> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Crows caw crazy in Sunset Park - URL: https://www.smdp.com/crows-caw-crazy-in-sunset-park/ - Published: 2007-08-17T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T02:36:11.000Z - Author: Melody Hanatani - Tags: local, Sunset Park, #archive-import *Big black crows accused of killing residents’ spirits* SUNSET PARK A war is brewing between Tom Beaulieu and more than 100 crows. The Santa Monican is fighting for the rights to a good night’s rest and a yard devoid of bird droppings. The black birds have been the bane of Beaulieu’s existence since he moved into his Pine Street home five years ago; a half decade of putting up with the incessant cawing and crows taking a dump all over his house and yard, frightening his visitors. “The whole roof of my garage is covered with poop, the furniture is covered with poop and I have to wash the walk down because it’s covered with poop,” Beaulieu said. “It’s disgusting.” There’s a few new faces in the tree-laden Sunset Park district, but residents aren’t rushing to throw their new feathery neighbors a welcome party, complaining instead of some un-neighborly behavior that includes defecating on walkways and disturbing the peace. Sunset Park residents have noted a population boom of the corvid birds in their neighborhood, hundreds of crows lining power lines and resting in trees, cawing and annoying many of those who live nearby. The Friends of Sunset Park was flooded with about 100 e-mails within the past week regarding crows, more than 80 of which were complaints. “They ranged from being awoken at 4 a.m. by loud cawing, excessive feathers, damage to roofs from pecking birds, damage to car paint, plants and patio furniture... and concern about health issues from the droppings and from dead birds,” said Zina Josephs, the president of the neighborhood organization. At least five residents have reportedly discovered dead crows in their neck of the woods, heightening fears of West Nile Virus, a disease transmitted via mosquitos. Cheri Bickinson has found several dead crows in her neighborhood over the past two years and avoids walking her dog in a heavily bird dung-infested area of 22nd Street. The crows don’t look like they died from physical harm, Bickinson said. They simply looked as though they just dropped dead. She most recently found one lying dead on a lawn in April. “I don’t let my dog walk there because I’m thinking about the bird flu,” Bickinson said. “West Nile Virus freaks me out, thinking about my dogs laying out there at night and being bitten by mosquitos.” There have been no cases of crows testing positive for West Nile Virus in Santa Monica in the past two years, said Don Umber, the manager of Animal Control. West Nile Virus is transmitted to a human through an infected mosquito, which can become infected by biting a diseased bird, according to the county Department of Public Health. The virus cannot be spread from bird to human or between humans. Symptoms of the virus include high fever, headaches, neck stiffness and convulsions, according to the Center for Disease Control. Last week, health officials confirmed the county’s first case of a human contracting the virus in 2007\. A middle-aged man from the San Fernando Valley was hospitalized in July for West Nile meningitis and is now recovering at home. The virus has been detected in nine birds and 14 mosquito pools in the county this year, most of which were discovered in the San Fernando Valley. There have been 80 cases of human infections statewide in 2007, resulting in five deaths Still, the infection is found most commonly in crows, said Dr. Jonathan Fielding, the director of the Department of Public Health. Umber said he has not noticed an unusual pattern of crow deaths in Sunset Park, adding that an area attractive to large flocks of crows like Sunset Park, with its power lines and trees, are bound to turn up dead birds every now and then. “Birds die for various reasons,” Umber said. “When crows die, they tend to be more visible because of their size.” Though there have been no cases in Santa Monica, residents should still take precautions to avoid contracting West Nile Virus, patching up holes in screen doors and drying up still pools of water that are attractive to mosquitos. Over the past few years, Beaulieu has become well-versed in the mannerisms and behavior of his enemy, when they’re in town and for how long. The crows come every morning at sunrise and every evening at sunset, almost five days a week. Depending on the force of the wind, there are anywhere from 100 to 150 crows perched in his neighbor’s tree, which Beaulieu adds, just happens to be one of the tallest trees in the neighborhood. The birds flail around in the tree, knocking off leaves and berries, which fall onto the roof of Beaulieu’s home office. “I tell (people) this is their afternoon meeting and they decide where to go tomorrow,” he said. “And when they come tomorrow morning and they decide where to go for the day.” Crows, by nature, travel in large groups because of their social behavior and are attracted to areas with tall trees and power lines that enable them to remain in large numbers, Umber said. The birds don’t typically stick to any one spot for a lengthy period of time and eventually move on, he added. Many residents annoyed with the presence of crows complain of the birds damaging their roofs, keeping them up at night, defecating and killing flowers and even attacking smaller birds. One resident has even complained that the birds start cawing in front of their window at 4 a.m. Bickinson, who lives in the eastern part of Sunset Park, sees hundreds of crows sitting on the power lines outside her home, occasionally flying over her house and pecking on the roof. “They are somewhat of a nuisance,” she said. If you discover a dead crow, call the Animal Control at 310-458-8594. *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 17, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/081707.pdf?ref=smdp.com)