Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Port Authority Has Killed Over 20,000 Animals In Last 2 Years
By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 2, 2014
Modified Mar 2, 2014
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Shutterstock/Eric Isselée
By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 2, 2014
Modified Mar 2, 2014
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
This week, animal lovers were relieved when the Department of Environmental Conservation announced that they would scuttle their aggressive plan to either shoot or lethally gas mute swans around NY, in favor of using birth control to curtail the growing population. But here's a sobering counterpoint: the Port Authority has killed approximately 20,561 animals over the last two years at various city airports.
The Post found out all the 2012-13 data through a Freedom of Information request. The dead animals include one endangered species (Northern Harrier), one threatened species (American Kestrel), 11 at risk species (Ospreys), and a shit ton of gulls (5,729 Laughing gulls, 2,445 Herring gulls, 414 Great black-backed gull). The Port Authority has long taken the initiative to kill animals it deems at risk of interfering with flights at airports, from the snow owls to geese. After some of these larger-scale incidents, authorities have promised to trap and relocate animals in the future, although those promises have sometimes turned out to be hollow.
Bizarrely, the Port Authority also killed a parakeet, which outraged Priscilla Feral, president of nonprofit Friends of Animals (who sued the PA last year over the killing of snow owls at JFK). "The idea that parakeets would bring down an aircraft is ridiculous," she said. "This gives you an idea of how trigger-happy they [the PA] are."
In 2012, a Port Authority spokesman gave us some insight on the constant struggle to keep winged animals at bay, explaining that a team of wildlife supervisors drive around JFK in SUVs using noisemakers, balloons, lasers, and shotguns to disperse or kill birds that may put human fliers in danger.
You can see the full list of animals below.
Laughing gull: 5,729 European starling: 3,203 Herring gull: 2,445 Mourning dove: 1,908 Brown-headed cowbird: 1,070 Canada goose: 997 Atlantic brant: 912 Ring-billed gull: 798 Rock pigeon: 723 Double-crested cormorant: 436 Great black-backed gull: 414 Red-winged blackbird: 335 Mallard: 331 Barn swallow: 234 House sparrow: 141 Killdeer: 125 Eastern cottontail rabbit: 82 Fish crow: 69 Woodchuck: 62 Snow bunting: 58 Mute swan: 51 Great egret: 46 Black-tailed jackrabbit: 44 Muskrat: 44 American black duck: 42 Great blue heron: 24 Least sandpiper: 22 Raccoon: 21 Red-tailed hawk: 19 Virginia opossum: 18 American crow: 16 Boat-tailed grackle: 12 Norway rat: 12 American oystercatcher: 11 Coyote: 11 Osprey: 11 Striped skunk: 11 White-tailed deer: 11 Common grackle: 9 Ring-necked pheasant: 9 American robin: 5 American woodcock: 5 Snowy owl: 5 Northern mockingbird: 4 Red fox: 4 American kestrel: 3 Snow goose: 3 Common raven: 2 Wild turkey: 2 American wigeon: 1 Black-crowned night heron: 1 Lesser yellowlegs: 1 Monk parakeet: 1 Northern harrier: 1 Red-throated loon: 1 Semipalmated sandpiper: 1 Song sparrow: 1 Turkey vulture: 1 Unknown rodent: 1 Wood duck: 1
Tagged
airports
animals
death
port authority
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
5 men charged with trespassing in 2 Manhattan manhole cases
Two people who were found soaking wet and smelling of sewage say they went underground to look for jewelry, according to police and a criminal complaint.
By
Charles Lane
Published Oct 23, 2026 at 7:49 p.m. ET
6-year-old girl breaks leg after getting hit by falling bricks in Queens
The girl was walking with her mother in Maspeth on Thursday. The Department of Buildings cited the owner of a garage for “failure to maintain” it.
By
Charles Lane
News
6-year-old girl breaks leg after getting hit by falling bricks in Queens
The girl was walking with her mother in Maspeth on Thursday. The Department of Buildings cited the owner of a garage for “failure to maintain” it.
By
Charles Lane
Mamdani extends ban on permits for new street fairs due to NYPD overtime
By
Carol Chen
Inside the Midtown Bus Terminal rebuild: Decks over Lincoln Tunnel approach, a new park
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Black couple seeking Queens apartment sues over racist text from broker
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .