Pigeons in the News Archives - Pigeon Patrol Canada - Bird Control Products & Services

Killing these creatures is not the best solution

Pigeon Patrol — Tue, 31 Mar 2026 02:51:02 +0000

I URGE Wycombe District Council to move away from their barbaric, ineffective and costly proposal to kill pigeons, and to instead consider the humane and intelligent alternatives to reduce the pigeon population humanely.

Lethal culling through the use of birds of prey, etc, will produce some temporary reduction in pigeon population numbers but, just as with the culling of stray dogs in urban environments overseas, the area vacated by the culled pigeons will be taken up by other pigeons, unless the council is prepared to maintain the intensive use of a hawk in perpetuity, all making their proposal an expensive and inhumane solution.

Scientific research carried out in Switzerland by the University of Basel, between 1988 and 1992, clearly demonstrates that killing pigeons as a control option is not only expensive but also counter-productive.

During a census in 1963, the City of Basel was found to have a pigeon population of 20,000 birds and in the following 24 years the city council used every means at their disposal to reduce the population, including killing over 100,000 pigeons inhumanely. In 1988, a count revealed that Basel’s wild pigeon population was nearer 30,000 pigeons, an increase of 33% over and above the figure of 20,000 birds counted in the 1963 census.

This dramatic increment in flock size confirmed that the city council’s lethal control policy, operated between 1963 and 1985, had not only been totally ineffective, but had actually resulted in an increase in flock size of nearly one third. As a result, the city council realized that the problem had to be tackled at source

Between 1988 and 1990 the City of Basel introduced a massive information campaign to educate the public about pigeons and the relationship between feeding and resultant overpopulation.

Alongside the campaign, the council asked the University of Basel to carry out a scientific study to find a solution. This well-documented research concluded that killing pigeons had no effect on reducing flock size and in most cases resulted in an increase in pigeon numbers.

Based on the view that lethal control could not reduce population size the research team looked at non-conventional and quite diverse methods.

The idea of providing artificial breeding facilities where eggs could be removed and replaced with dummy eggs was put into practice. During the four-year research period, over 1,200 eggs each year were removed and replaced with dummy ones. Over a 50-month period this had the effect of reducing the pigeon population in these test areas by a staggering 50 per cent. In addition, large quantities of pigeon excrement were removed.

It is Germany that is now setting the example. The city of Augsburg voted to improve and expand its humane pigeon control programme by the creation of pigeon lofts in converted roof voids in buildings. In just one year, the council removed 1,200 eggs from seven pigeon lofts.

The use of dovecotes and designated feeding areas in public places combined with the use of lofts has also helped local authorities and sites in the UK to concentrate and control pigeon numbers in a humane but highly effective manner.

Nottingham City Hospital was awarded the RSPCA Best Practices Award (2003) for adopting a non-lethal strategy. The hospital’s pigeon population has decreased dramatically down to 65 birds and this is from a start figure of 1,200. WDC, please consider an intelligent and humane alternative. The scientific proof and evidence is well documented and should not be ignored. There are control regimes that are 100% non-lethal, sustainable, inexpensive and publicly acceptable. That aside, the people of High Wycombe will not react well to the potential scenario of a bird of prey tearing a pigeon apart and then eating it alive in the town centre in front of children, tourists and residents.

Pigeon Patrol

Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal -friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Bird Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.

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Pigeon Infestation & Health Hazards in Buildings

Pigeon Patrol — Tue, 24 Mar 2026 02:38:11 +0000

Summary

Feral pigeons (Columbia livia var. domestica) can be a nuisance and may cause significant damage to buildings. If feral pigeons take up residence within a disused property they can seriously damage the interior historic fabric, contents and finishes. It is vital to take measures to minimise pigeon activity in and around buildings in order to avoid additional maintenance issues and significant problems for renovation projects.

Rectifying the damage caused to the fabric of a property by pigeon guano (bird excreta) is expensive and in most cases avoidable. There are many methods of pigeon control including bird proofing, wire deterrent systems, netting, bird spikes and a large variety of electrical and sonic bird deterrent solutions.

Introduction

Feral pigeons and other birds make nests regularly and roost outside and inside our buildings. Architects, surveyors, construction professionals and maintenance staff are all familiar with the damage that can be caused by these birds sharing our environment.

History

Feral pigeons are believed to have descended from rock doves that interbred with racing pigeons and pigeons from domestic pigeon lofts. Skyscrapers and similar tall buildings provide ideal habitats, very similar to the cliff homes of their pigeon ancestors.

These pigeons have thrived by adapting to life in and around our buildings and have learnt to roost and breed very successfully within this environment. They thrive on a plentiful supply of our dropped and dumped food scraps. As they have adapted so excellently to this style of living, they have sometimes been called “the flying rat”. It’s no surprise that over recent years there has been a marked increase in the numbers of feral pigeons.

Adult Pigeons

The adult pigeon is about 33cm in length and weighs between 280 and 560g, an average of about 350g. Its plumage can vary considerably, from a close resemblance to that of the original rock dove (with blue-grey plumage, double black wing bars and a white rump), through to various blues, reds, chequered and almost black types. Colours vary considerably from blue-grey, through blues, reds, mottled patterns and charcoal to almost pure white (Simms, 1979).

The birds will roost and nest on horizontal building surfaces and any other structures that provide a small amount of shelter from the elements. Balconies, flat roofs, ledges, loft spaces and empty buildings are often used if the birds have access.

Nests are constructed of twigs but can also contain pieces of plastic and other debris. They may even be built on or near the dead bodies of other pigeons. Their natural food is grain and green vegetable matter but they will scavenge food and eat almost any foodstuff available such as dropped takeaway foods.

Life Cycle

The Feral Pigeon is capable of breeding throughout the year and nests may be found in any month. However the peak occurs between March and July. Usually, two white eggs are laid on consecutive days and incubation is shared between both adults. Incubation lasts for about 18 days, with fledging taking place about 4 ½ weeks later. A new clutch can be laid when the first young are just 20 days old. Therefore up to nine broods may be produced per year by just one female pigeon and pigeons may live as long as thirty years (P Ehrlich et al, 1988)

Deterioration and Damage to Buildings

Pigeon droppings are not only unsightly; their acid content can lead to the deterioration of soft stone and cause long-term damage to buildings (Bassi and Chiantante, 1976; Howard and Oldsbury 1991). The accumulation of pigeon droppings can deface the finishes of the exterior facade and the interior of the building. Removal is not only difficult and expensive but can cause more damage than the droppings in the first place (D Channon, 2004).

Nest droppings and feathers block gutters and rainwater pipes causing water damage to buildings. Their droppings can lead to hazards on pavements, especially for the elderly. Pigeons are capable of lifting loose roof coverings, tiles and battens to gain entry into the roof voids. This can significantly damage the structure by allowing water penetration, providing the ideal environmental conditions for the growth and proliferation of wood rotting fungi. Wood boring insects are attracted to this damp, rotting environment, leading to substantial further decay (Singh 1995).

