Mannequin heads keep birds away

KOBE, Japan (WPVI) -- If you're visiting Kobe, Japan, don't be alarmed by the sight of mannequin heads in rice paddies.

That's because they're being used like scarecrows to keep sparrows from eating the rice and destroying the crops.

Photographer Dennis Doucet is a Canadian who moved to Kobe 26-years-ago and says he spotted about a dozen of the spooky looking heads in different areas.

He says the effect is macabre, particularly at night when the headlights make it appear that the heads are floating in the dark.

Doucet says when they become moldy or bleached by the sun they are even scarier looking.

And, become even more effective at keeping birds away.