A heron and an egret rest on a Memorial Park picnic table stained with bird droppings. The birds are protected by the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act: During breeding and nesting, which started in April and won’t end until September, it is illegal to chase them away. (Robert Durell / Los Angeles Times)
Egrets make noise in Memorial Park. “It sounds like a raucous high school party,” says neighbor Fred Roberts, 88. (Robert Durell / Los Angeles Times)
A juvenile black-crowned night heron sits on the ground. In the park and on bordering streets, crews have picked up more than 1,200 dead chicks that toppled from nests. (Robert Durell / Los Angeles Times)
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Young birds look for food near government buildings. The county had tried to scare off the birds with air horns, but it disrupted court hearings. A judge said if we did it one more time hed have everyone arrested, said Bobbé Lewis, a Glenn County official. (Robert Durell / Los Angeles Times)
A young bird walks by a droppings-stained park bench. County health official Scott Gruendl says guano has to accumulate over time, dry out and become airborne for it to pose a danger of spreading certain illnesses. (Robert Durell / Los Angeles Times)
Feathers cover the frontyard of a home bordering Memorial Park. Neighbors of the park worry about their health. (Robert Durell / Los Angeles Times)
Young birds drink from a gutter at the park. I see them every day as my particular nightmare, Lewis says, but theyre beautiful. (Robert Durell / Los Angeles Times)
