Eight hundred birds are sitting on a bridge that will soon be demolished. How can you get them to move?

You could post an eviction notice, but birds can’t read. You could yell, “Hey you birds, get out of here! Move next door!” But these birds— cormorants protected by law—have lived for decades on the old San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Nothing you can say would make them budge from their home.

Officials have tried to get the birds to move to the new part of the bridge. They have lured them with bird sounds. They have built nests for them. But the birds won’t budge, and delayed demolition costs taxpayers $33 million. That’s $40,000 per bird! Many taxpayers don’t make that much in one whole year!

It would be easier to demolish the bridge and let the birds relocate on their own. But putting the birds in danger is against the law. Do you think the bird-protection law is worth all this money and fuss? What other methods could people use to move the birds?