Building demolition includes a close encounter with pigeons

Demolition has begun at the former Bess Hardware site, clearing the way for construction of a multiunit housing development in downtown Glenview.

I had been anticipating the start of exterior demolition, so I passed by the location Tuesday to see if progress had been made on the removal of the structure.

Upon my arrival just before noon, I found that a crew was using an excavator to remove the easternmost portion of the building.

My primary goal was to document the demolition with both ground-level and aerial views to illustrate a news story, and the drone photos I took for the news section were taken on an angle that would provide a sense of place.

One of my final frames was taken from almost straight above at an altitude of around 100 feet, showing the yellow excavator dragging recyclable scrap from the site. Painted "construction yellow," the excavator stands out nicely from the drab debris.

Earlier in the flight, the drone, which was stationary at the time, had caught the interest of a flock of perhaps a dozen curious pigeons. When the birds circled the first time, I thought it was a coincidence, but then they circled back for a closer look, and I realized that the drone had indeed caught their attention.

Next, the pigeons flew straight at the drone, and the flock parted in two directions just in time to avoid contact, and I audibly exclaimed "whoa!" With their curiosity likely satisfied, the flock flew away and was not seen again.

Since the drone was set for still photos rather than video, and my primary focus was safety, the encounter was not documented.

A lesson that I've learned recently is that in addition to being mindful of airspace, weather and general drone safety, the potential of bird strikes is something for a sUAS, or small Unmanned Aircraft Systems pilot to by mindful of.