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.

@1point21gigawatts

It's not "outrageous behaviour", it's illegal behaviour. FFS are people on this thread being deliberately dense?! I am astonished!

I honestly think that we are so out of touch with the natural world (and I include myself in that ‘we’ BTW) that we are incapable of seeing past human laws governing reasonable behaviour, inconvenience and the like, to realise that the birds live here too and are beings that need to be considered just as much as we do!

It’ll be impossible to prove that this was done illegally. The neighbours will just say that they were unaware of any nesting birds. This may actually be true. If the plants are growing from the op’s side, chances are the nests are actually on her side. Not everyone pays attention or is aware of wildlife in their garden.

The neighbours will just say that they were unaware of any nesting birds

How many dead baby birds do you think you have to see before you realise? Plus ignorance is not a defence in law. The onus would be on the neighbours to check as it is very obviously nesting season.

Disgusting what they’ve done to the birds nests but you caused it by blocking their access. They shouldn’t have to ask you repeatedly to cut it back. It’s your responsibility

Interesting the number of people on this thread determined to utterly disregard the law and happy to destroy wildlife when it becomes slightly inconvenient. No wonder the planet is fucked, there are clearly plenty of selfish people around

Completely agree Veterinari. This thread has left me feeling nauseous at the sheer amount of Hyacinth Buckets we have, who place their desire for a manicured existence above the lives of wildlife. The lack of compassion and selfishness leaves me really upset. And as for YardleyX wanging on repeatedly about the letter of the law, with zero compassion, there are no words.

YWBVU to have not taken action knowing that your ivy was impairing or blocking access to their property. You're not supposed to touch ivy with bare skin, no wonder they didn't want to be brushing past it, it's horribly invasive creeping onto neighbouring properties, and it'll destroy your fence panels eventually.

You knew in May that it was starting to impair their access. You knew last year that it would happen again. If you'd have kept on top of it, the birds would have nested elsewhere.

I would be devastated about the baby birds too and would present them with the dead bodies on their doorstep with a note but you're not without fault here. You knowingly let plants on your property grow big enough to impair or block access to theirs, and that's not okay. Either keep on top of it much better from now on or pull it out entirely. You could always plant something for them to nest in, in future elsewhere inside your garden.

Why are folk justifying this because the neighbours have 'repeatedly' asked?
There's nothing in the OP's posts to suggest that the neighbours have asked more than once and the OP responded to that by trimming the ivy in the winter because of the birds. So it's pretty clear that a) the neighbours have not repeatedly asked and b) they're aware that birds nest in the ivy because of OP explaining it last year.

I think if you have to imagine a lot of stuff that didn't happen to justify illegal activity and blame an innocent party, you probably need to re-examine your own moral priorities.

OP knew from last year that her overgrown hedge was causing a problem to the neighbours for the entire summer.

She had the opportunity to prevent it becoming a problem again this year by managing it properly. If she had, her hedge could still have been a safe nesting ground for the birds and not been an issue for the neighbours.

It would be understandable to let it go one year, and apologising for making life difficult for them and cutting it back after the birds have fledged, but to let it happen every year is not OK. Just because it doesn't bother her and she rarely uses the walkway, she can't be arsed to manage the hedge properly.

It's not about justifying what the neighbours have done - that's very wrong.

Both parties can be at fault at the same time.

It's terrible what they've done, but I think if it had to be moved out of the way with an arm, it was too long and clearly annoying and you should have been keeping on top of it more regularly. Ivy grows very quickly.

What monster kills baby birds so they won't be slightly inconvenienced?

I despair.

For something that could be moved away with a hand? Really? Birds had to die for that?

What kind of entitled society have we become?

I agree Chardonnay. I’m flabbergasted. And so so sad.

Yes, Tolleshunt and so many are falling over themselves to justify it.

Oh but they had to move the ivy out of the way! Oh the hardship.

But ivy is a skin irritant!

I have acres of ivy all over the garden, no one's keeled over because of it.

Let's kill the baby birds for that, eh? because it might irritate someone? You cannot disinfect and de-riskify your entire life.

Sorry for not being clear, I was being facetious. Others above have implicitly said, yes dead baby birds are terrible, BUT... It really fucks me off.

Killing baby birds is obviously wrong.

OP what are you going to do at the end of this season to ensure you don't cause a problem in the alley again next year? You need to keep the ivy under control and in your garden.

Sorry, Ticket.

It’s not a skin irritant for most people. Those for whom it is could wear long sleeves if needing to brush past occasionally, no? For the short period of time until the birds had fledged.

As it is, we have no idea if the neighbours are part of the small minority who are affected by it. Chances are they aren’t. And even if they are, what kind of callous arsehole sees a nest of baby birds on the floor and thinks ‘oh well, fuck em, I can’t be bothered to move some ivy or wear long sleeves on the odd occasion I might need to use the alley over the next two to three weeks’. And carry on killing the rest? Breathtaking levels of selfishness and entitlement.

It's pretty entitled to year after year allow your hedge to overgrow a walkway in full knowledge it's causing a nuisance to your neighbours.

I do think they were wrong to do this, but I also think you've been a pretty poor neighbour in knowing they were inconvenienced and annoyed by this and still letting it go on year after year.

It's pretty entitled to year after year allow your hedge to overgrow a walkway in full knowledge it's causing a nuisance to your neighbours.

What, so it’s ok to kill the baby BIRDS, because the OP hasn’t kept the alley clear??

Eh???

No, as I've said several times on the thread, what the neighbours have done is awful.

OP is also in the wrong tho, by not managing her hedge in the first place before the birds nested, knowing that the previous year it had been a nuisance to the neighbours. She could have kept it under control and still had the birds nesting if she'd looked after it properly.