Pigeon nesting materials, feathers and faeces can block parapet gutters and hopper heads, allowing water penetration into the building fabric and providing the ideal environmental conditions for the growth and development of decay organisms (Singh 1994a, & Singh 1999).

In poorly maintained and unoccupied buildings, where significant undetected water ingress has occurred, major outbreaks of dry rot (Serpula lacrymans) and wet rots establish and thrive. These include (Coniophora puteana, Antrodia xantha, A. searilis, A. vaillantti & Phellinus contiguus). Thesubsequent deterioration to the historic fabric, finishes and contents is an inevitable consequence (Singh 1994). Sometimes this deterioration is so dramatic that many of the important historical and architectural features are destroyed beyond repair.

Early-morning activity around nesting areas can cause a public nuisance, as can pestering for food. Around public and buildings of historic and touristic interest further problems can arise as the visitors start feeding pigeons. Their numbers will increase dramatically, leading to extensive faeces and fouling.

Ladders and fire escapes coated in pigeon droppings become slippery and unsafe to use particularly in wet conditions. Startled pigeons may take flight suddenly and cause a hazard to road traffic.

Pigeons and the Law

Most birds, their nests and eggs are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
The act allows the control of certain birds, including feral pigeons, by authorised people using specified methods.
The use of spring traps, poisons, certain types of nets, gassing and sticky substances that may entangle a bird is illegal.

Health Hazards

Large populations of pigeons and other birds inhabiting buildings or living on the facade for many years may present a potential risk of disease to people in and around these buildings (Weber, 1979).

The organic, nutrient rich accumulation of pigeon droppings, including feathers, detritus and debris under a nest provides an ideal environment for disease. This encourages fungi and bacteria to grow and proliferate. External parasites may also become a problem when infested pigeons or bats leave their roosts or nests. These parasites can infest buildings and cause health problems to people. Pigeons can also carry a number of potentially infectious diseases such as salmonella, tuberculosis and ornithosis (a mild form of psittacosis with pneumonia-like symptoms).

They are also a source of allergens, which can cause respiratory ailments like pigeon fancier’s lung, aspergillosis and allergic skin reaction. There is potential for these illnesses to be spread to people through contact with pigeon droppings, dandruff and feathers, pigeon parasites, or where dead infected pigeons get into food or water sources. Health and safety issues and site access problems are also caused by the build up of faeces due to the slippery and unsafe footing it provides on walkways and ledges, hindering proper maintenance. This may be a particular problem during building works and renovation. Pigeon faeces represent a health and safety hazard for staff working in contaminated buildings and for employees and operators who have to carry out remediation works. Pigeon infestation in and around buildings therefore represent an added problem in the renovation of buildings where large accumulations have been allowed to build-up, and this nutrient rich guano combined with moisture ingress in buildings provides an ideal environment for the growth and proliferation of moulds (Singh 1994a, Singh & Walker 1996).

Pigeon Patrol

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Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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METRO’S PIGEON CLEANUP BRINGS ANOTHER FINE MESS

Pigeon Patrol — Sat, 21 Mar 2026 02:36:55 +0000

Metro’s pigeon problems just keep piling up.

First, there were complaints from people who had to walk and drive

under two Red Line overpasses where thick swarms of the birds had

decided to roost.

Now, Metro’s efforts to get rid of the pigeons have created a flap

between two animal welfare organizations, which disagree over whether

the methods used — including the use of pellet guns — are humane.

“I think they’re doing an excellent job,” said Brenda Parvis of the

Washington Humane Society, which has been monitoring the cleanup work

under the bridges over Van Buren and Aspen streets NW, near the Takoma

station.

“They are doing it the wrong way,” said Jackie Freitag, president of

the Wildlife Rescue League, a regional group based in Falls Church.

“Let’s do it in a humane way.”

Both groups agreed with Metro that something had to be done about the

pigeons, which apparently were attracted to the steel girders under the

bridges by bird lovers who leave food nearby.

Before the cleanup, a person “couldn’t walk or drive underneath

without being bombarded with pigeon feces,” Parvis said. “People were

walking through inches of pigeon excrement.”

“I understand the problem,” Freitag said.

Metro spokeswoman Beverly Silverberg said the pigeons, which carry

disease-bearing lice, also create a health hazard.

Metro hired a pest control firm, J.C. Ehrlich Co. Inc., of Reading,

Pa., which has been clearing out the underpasses during the past two

weeks. The firm attached a large net just below the girders where the

pigeons roost. Then it drove most of the birds out the sides with water

and air hoses before beginning to steam clean and disinfect the area,

Silverberg said.

But many birds did not leave. Friday, dead pigeons’ bodies were lying

in the netting, while live pigeons flapped around inside.

The Humane Society has been allowed to use the contractor’s equipment

to leave food and water so that the remaining birds inside don’t starve,

Parvis said.

But Freitag said the birds had no food for three days, and said there

are baby birds trapped inside that have been abandoned and cannot feed

themselves.

Parvis said an exterminator took all the fledglings out and turned

them over to the care of league members.

The biggest disagreement has been over the decision to shoot the

remaining pigeons with pellet guns.

The Humane Society views this as the most humane alternative, Parvis

said. Allowing them to starve or leaving poison would cause slow,

painful death, while continuing to feed them would cause them to

reproduce, she said.

But league members said the pellet guns do not kill the birds

instantly, and cause the birds to suffer.

“We had offered numerous alternative solutions, all of which were

pooh-pooh’d,” said Linda Lieberman, a league member.

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Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

The post METRO’S PIGEON CLEANUP BRINGS ANOTHER FINE MESS appeared first on Pigeon Patrol Canada - Bird Control Products & Services.

FOR THE BIRDS ST. LUKE’S HOSPITAL BATTLES AN INVASION OF CROWS

Pigeon Patrol — Sat, 14 Mar 2026 04:15:23 +0000

Alfred Hitchcock couldn’t have choreographed it better.

Every sunset since mid-December, the sky above St. Luke’s Hospital in Fountain Hill turns black with the fluttering swarm of 5,000 to 10,000 crows that fly from feeding grounds around the Lehigh Valley to roost on a nearby wooded knoll.

During their noisy, cawing arrival and even noisier pre-dawn departure — and much of the time between — the large birds have been bombarding the hospital, homes, streets, cars, woods and, yes, residents themselves with the natural end-result of their daylong feedings.

The problem has gotten so noxious that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has been summoned to harass the birds until they roost elsewhere.

Beginning at dusk today, the USDA and members of St. Luke’s security staff will roust the crows with loud explosives and whistling pyrotechnics, and chase them with amplified crow distress calls until theyflee.

