applied context to prevent gulls from nesting on rooftops. Wildlife Society Bulletin. e1423. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.1423
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Distribution_Information:
Distributor:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: USDA Forest Service, Research and Development
Contact_Position: Research Data Archivist
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: 240 West Prospect Road
City: Fort Collins
State_or_Province: CO
Postal_Code: 80526
Country: USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone: see Contact Instructions
Contact Instructions: This contact information was current as of January 2023. For current information see Contact Us page on: https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS.
Resource_Description: NWRC-RDS-2022-002
Distribution_Liability:
Metadata documents have been reviewed for accuracy and completeness. Unless otherwise stated, all data and related materials are considered to satisfy the quality standards relative to the purpose for which the data were collected. However, neither the author, the Archive, nor any part of the federal government can assure the reliability or suitability of these data for a particular purpose. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed for a user's application of these data or related materials.

The metadata, data, or related materials may be updated without notification. If a user believes errors are present in the metadata, data or related materials, please use the information in (1) Identification Information: Point of Contact, (2) Metadata Reference: Metadata Contact, or (3) Distribution Information: Distributor to notify the author or the Archive of the issues.
Standard_Order_Process:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Format_Name: CSV
Format_Version_Number: see Format Specification
Format_Specification:
Comma-separated values file (CSV)
File_Decompression_Technique: Files zipped with 7-Zip 19.0
Digital_Transfer_Option:
Online_Option:
Computer_Contact_Information:
Network_Address:
Network_Resource_Name: https://doi.org/10.2737/NWRC-RDS-2022-002
Fees: None
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Metadata_Reference_Information:
Metadata_Date: 20230110
Metadata_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization: USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Service, National Wildlife Research Center
Contact_Person: Morgan B. Pfeiffer
Contact_Position: Research Wildlife Biologist
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing and physical
Address: 6100 Columbus Ave.
City: Sandusky
State_or_Province: OH
Postal_Code: 44870
Country: USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 419-625-0242
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: morgan.b.pfeiffer@usda.gov
Metadata_Standard_Name: FGDC Biological Data Profile of the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata
Metadata_Standard_Version: FGDC-STD-001.1-1999
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