An Okanagan program was designed 15 years ago to control the invasive species of starlings

A flock of European Starlings sighted at a mid-town Anchorage building.

The Department of Fish and Game plans to trap a flock of birds not native to Alaska that is trying to move in. The agency says starlings could cause big problems for humans and other birds native to the area. They want to get rid of the flock before their numbers grow.

Local birders who participated in the recent 2005 Anchorage Christmas Bird Count noted a sharp increase in European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), a sometimes aggressive species that's relatively new to Alaska.