Gardeners urged to hang one household scrap to stop chaotic pest from entering

Daily Mirror

26-06-2025

If your garden is being held ransom by meddlesome magpies then look no further than this easy expert tip which will help ward these pesky birds away from your home
If your home is being terrorised by nefarious magpies swooping in and nabbing your belongings then experts recommend hanging this one easy-to-find item to keep them at bay.
Known for their cunning, thievery, and their devouring of the eggs and young of innocent garden birds, magpies have earned themselves a fearsome reputation across the UK. In some cases when threatened, they are even known to swoop down on unsuspecting humans and peck their necks.
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Worse still, they can be a nightmare for gardeners. They like to eat fruits and vegetables, dig up plants and pull out nest boxes. More than making the mess, this can also cause a lot of noise.
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They are even known to be massive bullies in the bird world. This is because they harass robins and other songbirds, deterring them from your garden.
Unsurprisingly, even many bird enthusiasts view them as invasive pests. In hopes to get rid of them, it's popular to lay out traps and even poison in the hopes of culling their numbers.
However, it's important to bear in mind that magpies fall under the UK Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981), which was designed to protect Britain's wildlife from deliberate harm under penalty of the law.
This means it is illegal to move, damage, or destroy the nest or egg of any wild bird, regardless of whether the nest is in the process of being built or whether it is already finished.
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Therefore, if magpies have nested themselves in your garden, you can't take forceful measures to remove them. But, before you throw your hands up in frustration, there is a solution.
While you can't kill or harm magpies, you can still discourage them from making an unwanted visit. According to experts, there is a safe way to repel these pesky trouble-makers from your home.
All it involves is using reflective objects. According to wildlife experts from Huck: 'Magpies are startled by light reflections, and this can be an effective method in helping to keep them out of your garden.'
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They continue: 'There are a couple of ways that you can do this. Firstly, old CDs are great at catching and reflecting light, so if you have any, hang them up around your garden at intervals.'
If you haven't got any old CDs lying around, they recommend you buy bird tape either online or from your local garden centre. Bird tape is a kind of reflective tape that you can affix to certain areas of the garden and which has a similar effect to old CDs.