Please stop me from going around to the neighbours

[DuckyMcDuck]

And give them a piece of my mind. (Wine might have been taken!)

We have a lot of ivy growing on the fence at the back of our garden, there is a narrow passageway on the other side of the fence. This time last year, the neighbours asked to cut it back and we explained that it is always full of sparrows' nests and we would cut it back in the winter - which we did.

So this year, the sparrows have been there as usual. It's been lovely watching them fly in and out and we've been feeding and watering them as usual.

So, yesterday, the neighbours have decimated cutback the hedge. There are huge gaps and when we went into the passageway earlier I saw at least 6 nests and a few bodies of the baby birds.

I'm so cross, I understand that the access is tricky with the ivy at the moment but it's not damaging their property in any way and they know we'll cut it back once the fledglings have gone. But they've basically murdered the babies. Sparrows are becoming less common.

I don't know if they have actually done anything legally wrong but I'm so tempted to go and tell them they're a bunch of murdering fucking wankers.

Sorry it's sideways

I'd take photos of the damage and dead birds/nests for now and reflect. There is nothing to be done today that can't be done tomorrow.

Who owns the alleyway and does 'your' ivy extend off your land onto their land, or common land?

You should have made sure the ivy wasn't being an inconvenience to them this year again if it was a problem last year. . I agree it was a horrible thing for them to do. Report them if it's illegal.

You need to get rid of the ivy. It must have been very thick and bushy if there were multiple birds nesting in it. You were obstructing their way through a public passageway because you like birds. The birds can go somewhere where they aren't likely to be knocked out of a nest by a bin or eaten by cats.

And yes it's illegal but you have no proof they did it so it's pretty pointless to go over to your neighbours and accuse them or report it to the police. You would be wasting your time and making yourself look crazy.

The ivy certainly doesn't go anywhere near their land or there fence. I'm not sure who owns the alleyway, it's there for to give access to the gardens for the mid-terrace houses.

*Their fence

Do you know for certain it was next door? Because it looks like multiple neighbours need to get past your ivy to get into their gardens.

Whoever did it has committed an offence as they've disturbed nesting birds but you've no proof which neighbour actually did it so it would be difficult to get any outcome from reporting it.

You need to control your ivy year round, if it is interfering with people's access to their property then you need to make sure it is kept trimmed as close to the outer side of the fence as possible. Let it grow however you want on the garden side of the fence but the side on the passageway should not be inconveniencing other residents.

I don't understand how it's so big that they have to move it to get down the passageway, and full enough to harbour all those nests if you cut it back to nothing last winter.

I’d be so upset by that

I'm not sure who owns the alleyway, it's there for to give access to the gardens for the mid-terrace houses.

And you've been blocking that access. What has been done to the birds is awful but can you not see why whoever it was has gotten angry about it?

@DuckyMcDuck

The ivy certainly doesn't go anywhere near their land or there fence. I'm not sure who owns the alleyway, it's there for to give access to the gardens for the mid-terrace houses.

How far into the passageway would you say it protruded? If the passage is a metre and the depth of ivy six inches that's one thing, if over a foot that is another.

I'd be very cross - but I can't tell if you're BU originally with a huge overgrown hedge, or not.

Two wrongs don't make a right, and they are definitely BU murdering birds. They should have sent you a snotty letter about your hedge!

@saraclara

I don't understand how it's so big that they have to move it to get down the passageway, and full enough to harbour all those nests if you cut it back to nothing last winter.

Yes this, we have some ivy over a fence and it does get deep but some nice you hack it back it stays under control for a fair while.

I am absolutely obsessed with this thread. I need drone footage.

Oh FFS, some nice = once

It was definitely the people directly behind us (next door saw them do it). We cut the ivy right back from the alleyway side last winter. We left it on our side and it grows amazingly quickly which is why we cut it back every year.

Go round there with the bodies and tell those selfish wankers what you think of them and that you will see them in court if they EVER touch your property again.
Absolute twats. Do it.

If they have to move it to get into their garden it's growing in the wrong place. The summer, when these birds nest, is the time that people want to use the alley to access their gardens.
The birds will find someone more suitable next year if you take it out.

@madcatladyforever

Go round there with the bodies and tell those selfish wankers what you think of them and that you will see them in court if they EVER touch your property again. Absolute twats. Do it.

Slightly scary! May escalate just a little if you do this

I hope you pursue it, they could have easily trimmed back a few annoying bits of ivy to make do for a few months and then discussed with you keeping it under better control at the end of the winter/early spring before nesting season

So there is ivy on your side of the fence the birds can nest in. On the passage side, the ivy needs to be cut down in October and March so it doesn't obstruct the passage.

That way, everyone gets what they want, no birds are hurt.

I wouldn't go round, I'd just report. And get CCTV for next year! Fuckers.

If you think about it, you’ve been pretty mean to the birds really by encouraging them to nest in a place where they are likely to get harmed.

As much as I would be very angry over the deaths of the sparrows. They are endangered and it is illegal. You really need to remove the ivy. Or control it. Its not fair on your neighbors

It’s horrible that they’ve destroyed the birds nests and I think you should report them. But you need to sort out the ivy in the passage way - it’s clearly a nuisance and cutting it back once a year is not enough. The birds will find somewhere else to nest and it will stop this happening again.
I’d be pissed off it i had to brush passed a bush to get into my garden. I wouldn’t kill birds though.
So you’re both being unreasonable

Last time we went down the alley was towards the end of May and you did need to push the ivy back but it certainly wasn't blocking access at all.
As I said upthread, if they'd asked us, we would have happily cut it back but we would have done it carefully, they apparently used one of these electric strimmer things and just hacked into it (ndneighbours words.)

I detest this - all summer long all one can hear is the buzz, hum and whine of hedgetrimmers being wielded by over enthusiastic 'gardeners' intent on manicuring their hedges to within an inch of their lives, regardless of the impact on wildlife, especially birds. Many of these people probably profess to be lovers of wildlife and have birdfeeders in their gardens - the irony. A slightly shaggy and uncut hedge is a small price to pay for the benefit of protecting our precious wildlife. Councils and local authorities do the same - disgraceful. Farmers are not permitted to cut their hedges between 1st March and 31st July, for this very reason, (if they do they risk losing their subsidies and stewardship payments), except and unless it is in the interest of public safety eg along roads or junctions where visibility is impeded. It is high time the same legislation was applied to domestic hedges. Why do the wants (not needs) of humankind always have to trump wildlife? Nobody needs to cut their hedges through nesting season.

What makes humans so entitled and self important that everything and anything which might just possibly impact, no matter how slightly, on their lives has to be killed, destroyed or eradicated;
Mice - "kill them"
Ants - " kill them"
Spiders - "kill them"
Wasps - "kill them"
The litany goes on - just engage with, enjoy and appreciate all these wonderful creatures with which we share the planet, they were here long before we appeared on the scene and will be here long after we are gone, IF we don't destroy them all first and end up in a barren, sterile world.

I cannot help but feel that evolution made one of its rare mistakes with Homo sapiens - an experiment which should have been cancelled when it was clear that it was going hideously and disastrously wrong! The ONLY species which wilfully kills and destroys everything in its path.

Rant over, but yes OP, I certainly would present your callous and destuctive neighbours with the corpses of the young birds - it might, just might, make them think twice about doing it again.