“It’s not so much that they’re causing a lot of problems, it’s just that they’re a health hazard. With 5,000 birds, that’s a lot of bird droppings, and that can become a potential health hazard,” said hospital spokesman Steve Andrews.

The most significant health threat from crow droppings is a fungal respiratory disease called histoplasmosis, according to Thomas N. Tomsa Jr., district supervisor for USDA Wildlife Services.

“The spores can become airborne, and this respiratory fungal disease can develop,” Tomsa said.

Though there are no indications that the birds have brought the disease to the wooded area behind the hospital, St. Luke’s officials are taking no chances.

St. Luke’s Security Director John Hrubenak said the hospital installed an amplified distress-call sound system two weeks to chase the birds from the roof, which has ventilation ducts and a helicopter landing pad.

“We didn’t want them hanging around on our heliport. We just didn’t want to take any chances,” Hrubenak said. “Certainly there was concern about a flock flying into the path of a helicopter.”

So far, the distress calls have kept the birds about 300 feet from the roof, he said.

It’s not unusual to see so many crows in one place, according to Kevin J. McGowan, a crow expert at Cornell University. American crows are most noticeable when the short winter day comes to an end. Streams of them can be seen flying high overhead, with a sense of purpose.

Thousands or tens of thousands converge at a winter roost, congregating from as far away as 20 miles. In the ’70s, a flock in Fort Cobb, Okla., was recorded at 2 million.

They like urban areas because the artificial light helps protect them from the great horned owl, their natural enemy, and because urban areas are warmer than the countryside.

Crows that breed near the roost site mix with migrants from thousands of miles away.

Besides raising concerns at St. Luke’s, the birds have created problems for residents living near the wooded knoll and hospital employees using the lower parking lot off Ostrum Street.

The tree-lined path from the front door of Kim Gencarelli’s home at 500 Ostrum St. has turned into a nightly obstacle course.

“You’ll walk out of your house and get hit or nearly hit with their stuff,” Gencarelli said. “In order to keep clean from my door to my car, I need an umbrella.”

The daily bombardment has also taken its toll on cars. The matter had been compounded by voluntary water rationing, which limited car washing.

“On my way to the car wash, I had people staring, pointing and laughing. My car was covered. You really couldn’t see it was brown, it was white,” Gencarelli said.

On nearby Brighton Street, Robert Guerriere finds nightly challenges while walking his dog.

“I have to look up to see exactly where they are so I don’t get dropped on,” Guerriere said.

The birds’ nightly droppings are so prolific, Guerriere said, “It sounds like rain. It’s not fun. It stinks and smells.”

But not all have had their feathers ruffled.

Ed Sinkler, who lives a block from Gencarelli, said birds are supposed to be in the woods and wondered where they would go when they left.

“It’s sort of majestic watching 10,000 crows come in. They make a nice little chorus at 5:30 in the morning,” Sinkler said.

“I wish there was a way to lure them somewhere else. That would be a better solution than to scare them up and let them go. These are woods and … that’s where they’re supposed to be.”

Tomsa acknowledges the birds may make trouble at another location but prefers to address one problem at a time.

Before this year, the birds roosted in the wooded knoll and on the Hill-to-Hill Bridge. But their numbers were only a fraction of what they are this year.

In December, Tomsa said, his agency harassed a similar number of crows that had been dumping all over the Capitol complex in Harrisburg. It took about five nights of harassment to make them fly the coop. Similarly, Tomsa said he expects the birds will be flushed from their Fountain Hill roost by the weekend.

Even though the nightly two-hour bursts of sound should be enough to force the crows to take flight, the noise will be muffled in the hospital and homes and should present a fraction of the nuisance the birds cause, according to Tomsa.

In a letter to Hrubenak, Tomsa wrote that once the birds are gone, they probably won’t return this winter. But they may be back next year.

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Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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Greenpeace renews call to close Sellafield after report on radioactive pigeons

Pigeon Patrol — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 04:10:05 +0000

It is nothing less than annoying if pigeon droppings land in the garden. It is all the more serious when the droppings are contaminated with radioactivity.

The environment campaigners Greenpeace are calling for an end to all nuclear reprocessing at the Sellafield nuclear plant in Cumbria following the publication of an official report yesterday. It discovered that wild pigeons roosting at the site and contaminated with radioactivity had carried it to a garden two miles away in Seascale.

The pigeons, described by Greenpeace as “flying nuclear waste”, were contaminated after roosting in old buildings at Sellafield. They began feeding in the garden over a two-year period and the soil was contaminated to such an extent that the garden was dug up by British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL) and sent to a nuclear dump along with a number of garden gnomes. The pigeons were destroyed last year. The report, published by the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (Comare) and the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee (RWMAC), acknowledged that the contamination of the garden was not significant.

The radioactive dose received by the residents was about half the annual limit for members of the public while the doses received by neighbours in adjacent properties were “not of any radiological concern”, according to the report.

But the report recommends that further research into possible contamination at nuclear sites, including the risk posed to other wildlife such as insects and other birds should be carried out. It also reported that authorised discharges of radioactive gases from Sellafield’s chimneys might have caused some of the radiation contamination.

Prof Bryn Bridges, chairman of Comare, said it was possible the doses could have been higher. He described the contamination as a “worrying discovery”.

BNFL apologised for the contamination and said it was pleased the report acknowledged the steps it had taken to remedy the situation. It also accepted the report’s criticism that mismanagement was at the heart of the problem.

In a statement yesterday, BNFL said it had committed considerable resources to resolve the issue: “This involved culling the birds, controlling the birds’ feeding, restricting access to these older buildings and completing a site habitat control programme. A programme of remediation was also carried out in Seascale, after discussion with the property owners and the regulator.”

Greenpeace described decisionmaking at Sellafield as “hopelessly inadequate” and said the problem did not die when BNFL culled the birds. Dr Helen Wallace of Greenpeace said: “Nuclear waste could still be spreading through wildlife into people’s homes and gardens. Today’s reports warn that other wildlife, such as insects and doves, may also be involved in the spread of nuclear waste from nuclear sites into people’s homes and gardens.”

BNFL should be made to properly contain and monitor all existing waste, she added.

Pigeon Patrol

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Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

The post Greenpeace renews call to close Sellafield after report on radioactive pigeons appeared first on Pigeon Patrol Canada - Bird Control Products & Services.

Bird Droppings

Pigeon Patrol — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 03:53:18 +0000

Eighteen frozen pigeons were recently shipped north to the suburban Albany labs of New York State wildlife pathologist Ward Stone. The birds, poisoned by pesticide-spiked rice, were a familiar sight to the medical examiner. He had already autopsied several victims, and this latest batch of corpses, found scattered around a supermarket parking lot in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn, put the murder tally in the hundreds – and confirmed Stone’s suspicion that he is on the Carbofuran-laced-birdseed trail of an avian serial killer.

