Greetings,
I can offer three different experiences that cover the curious, the not so curious, and the intent on harm IMO. I hope these helps your effort.
Within the last couple of weeks I have been flying at an RC field that is adjacent to a diminishing seasonal pond that is in use by Western Blackbirds, Red-winged Blackbirds, species of long tail Blackbirds, maybe species of sandpipers, and several verity of ducks. Except for all the Blackbird species, the remainder confine themselves to the pond. The Blackbirds are however much more active with flight to and from the pond. Sometimes as few as 2 or 3' while other times they are in much greater numbers. They don't appear to take much notice of the drone in flight, but some appear to be concerned about my human presence, but not very often. While flying, I give them space and they have never given me the impression that they were flying for any reason related to the drone.
Ravens are a different story. Not affiliated with the pond, but within the same geographical location, here is a story I authored in February, 2016, but never posted. It speaks of my experience with the Raven. It was officially still winter, but the days were more like an early spring.
Eric M. Moore, The Daily Courtier said "Raven behavior is a bit disturbing during nesting season."
Today I found this to be a true statement. Not a surprise to see Raven's in my area (California), as I suspect they are equally prevalent in many parts of the US, but until today, they had never really displayed an interest in my P3. That all changed today. I was working with the Litchi app when I launched a mission that would make a simple circle and test the poi function. Everything was working as expected when all the sudden my bird was being surrounded by 3, then 5, then more than 20 Ravens. As I said, I see them often, so the first 3 didn't cause great alarm, but 20 plus. I was fortunately flying a low level (85 feet) tight circle, or this could have ended badly. I quickly switched back to P mode and dropped altitude. The descent, and luck of a higher elevation hawk showing up gave them an alternative intruder to be concerned about, thus my bird escaped without harm, but my nerves, not so much.
I was flying in an area that did not have a large clear field of view, some trees on three sides, and this certainly gave the Ravens the element of surprise. Wait them out I thought, and yes they did eventually leave the area, or seemingly so. Cautiously, up again I went, in full control this time, when suddenly they returned. Again I dropped the P3 like a stone, except this time I hovered about 10 feet and hoped that if I could just stay in the same place, they may circle, conclude I am not a threat, and call it a day, but every time I elevated, they returned. Proof in my mind, my bird was their focus and I do believe they were intent on causing some harm. After all, a hawk could certainly survive a midair bump from them, but spinning props and feathers don't mix.
Lessons learned: Comparably speaking, they rule the air, and other flyers should be aware of their territorial response to threats (aka drones) during this time of year. They are very large, very acrobatic, and clearly a threat to a meek P3. It is also notable that they came from all directions and elevation, thus it was very difficult to fly and be watchful for them. I recommend giving them their space. End...
My last notable experience with a bird was in south Utah. Flying in Red Cliff Recreation Area, I had a Swallow give me a flyby. I attributed it to curiosity and I only observed it once. Here is a picture that clearly shows him or her checking out the Phantom.
I hope all your collected experiences will be shared back with the forum.
Cheers
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