To have got batshit crazy re..neighbour

[Cally62]

So just before 1pm tree surgeons arrived at neighbours. I was upstairs pottering so saw them arrive from bedroom window. Thought that they were going to trim a huge tree in neighbours garden. I was wrong...they started to cut down a tree from other neighbours garden which was overhanging theirs. I immediately opened the upstairs window and shouted "Oi" had to shout a few times...as chainsaw was in full cutting mode. Random guy turned it off. I shouted that there were nesting birds in that particular tree...guy just laughed at me, turned the chainsaw back on and hacked away. I phoned the council...no one available due to covid situation. Tried local bird sanctuary...closed. Called a wildlife sanctuary for advice...was told to phone police. Took ages for the police to figure out that it was actually illegal to cut trees down with nesting birds...call logged. Then phoned the RSPCA...that took ages and I was cut off at one point. During this time tree butcherssurgeons had hacked down the tree and shredded everything. Suspect that the nest and any babies were also shredded. By 1.30pm the rspca attended...couldn't find any nests in hacked down tree or evidence of nests. Not only had the tree surgeons hacked down the tree super quickly they had shredded everything and gone within half an hour. Neighbour then went out and literally crawling around on her knees and cleared up the rest of the mess. So rspca have no evidence. I know that there were nesting birds in there 'cos I've been watching them all lockdown making nests and the past few days taking food in.
So...aibu to fucking hate my neighbour. f only I'd fucking taped the tree cutting and made the calls later. I wouldn't have saved the birds but the police and the rspca would have evidence to prosecute.

So what have the neighbours who owned the tree said about all this?

There's so much of this lately! Someone did the same to our tree! I ?luckily? Did recover two damaged nests and a dead chick and the police are involved.

I'm more curious what the neighbour who actually owned the tree said/thought while this was going on?

In France hedges and trees cannot be cut in the nesting season - not allowed. There are dates but don't know them.

Took the whole tree down or trimmed it back?

Eurgh. There are a lot of nasty people in the world. I hate this world!

It's actually an offence.

www.askthe.police.uk/content/Q19.htm

What despicable people. I would be as angry as you, Cally, but I probably wouldn't have thought of looking up the tree-killer's social media. Well done for trying everything. Being reported to the police and being inspected by the RSPCA may well have frightened your neighbour a bit, so they'll be less likely to do it again.

Have you contacted the neighbour whose tree was cut? I believe people have the right to cut all branches overhanging their garden (www.gardenlaw.co.uk is the place to find out), but I think they're supposed to return the cut wood to the owner of the tree.

Well done you for doing everything you could. Like you, I’ve spent more time than usual watching nesting birds because of lockdown, and I’d be very upset as well if I’d seen this.

When I was 9 months' pregnant I looked out of my sitting room window and found the tree-cutters in my own garden! The neighbour had told them not to mention it to me "in case I got upset".

The good news is that I saved the tree. Tree-cutting man was quite forlorn afterwards when I bumped into him in town and said he'd been terrified I'd go in labour there and then.

The bad news is that the neighbours who had sent him round are specialists in "blame the victim" and when I sent DH to go and see them he got screamed at for a solid 20 minutes (it was quite a show - he's never quite recovered and the child is now 14).

How dreadful. I would be all over Next Door with this, and every other SM I could possibly raise hell on. And the neighbours would be told their fortune. Despicable people.

Oh that’s horrible. I’d be really upset too.

Think that all the birds in the surrounding trees have scarpered...dp who is walking our cat up and down the drive on a lead (housecat who will never know what it's like to kill a bird) has just called me outside to hear what seems like quite a few baby birds squealing for food...let's hope the adults return with said food.
Really cba to talk to neighbours on other side. May do if I see them in passing.
Thank you all for your words of support and shared hatred of my bird killing neighbours.
Going to have a nice cup of tea now and dunk a million biscuits.
Dp will keep a look out for baby birds. I've put extra worms out.

hunting I have to ask why did your husband stand and take 20 minutes abuse from anyone?
OP you did all you could and that you care, your neighbours are wankers, let’s hope the birds are ok.

Bastards.

I hope the babies are ok. If you need a wildlife rescue, and you’re near Surrey, contact www.wildlifeaid.org.uk/

Even if you’re not anywhere near them, you could contact them and they will put you in touch with a local rescue who will help. They’re a brilliant charity who never ignore an animal in distress.

Take photos of the carnage and send then to your council, the RSPCB and the police.

I can never understand how some people are so stupid that they trim their tweets and bushes in late spring when in full bloom rather than late autumn when the trees are bare. So much less crap to get rid of and no damage to nesting birds.

Trees not tweets

Thanks Tolleshunt I couldn't be further away from you.
We have a fantastic wildlife sanctuary just over an hour away...I did phone for advice.
RSPCA couldn't inspect tree too much as didn't want to disturb nests too much in adjacent tree.

Last week people a few doors down from me had tree surgeons in to cut over a metre from a massive hedge that goes all the way round their garden. I felt so sorry for the birds that had been nesting in that hedge. I would think tree surgeons should know better than this, but I guess they just want to get paid. The ironic thing is the massive hedge family have bird feeders all over their garden!

Council round here has regularly cut down trees and pollarded during nesting season, there's a a very active green brigade here too, but the council couldn't care less.

Whenwillthisbeover Tweets and bushes. Had to read that a couple of times.

Because they don't think, Whenwill.

They only care that the weather's better, and the chainsaws come out. I can forgive the ignorance,
So many so called tree surgeons know what they are doing and they are doing it out of sheer greed.

The councils don't care.

The tree surgeon industry needs tighter regulations and the RSPB need to run an awareness campaign, starting early March, to educate the ones who are doing it out of ignorance.

Tree surgeons are sometimes the worst.