The pigeons were added to a pile of more than 400 New York City birds Stone has examined over the past two years. He’s been cataloguing causes of death in our 126-species bird habitat, and his pigeon report joined a folder filled with more exotic necropsies: a Jamaica Bay loon with its waterproofing washed away by detergent; a swan found in Central Park Lake with a lead sinker stuck in its gizzard; two red-tailed hawks from Mary Tyler Moore’s building; and a black-crowned night heron from Prospect Park loaded with four pesticides.

Besides the vigilante avicides and high-profile mortalities, Stone has examined dozens of birds killed by the commercial agent Avitrol, used legally by exterminators all over the city. “You can get caught up in the ‘Carbofuran Killer,’ but Avitrol is what’s killing most of the birds in New York City,” argues anti-Avitrol activist Mary Kelly, whose outrage at the sight of dead pigeons plopping to the pavement from lofty aeries on York and 86th Street in 1997 prompted Stone’s larger inquiry. After autopsying Kelly’s birds, Stone recommended a statewide ban on Avitrol (his employers at the state Department of Environmental Conservation issue licenses to exterminators). He has also found the toxic substance in at least one peregrine falcon – evidence, he says, that the agent is passed to other birds up the food chain, since peregrines love pigeon pie.

Thanks to Stone and Kelly, avian awareness has roosted in Albany: An Avitrol-ban bill flew through the State Assembly last year but crashed in the Senate under pesticide-lobby pressure. This year’s version would have given individual localities the right to ban the pesticide, but Governor Pataki clipped the bill’s wings when he vetoed it at the end of July.

Stone’s activism also prompted wildlife rehabilitators, bird-loving bureaucrats, and other nature freaks to begin scooping and sending the dead crows, starlings, and grackles in their neighborhoods and parks, and Stone plans to release his first-ever comprehensive city bird-necropsy report shortly. He says he was surprised at the “incredible array” of local birds he encountered, “much more than a country boy like me could have expected,” and cites improved water quality – hell, there are cormorants cruising in the Gowanus Canal – as a critical factor in maintaining the city’s “splendiferous” habitat.

The pathologist has lost track of the number of times he’s been compared to seventies television hero Quincy, M.E., but he has his own unsolved mysteries to take care of: Those Brooklyn birds, it turns out, were done in by a copycat using a different pesticide (Methomyl) and bait than the Carbofuran Killer. Still, says the scientist, a bit optimistically, “only two purposeful poisoners in a city of millions – that’s not bad.”

Pigeon Patrol

Best Types of Pigeon Repellent

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Bird Sound Deterrents / Ultrasonic Repellers– Emit high-frequency sound to drive pigeons away without harming them.
Browse Ultrasonic Bird Repellers: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-repeller/
Pigeon Netting– Blocks pigeons from accessing nesting zones permanently.
See Pigeon Netting: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-netting/

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

The post Bird Droppings appeared first on Pigeon Patrol Canada - Bird Control Products & Services.

A Fixed Netting System as a Means of Excluding Birds From a Domestic Waste Landfill

Pigeon Patrol — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 03:50:16 +0000

Many bird species are attracted to landfills which take domestic or putrescible waste. These sites provide a reliable, rich source of food which can attract large concentrations of birds. The birds may cause conflicts with human interest with respect to noise, birds carrying litter off site, possible transmission of pathogens in bird droppings and the potential for birdstrikes. In the UK there is an 8 mile safeguarding radius around an airfield, within which any planning applications must pass scrutiny from regulatory bodies to show they will not attract birds into the area and increase the birdstrike risk. Peckfield Landfill site near Leeds, West Yorkshire was chosen for a trial of a netting system designed to exclude birds from domestic waste landfills. The site was assessed for bird numbers before the trial, during the netting trial and after the net had been removed. A ScanCord net was installed for 6 weeks, during which time all household waste was tipped inside the net. Gull numbers decreased on the site from a mean of 107

4 per hourly count to 29 per hourly count after two days. The gull numbers increased again after the net had been removed. Bird concentrations in the surroundings were also monitored to assess the effect of the net. Bird numbers in the immediate vicinity of the landfill site were higher than those further away. When the net was installed, the bird concentrations adjacent to the landfill site decreased. Corvids were not affected by the net as they fed on covered waste which was available outside the net throughout the trial. This shows that bird problems on a landfill site are complex, requiring a comprehensive policy of bird control. A supporting bird scaring system and clear operating policy for sites near to airports would be required.

Pigeon Patrol

Best Types of Pigeon Repellent

Bird Spikes– Pigeons can’t land on surfaces with bird spikes—perfect for ledges, sills, signs, and fences.
Shop Bird Spikes: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-spikes/
Bird Sound Deterrents / Ultrasonic Repellers– Emit high-frequency sound to drive pigeons away without harming them.
Browse Ultrasonic Bird Repellers: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-repeller/
Pigeon Netting– Blocks pigeons from accessing nesting zones permanently.
See Pigeon Netting: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-netting/

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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Pooping pigeon invasion: ‘Our town is being taken over!’

Pigeon Patrol — Fri, 06 Mar 2026 01:40:24 +0000

It’s a rather fowl situation.

A town south of London is facing a bombardment of bird poop brought on by a “growing” influx of winged interlopers that officials just don’t have an answer for.

“You walk around and they are cooing above you. All the babies are squawking, and then they could poo on you,” Ashford business owner Vince Monticelli told South West News Service.

“Our town has been taken over by seagulls and pigeons.”

The Ashford Borough Council has been gliding around the issue after walking back April’s plans to get a hawk that would ward off the unwanted new residents in the Kent nabe.

“We have researched carefully, and following consultation with relevant stakeholders and local businesses, we believe at this time there is an insufficient need for a hawk service to be introduced to the town center,” a government spokesperson said.

The situation is “under review” and could include a four-month trial with the predatory bird, though the idea has reportedly been dropped for now.

Initially, the locale also felt that a hawk being walked around by a professional caretaker also would make for an especially appealing “attraction.”

Monticelli, also, stood firm: “I think they are an issue and the council probably should’ve got the hawk.”

Other locals, like Russell Green, doubled down on the problems pigeons are causing, too.

Troves of pigeons and seagulls are pooping all over an English town.KM / SWNS

“I don’t see why they couldn’t get [a hawk] in for a couple of days a month,” he said. “Once pigeons and seagulls know there is a hawk here, they won’t bother coming back.”

Another man who works in the town, Connor Moon, suggested the winged visitors “don’t do us any harm” and blamed the poop-apalooza on bird brains who feed the avians, inadvertently inviting them to come back — with friends.

