According to IFL Science, Dutch Police have partnered with Guards From Above, a firm in the Hague who specialize in training birds of prey for private security, to help protected the skies from bad drones. The eagles are trained to recognize the drones as prey, which influences them to disable the drones with their talons and return to a safe area. This training is just a trial to see if they want to deploy a full force of trained birds.
“It’s a low-tech solution to a high-tech problem. “People sometimes think it’s a hoax, but it’s proving very effective so far,” national police spokesman Dennis Janus told Reuters.
People throughout the world are worried that criminals and terrorist groups will start using drones due to the fact that they are cheap and very accessible. Dutch police aren’t the only ones taking action against drones, Japanese police recently announced that they will deploy a battalion of anti-drone officers and disabling drones. These birds seem to be highly effective when it comes to eliminating rogue drones in the sky.
“In the future drones will be used increasingly, so [it] will increase the number of incidents involving drones. Drones can also be used for criminal purposes,” the Netherland’s Police said in a statement.
Guards From Above claims that the technique that they use is not harmful to the birds and is no more dangerous than the scraps they get with prey in the wild. The bird’s feet are heavily scaled to protect them from sharp bites, slashes, and scratches while taking down their prey. the company is working with the Dutch Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) to determine whether or not the drone propellers affect the eagle’s talons.
“We use the birds’ natural hunting instincts in order to intercept drones. We do this safely, quickly, and accurately. The animal instinct of a bird of prey is unique. They are made to be able to overpower fast-moving prey. Sometimes the solution to a hypermodern problem is more obvious than you might think,” stated Guards From Above in a press release.
