Angry Birds Take on Drones at New York City Beach

One is a distinctive shorebird, slightly smaller than an average sea gull, with a bright orange bill that pries open clams, oysters and other shellfish. The other is a remote-controlled gadget with rotating blades.

In the skies above Rockaway Beach in Queens, bird and drone are not, it seems, coexisting in harmony.

Just as New Yorkers flock to the beach to escape the sweltering summer heat, American Oystercatchers have taken to attacking a fleet of drones deployed by city officials to scan for sharks and swimmers in distress.

The aerial conflict between animal and machine is raising concerns about the safety of the shorebirds, as they aggressively pursue the buzzing drones in defense of their nests, city officials and bird experts said.

“They fly toward the drone, they’ll vocalize, and they might even try to swoop at it,” said Katrina Toal, deputy director of the wildlife unit at the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. “The danger is to the birds, of course. They could strike the drone, injuring themselves.”