Pigeon Patrol

Best Types of Pigeon Repellent

Bird Spikes– Pigeons can’t land on surfaces with bird spikes—perfect for ledges, sills, signs, and fences.
Shop Bird Spikes: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-spikes/
Bird Sound Deterrents / Ultrasonic Repellers– Emit high-frequency sound to drive pigeons away without harming them.
Browse Ultrasonic Bird Repellers: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-repeller/
Pigeon Netting– Blocks pigeons from accessing nesting zones permanently.
See Pigeon Netting: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-netting/

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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Bird Poop!

Pigeon Patrol — Thu, 05 Mar 2026 01:43:00 +0000

I think that’s the first time I’ve ever used the word “poop” in a blog title, but I digress…

The infamous “Bird Poop Building” on Yonge Street has been vacant for 25 years, and surprise, surprise – it’s going to be turned into a condo…

If you know me, you know that I have a serious man-love for old, historic, Toronto buildings.

I’m fascinated by our city’s history, and while we simply can’t compete with the thousand-year-old structures in Europe, we do have our own little slice of history here in Toronto.

One of the most fun blog features I ever worked on was The Buildings of The St. Lawrence Market, back in 2009. I did a three-part series on all the historic buildings in the area; a must-read for many of you who missed it! You can read Part One HERE.

I’ve always admired the Bank of Commerce on Yonge Street, in between Queen & Shuter, but it’s a little…..ummmm……dirty, shall we say?

Over the years, this building has been used and abused by some of the most carefree and unpoliced members of our society: pigeons.

For some reason, pigeons love to empty their bowels (if birds have bowels…..any bird enthusiasts among my readers who can shed some light??) on this building and the neighbouring building immediately north. Over time, these two buildings have simply become known as “the bird poop buildings.”

And seeing the photos I took below, can you argue?

Wow. I don’t know what to say…

I’ve walked by these buildings many, many times over the years, and I’ve always thought, “I really wish somebody would do something with those buildings!” It’s such a shame that a great piece of Toronto’s history is just sitting there getting crapped on by these guys:

Damn pigeons!

Well, time hasn’t been kind to the Bank of Commerce at 197-199 Yonge Street, but the future is bright!

I suppose it’s a bit of a double-edged sword, however. I had always hoped that this beautiful building would be restored and turned into a library, museum, or event hall, but in actual fact, it’s going to be turned into yet another condo. I suppose it’s the lesser of two evils; that is, it would be worse to see the building torn down or have it fall into even worse disrepair, although I’m not sure that’s possible…

Built in 1905, the Bank of Commerce has actually been abandoned since 1987! It’s had many different uses over the years, and you can actually still see the words “DENTIST” on the second floor of the building where somebody probably practiced in the 60’s or 70’s:

Little-known developer, MOD Developments will be turning the historical building into a 60-storey condominium called “Massey Towers,” which already has a large advertisement up at the current site. MOD Development’s only other project to date is FIVE Condos at St. Joseph’s & Yonge Street, but Massey Towers will be designed by renowned firm Hariri Pontarini Architects, whose projects are too many to name, but include One City Hall, Minto775, ART, Shangri-La, and my current residence, Vu Condos.

Like I said – it’s cliche that this site will become “yet, another condo,” but it’s better than letting it sit there and rot.

The article in this past week’s Globe & Mail, quoted the owner of MOD Developments, Gary Switzer, as saying, “What does it say about our city to have a building like this empty right on the main street?”

I couldn’t possibly agree more.

Yonge Street is famous! It’s the best-known street in Toronto, and one of the most well-known streets in our entire country!

How could we let this happen?

Yet we have a poo-covered building sitting there, rotting away.

It reminds me of this:

Those of you that read my blog during its infancy in 2007 will recall the photos and blog posts from my trip to Serbia.

These buildings are on the Belgrade’s equivalent of Yonge Street, and the city doesn’t have the money to fix them, so they don’t. These buildings have been sitting here in this condition for almost twenty years, and they’ll likely remain as such indefinitely.

Toronto is not Serbia, but yet the Bank of Commerce and its sister building at 205 Yonge Street, the Bank of Toronto, draw some eerie similarities to the photo above:

Two buildings, both beautiful and historic, and both ruined by time. And poo…

The crazy thing is – the Bank of Toronto is an even more impressive structure! I wonder what will become of that building? Perhaps, phase two of the condominium development at Massey Towers?

Dare to dream…

Pigeon Patrol

Best Types of Pigeon Repellent

Bird Spikes– Pigeons can’t land on surfaces with bird spikes—perfect for ledges, sills, signs, and fences.
Shop Bird Spikes: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-spikes/
Bird Sound Deterrents / Ultrasonic Repellers– Emit high-frequency sound to drive pigeons away without harming them.
Browse Ultrasonic Bird Repellers: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-repeller/
Pigeon Netting– Blocks pigeons from accessing nesting zones permanently.
See Pigeon Netting: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-netting/

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

The post Bird Poop! appeared first on Pigeon Patrol Canada - Bird Control Products & Services.

“City Hall Under Siege: Pigeon Droppings Cause Health Concerns”

Pigeon Patrol — Mon, 09 Jun 2025 05:53:21 +0000

The steps of City Hall, once a symbol of civic pride, are now stained with something far less noble—pigeon droppings. A growing population of urban pigeons has turned the historic building into a nesting ground and bathroom, much to the frustration of city workers and residents.

“It’s absolutely disgusting,” said Angela Simmons, a clerk at the records office. “Every morning, we have to dodge piles of droppings just to get to the front door. Some days I have to bring a change of shoes.”

A closeup shot of a Feral pigeon in a city

The Department of Public Health has issued a warning about potential respiratory illnesses associated with dried pigeon feces, including histoplasmosis and cryptococcosis, both of which can cause serious lung infections.

Maintenance crews are power-washing the building’s steps twice a week, but it hasn’t been enough. “We’re just chasing the problem,” said Facilities Manager Larry Cho. “Until we deal with the birds themselves, we’ll keep mopping up after them.”

City Council is expected to vote next Tuesday on a proposed ordinance that would fund humane deterrents such as bird netting, sloped ledges, and the installation of owl decoys.

Best Types of Pigeon Repellent

Bird Spikes– Pigeons can’t land on surfaces with bird spikes—perfect for ledges, sills, signs, and fences.
Shop Bird Spikes: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-spikes/
Bird Sound Deterrents / Ultrasonic Repellers– Emit high-frequency sound to drive pigeons away without harming them.
Browse Ultrasonic Bird Repellers: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-repeller/
Pigeon Netting– Blocks pigeons from accessing nesting zones permanently.
See Pigeon Netting: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-netting/

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

The post “City Hall Under Siege: Pigeon Droppings Cause Health Concerns” appeared first on Pigeon Patrol Canada - Bird Control Products & Services.

