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2022/10/15

HATAMOTO PRINTING COMPANY develops ‘Hyper Crow Shield,’ a magical sheet that crows run away from just by hanging it up

At the reporter's condominium, on garbage collection day, crows fly to the collection of garbage bags lined up on the sidewalk and raid the contents of the garbage bags. Just as I was wondering if there was anything I could do to prevent this, I discovered a wonderful item. It is the "Hyper Crow Shield," which, by simply holding it over the garbage bag, causes crows to run away. Marine saponin, an extract from starfish, is applied to the paper and emits an intense luminescence when ultraviolet rays reflect off the paper, making it appear very dazzling to crows. It is manufactured and sold by HATAMOTO PRINTING COMPANY, a commercial printing company in Hokkaido.

Marine saponin, extract derived from starfish

HATAMOTO PRINTING COMPANY is a printing company mainly engaged in offset printing. With the recent spread of digital media and paperless documents, demand for paper printing has been declining. As a new commercial material, the company has focused on an extract called marine saponin, which crows run away from.
　Marine saponin is a special extract extracted from starfish by fermentation. A biotechnology company, Hokkaido Environment Bio Sector Co., Ltd. developed it. This extract reflects ultraviolet rays and emits intense light. The light is invisible to humans, but appears so dazzling to crows that they are frightened by it and do not come near it.
　President Kei Kato says, "As the paper printing market was sluggish, we thought we had to do something that other companies could not do. At that time, we received a proposal to produce printed materials using starfish extract, and we thought, 'It sounds interesting, we’ll try it,' and commercialized it.”

Extract is applied over entire surface of pattern
The "Hyper Crow Shield" is made by offset printing a design on a 20 cm square sheet of paper, then applying marine saponin to the entire surface. In addition, both sides are laminated. This process is necessary to protect it from rain, wind, and snow, as it is to be installed outdoors. When used, the raven shield can be hung by string through the holes in the raven shield.
　Regarding the difficulties encountered during development, Director Mikiko Matsushima says, "Marine saponin is water-based, so increasing the volume would cause the paper to blister. On the other hand, a certain amount is necessary to achieve a firm repellent effect, and it was difficult to adjust to that.” Also, at first they thought it would be best to mix marine saponin with offset ink and complete the process in one pass. However, "the ink is oil-based and inevitably separated from the extract, so we gave up on this idea," she says.
　Marine saponin is a pale golden liquid with little or no odor. Matsushima says, "The design makes extensive use of yellow because the luminescence is stronger when placed on top of yellow." Incidentally, the figure in the illustration is based on the image of an owl, which is said to be the natural enemy of crows.

To keep crows away from multistory parking lots

On the company's Instagram page, a video was posted showing crows perched on power lines fleeing in a single bound when the Hyper Crow Shield was held over them. The effect is immediate.
　For example, it is being used at poultry farms to prevent bird flu, as well as at markets and multi-story parking garages. At a multi-story parking garage, crows were pecking at the glass wool on the ceiling, and the falling debris would scratch parked cars.
　However, to achieve a repellent effect, the crows must see the crow shield. Therefore, it is necessary to make the shield itself shake by hanging it up or putting it up as a flag to make the crows interested in it.

Crows "unaccustomed" to ultraviolet light emission

Another feature of the Crow Shield is its long-lasting repellent effect, says President Kato.
　“As a conventional measure against crows, we have placed scarecrows and CD's. These may stop crows from perching once, but they are smart and will 'get used to it' and come back. Even if these things once stopped crows from perching on them, they are smart, so once they get 'used to it,' the effect disappears, and they may come back. On the other hand, the reflected light from these crow shields is so dazzling to the crows that they 'don't want to see them anymore' and feel 'uncomfortable', so they will not perch on them as long as they continue to be installed. Depending on the installation environment, the repellent effect lasts for about six months."
　In addition to crows, the product is also said to be effective in repelling seagulls, kites, and eagles. President Kato said, "If you are troubled by seagull fecal damage, this Crow Shield will be useful. Marine saponins are also believed to have cockroach repellent, deodorizing, and disinfecting effects, and we are currently studying the feasibility of commercializing them.”

　Whether it is crows or cockroaches, the effect is expected to be that they will no longer be attracted to the vicinity, and the user will no longer "see" them. In fact, the company is currently developing a cockroach repellent product that contains marine saponins in a water-absorbing polymer for sale.
　In addition to these applications, the company is also aiming to improve the design of the crow shield, and President Kato said, "We would like to offer not only owl designs, but also various other variations, such as stylish designs that do not detract from the surrounding landscape and large-format types that can be affixed to walls.

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