San Francisco metro system hires hawk to scare pigeons away

Metro system riders in California’s San Francisco Bay Area may have noticed a new station guard in recent months.

A 5-year-old Harris’s hawk named Pac-Man has taken up the perch at El Cerrito del Norte station, where he’s on the lookout — not for fare evaders, but pigeons.

Ricky Ortiz, a falconer with Falcon Force and Pac-Man’s handler, began patrolling with the bird at the station this summer, contracting with the Bay Area Rapid Transit system, or BART, to keep the pigeons at bay and protect commuters from pigeon poop.

The team patrols three days a week, starting their day at the bottom level entrance before scoping out the platforms, scaring away any pigeons who are resti…

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