“Historic Landmark Defaced by Persistent Pigeon Problem”

Pigeon Patrol — Mon, 09 Jun 2025 05:50:08 +0000

The Brighton Clock Tower, a proud piece of the city’s 19th-century heritage, is under siege. Not by vandals or weather—but by pigeons. The acidic nature of their droppings is slowly eroding the sandstone structure, prompting alarm from conservationists and city officials alike.

“The pigeons have turned this into their personal toilet,” said heritage consultant Roger Fairbanks, shaking his head. “And the worst part is the damage is cumulative. What’s already been lost can’t be restored.”

Pigeons!!!

According to the Brighton Historical Society, the tower has not undergone a full cleaning in over five years. Recent inspections revealed black crusted layers of guano on upper ledges and a corrosion ring forming around the base.

Local residents are upset by what they see as neglect. “It’s embarrassing,” said Anna Pritchard, who brings tourists to the area. “They ask me about the clock, and I’m afraid to tell them what’s actually on it.”

City engineers are now weighing the cost of installing anti-roosting spikes and motion-activated deterrents. Meanwhile, experts warn that if the situation isn’t addressed soon, the damage could become irreversible.

Pigeon Patrol

Best Types of Pigeon Repellent

Bird Spikes– Pigeons can’t land on surfaces with bird spikes—perfect for ledges, sills, signs, and fences.
Shop Bird Spikes: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-spikes/
Bird Sound Deterrents / Ultrasonic Repellers– Emit high-frequency sound to drive pigeons away without harming them.
Browse Ultrasonic Bird Repellers: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-repeller/
Pigeon Netting– Blocks pigeons from accessing nesting zones permanently.
See Pigeon Netting: https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/bird-netting/

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

The post “Historic Landmark Defaced by Persistent Pigeon Problem” appeared first on Pigeon Patrol Canada - Bird Control Products & Services.

TransLink and BC SPCA tackling the pigeon problem

Pigeon Patrol — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 00:36:25 +0000

VANCOUVER, BC — TransLink and the BC SPCA are teaming up to humanely reduce the pigeon population at VCC-Clark SkyTrain Station. An automatic bird feeder is dispensing birth control for a pilot project to control the pigeon population. OvoControl is a non-toxic, effective and humane contraception used in other cities to prevent pigeon reproduction and reduce populations naturally through attrition.

Pigeons cause problems at several SkyTrain stations despite TransLink’s best efforts to control them. TransLink has:

Installed netting at stations to stop birds from getting into empty spaces
Set up spikes and strips to deter pigeons from roosting on flat surfaces
Hired a falconer to patrol stations with the most pigeons as part of another pilot project

Studies have shown a 50-90% population reduction in OvoControl managed pigeon populations. Pigeons that eat the bait pellets on a regular basis will not be able to fertilize eggs.

Dr. Sara Dubois, Chief Scientific Officer with the BC SPCA explains pigeons can breed rapidly but their urban lifespans are short. With fewer new pigeons born, the pigeon population around SkyTrain stations will reduce naturally and cause fewer operational issues, “OvoControl has been approved for use by Health Canada and only has contraceptive effects in birds. Pigeons must eat their daily dose (5g/bird) for the contraceptive to work, and it is designed to be fed in a manner to maximize pigeon feeding behaviour. We are happy TransLink is ready to partner with us and research what could be a very effective and humane long-term solution.”

Pigeon droppings are messy, but the birds also put customer safety at risk. Pigeons trigger track intrusion alarms, causing our driver-less trains to brake automatically. These hard stops can lead to customer falls and service delays.

TransLink customers and the public can help by not feeding the birds. Outside foods sources encourage birds to roost inside stations and can draw pigeons away from the contraceptive pellets. It is vital for the success of the project that people stop feeding pigeons in this area.

The OvoControl pilot may be expanded to other stations if successful at VCC-Clark.

The innovative partnership between TransLink and the BC SPCA has been supported by other local animal groups:

Linda Bakker, Co-Executive Director, Wildlife Rescue Association –

“The Wildlife Rescue Association of BC supports this new initiative to humanely reduce the pigeon population. Wildlife Rescue strives to reduce human-wildlife conflict in the urban environment and rehabilitates injured and orphaned wildlife. This project aims to humanely reduce the number of pigeons at areas that have a lot of potential casualties and injuries in pigeons. This project will reduce the number of injured, deceased and orphaned pigeons in these areas. Wildlife Rescue supports the BC SPCA in promoting humane wildlife management practices.”

Two pigeons sitting together on piece of wood.

Michael Austin, Executive Director of the Vancouver Humane Society –

“While we continue to grow our wonderful city, it is important to consider the impact such developments have on urban wildlife; Vancouver Humane is pleased to support this initiative by TransLink and the BC SPCA to humanely control the pigeon population in order to reduce unnecessary suffering. We hope that other businesses can learn from this work and that more considerations are made for the non-human animals that live in our communities.”

TransLink is Metro Vancouver’s regional transportation authority and is the first North American transportation authority to be responsible for the planning, financing and managing of all public transit in addition to major regional roads and bridges.

Pigeon Patrol

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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IN PRAISE OF PIGEONS

Pigeon Patrol — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 00:34:54 +0000

Fresh debate has been sparked over a controversial Oxford statue after onlookers noted it had been pelted with “pigeon droppings”.

The Cecil Rhodes statue on the grounds of Oriel College at University of Oxford was covered in protective black netting after protesters in 2020 demanded it be taken down.

Before then, it had been a free for all zone for pigeons in Oxford.

“Earlier in my life I lived in Zambia, which used to be known as Northern Rhodesia, after Rhodes.

“As soon as they won their independence they changed the name of the country, because Rhodes prevented Africans from voting and stole their valuable resources.

“I agree with those who say that statues of people like him belong in a museum, not on a pedestal. People need to be able to read about the good and the bad things he did when he was alive.”

The statue of Rhodes, a 19th century imperialist linked to the slave trade, has been shrouded in controversy for years.

It gained renewed attention in June 2020 after a statue of the 17th century slave trader Edward Colston, was thrown in a dock in Bristol by Black Lives Matter protesters.

The Cecil Rhodes statue was set to be removed by summer 2021 and placed in a museum after governors of Oriel College voted to take it down – reversing a decision they made in 2016.

The Cecil Rhodes statue in High Street.

This was eventually prevented by “regulatory and financial challenges” but an explanatory plaque “contextualising” the statue was placed next to gating at the building.

Green city councillor Emily Kerr said: “I’ve long been disappointed that Oriel College hasn’t been able to come to a suitable compromise on the statue of Rhodes.

“It seems that it should be possible to have a pragmatic compromise, such as turning the statue around to face the wall and clearly highlighting the colonial history should be possible. I hope this is a step towards some action being taken.”

Thousands of people signed a petition against removal of the statue when it was due to be taken down in 2021.

Greg Everest, who started the petition, said at the time: “Cecil Rhodes is an historical figure with world wide significance. We must keep our history, British history, in order to learn from it regardless of political feelings and persuasions.

“If we continue down the road of removing statues of people who we feel no longer fit today’s morality we will have to remove 90 per cent of British monuments along with our kings and queens.”

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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Pigeon feed seller takes flight

Pigeon Patrol — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 00:33:13 +0000

The last pigeon feed seller in London’s Trafalgar Square has agreed to stop trading in return for a cash payment.

Pigeon standing on the house

Bernard Rayner reached an out-of-court agreement after a legal battle with London Mayor Ken Livingstone, who wants to clean up the mess caused by the birds.

Mr Rayner, 47, had taken his fight against eviction from his pitch to the High Court, pressing for a judicial review of the decision.

But in a surprise move on Wednesday morning, the judge who was due to hear the case, Mr Justice Hooper, was told Mr Rayner was now prepared to cease trading with immediate effect.

Outside court Mr Rayner denied that he had sold out, saying he was “happy” about the settlement.

The amount has not been disclosed, but Mr Rayner said: “I have got the best possible deal.”

The London Mayor, Ken Livingstone, said later in a statement: “I am delighted we have managed to reach agreement so quickly.

“The out-of-court settlement now means I can continue with my plans to transform Trafalgar Square into a cultural space for Londoners and visitors to enjoy.”

Solicitors for The Greater London Authority (GLA) said an agreed sum would be paid to Mr Rayner “to recognise the fact that he will be unable to trade in the square in the future”.Part of the sum representing Mr Rayner’s costs would be donated to an animal welfare organisation.

The GLA is to organise a programme for the phased withdrawal of feeding the pigeons until 30 April. After the settlement was announced, Mr Rayner described the withdrawal scheme as “the best possible plan”. The GLA stripped Mr Rayner of his licence in the autumn, but then granted a temporary reprieve which ran out in mid-January.

Mr Rayner then won a court ruling allowing him to continue trading until Wednesday.

‘Health hazard’

Mr Livingstone recently described pigeons as “rats with wings”, and a health hazard.

The GLA plans to clean up the mess in Trafalgar Square caused by pigeon droppings, and pedestrianise the upper part of the square to make way for more cultural pursuits for visitors.

Pigeon campaigners expressed their dismay over Wednesday’s settlement, accusing Mr Livingstone of “bully boy tactics”.

Andrew Butler, the UK representative of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Europe (PETA), said: “Basically this spells disaster for London’s pigeon population.

“There is a strong likelihood that 25% of the 6,000 Trafalgar Square flock will starve to death.”

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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Facts about pigeons

Pigeon Patrol — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 22:46:34 +0000

Pigeons are our most common urban bird.

They are amazingly resourceful creatures, able to survive in the midst of predatory humanity.

Even so, up to 35% of a local population may perish annually from natural causes and predators.

Pigeons flock together in large numbers to protect themselves against, cats, rats and foxes.

Even when times are tough and the weather is freezing and stormy, they co-operate with each other and readily accept outsiders into their flock.

They have easy temperaments and are adaptable and hardy, which no doubt accounts for their ability to maintain numbers.

The most widespread misconception about urban pigeons is that they are carriers of disease.

The truth is that the vast majority of people are at little or no health risk and probably have a greater chance of being struck by lightning than contracting disease from a pigeon.

Pigeons pair for life.

Both parents take an equal role in caring for their young.

The chicks are helpless when first hatched and are fed for the first few days on ‘pigeon milk’ regurgitated from both parents’ throats.

Two pigeons on a park bench in mating season.

The phenomenal navigational abilities of pigeons largely depend on their keen vision and memory for landmarks. Over the centuries these qualities have become legendary.

Pigeon Patrol

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

The post Facts about pigeons appeared first on Pigeon Patrol Canada - Bird Control Products & Services.

London’s pigeon problem has a simple solution: a hawk

Pigeon Patrol — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 22:44:54 +0000

Handler Paul Picknell and the Harris’s hawk, Lemmy, in London’s Trafalgar Square. Lemmy’s job is not to hunt pigeons, but to deter them.

Leo Hornak

Urban pigeons closeup

Fifteen years ago, the center of London was densely populated — not just with people, but also with birds. Particularly pigeons.

Huge flocks of them would fill the capital’s parks and squares. But something has changed. The pigeons are gone. One reason for the pigeon decline can be seen in Trafalgar Square at 7 a.m. every weekday.

Not far from Big Ben, the square is the very center of the city. Even early in the day it bustles with commuters, tourists and school parties. But among all that activity there is a hunter on the loose. A silent killer. One who watches over every movement — from the National Gallery on the north side to Charing Cross Station on the south. Up close to him, you notice powerful shoulders, a penetrating gaze — and also a tendency to twist his head around to the back looking for prey.

That hunter’s name is Lemmy, and he is a Harris’s hawk.

Hawks like Lemmy have been used to deter pigeons in London since the early 2000s.Leo Hornak

Lemmy is employed by the Greater London Authority to ensure that places like Trafalgar Square remain free of pigeons, and therefore free of their waste. He works in a team: his handler, Paul Picknell, is employed by Hawkforce, one of London’s leading avian security firms.

Speaking to Picknell, there is no mistaking his love for his work buddy. “He’s a work colleague, he’s a friend. [But he is] essentially a wild animal. Never tame. In amongst all these people — he’ll totally ignore everybody apart from me,” he says. “It’s almost a telepathetic communication.”

Until the early 2000s, pigeons ruled Trafalgar Square and other open spaces in the center of London. You could buy food to feed them. Even Mary Poppins had a song advising Londoners to feed the birds.

Things changed in 2003, when the mayor of London declared war on the birds. So many pigeons produced a lot of … waste. And that’s not hygienic.

The pigeon feed stall was closed. If Mary Poppins tried to feed the birds now, she would be hit with a fine. But a humane and natural way to move the pigeons on was needed. And that’s where Picknell and Lemmy come in.

As Picknell is talking, Lemmy suddenly gags and vomits up a small oily lump of yellowish paste onto the sidewalk. Picknell is relieved. “Oh. That’s what we’re waiting for,” he says. “That’s the cast. It’s basically beaks, the feathers, the claws of the food he had yesterday that he can’t digest.”

He picks it up and rubs it carefully between his fingers for a diagnosis. It crumbles under his thumbnail. “That one’s quite normal looking. Nothing wrong with this bird. He’s ready to go now.”

Although Harris’s hawks do hunt birds like pigeons, the idea is not for Lemmy to kill while on duty. He is fed exclusively from a small plastic box of raw chicken scraps. Picknell takes a large handful and fills his pocket with these snacks at the start of every shift.

Instead, the idea is to use Lemmy’s presence to deter and intimidate pigeons. “It’s a visual thing. It’s a presence,” says Picknell. “The pigeons are aware there’s a bird of prey — there’s predator around, therefore they stay away.”

There’s an air of “The Sopranos” when Picknell describes the effect Lemmy’s presence has on pigeons. “I suppose he does intimidate them,” he says. “The big kid’s around. Keep yourself to yourself. Stay out the way.”

Unlike other forms of pest control, such as poisoning or shooting, the use of hawks is environmentally friendly and ultimately humane. It is also popular: Picknell and Limmy are constantly pestered for selfies. Some hawks like the attention more than others, Picknell says. Lemmy is not too keen on having his feathers ruffled.

There was some backlash at first — a renegade pro-pigeon activist group is still rumored to carry out vigilante bread distributions somewhere nearby — but the square today is much cleaner. And almost completely free of pigeons.

Pigeon Patrol

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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The case for the humane control of pigeons

Pigeon Patrol — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 22:44:06 +0000

Pigeons are one of the few species of wild animal with which town and city dwellers have regular contact, so they are popular with a lot of people. However, the cost of cleaning their droppings from buildings and statues can be considerable and pigeon welfare can be adversely affected by overcrowding.

Bosphorus in İstanbul,Turkey.

There are many places world-wide where attempts have been made to control pigeons by culling. Culling methods have included poisoning, shooting with air rifles and trapping. However, modern scientific research (1) shows that culling is completely ineffective, as bird numbers can increase above pre-cull levels within weeks of the cull being carried out.

Why is culling promoted?

Pest control companies are fully aware that culling is ineffective but they continue to recommend this option because it ensures that they will be offered a lucrative long-term contract.

Why is culling ineffective?

In areas where culling is carried out, there will be an initial reduction in pigeon numbers. However, this effect is very short term as the population will almost certainly have returned to or even exceeded the previous level within a few weeks. This is because pigeons control their own numbers according to the food source available.

Approximately 90% of pigeons die in their first year and the main cause of death is starvation. The mortality rate of adult pigeons is very low, typically around 11% (2). Therefore when culling is carried out on a pigeon population, the vacancies left by the dead birds are quickly filled by young birds.

This means that killing adult pigeons in a flock discriminates in favour of young birds who would otherwise have perished. It has no long-term effect on the level of population, as it merely rejuvenates the flock.

A culling programme was carried out in Basel, Switzerland; a city which had a population of approximately 20,000 pigeons. From 1961-85, 100,000 pigeons were culled by shooting and trapping. Despite this, the population remained stable.

In 1988 a group called Pigeon Action was founded to establish an ecological and long term solution to the city’s pigeon issue. They began a programme of public education campaigns which warned against feeding pigeons and installed pigeon lofts from which eggs were removed. As a result, the population was halved within four years.

Other arguments against culling

Culling is an extremely expensive option, as a long-term contract with pest controllers will have to be entered into because regular repeat culls will be necessary. Culling by poison puts other species at risk because it is both indiscriminate and because poisoned birds will affect other animals in the food chain. Cats and birds of prey may consume poisoned pigeons with fatal results.

Narcotics have been used to stupefy pigeons and make them easier to catch. However, this culling method can have disastrous consequences, with drugged birds disrupting traffic and smashing into buildings. This happened in Perth, Australia in 1999. Narcotics and poison are both very inhumane as the pigeons taking the bait will die slowly and may suffer dehydration and hypothermia.

Shooting is a widely-used culling method which also results in suffering as the majority of birds shot are wounded, rather than killed. There have been many reports of injured birds being thrown into bin bags or stamped upon by pest control operatives. Young chicks are also left to slowly perish.

Trapping of pigeons is also widespread. Apart from the risk that trapped birds are sometimes left to die from exposure, this culling method is also very time-consuming and expensive.

What are the alternatives?

There are three approaches to pigeon control which do not involve culling. They are the use of deterrents, the installation of artificial nesting sites and public education campaigns.

Deterrents

Deterrents such as spikes, holograms of owls’ eyes and wire systems can be very effective at preventing pigeons from roosting on buildings.

Netting is often used on buildings, but it can result in young flightless birds being trapped behind it and flying birds can become tangled and injured. The RSPCA and wildlife groups receive thousands of reports every year of pigeons and other birds trapped by netting.

Trained raptors (birds of prey) have been used in some areas to drive away pigeons. These birds are trained to chase, but not kill pigeons and can successfully drive a flock elsewhere. In some enclosed sites, such as railway stations, the use of raptors can be extremely effective. However, this method is expensive and will only work on a specific site, so is unsuitable for large areas.

The use of falconry to control pigeons involves pigeons being caught and killed. Nottingham City Council tried this method in 1999 but the sight of pigeons being attacked by the bird resulted in public distress, lots of negative publicity and cost thousands of pounds, whilst having no overall effect on pigeon numbers.

The problem with all deterrent methods is that the pigeons driven away from one site will simply re-locate to another, equally unsuitable site. Therefore, this form of control has limited use unless employed in conjunction with other methods.

Artificial Nesting Sites

Dovecotes or nesting boxes can be constructed and installed for a low, one-off cost. Once the pigeons have been encouraged to roost in these sites, their eggs can be collected regularly and destroyed. This is a simple, fast and very effective way to reduce pigeon numbers. It is also humane, as no killing is involved. Another advantage of dovecotes or nesting boxes is that they provide a way to move pigeon flocks away from sites where they are considered a nuisance to sites where they will pose no problems. Designated feeding areas can then be set up for public use.

Public Education Campaigns

The only effective long-term method of reducing pigeon populations is to manipulate their environment in such a way that they can no longer eat or roost easily. Each breeding pair can produce up to ten chicks per year if they have an abundant food supply, but if available food is reduced, their breeding rate slows down and can even stop altogether.

Large numbers of people regularly feed pigeons in the belief that they are caring for the birds. Litter also provides an abundant food supply to pigeons in towns and cities. As the mortality rate of adult pigeons is so low, there is strong competition for food and breeding sites.

Pigeon overpopulation is caused by large quantities of food being provided by the public. Therefore, it is essential to educate people to either stop feeding pigeons or to do so in designated areas near artificial nesting sites.

In Basel, Pigeon Action embarked on a campaign to convince the public that feeding pigeons harms them, as it causes overpopulation. They produced leaflets and posters and distributed them widely. These featured pictures of baby pigeons infected by diseases and pushed the point that overcrowding is bad for pigeons as well as people.

A successful publicity campaign will result in a large reduction in people feeding pigeons and will impose a very effective limit to their population size. Sheffield City Council produced colour leaflets which explained clearly to people why they should stop feeding pigeons. Leaflets such as these, together with signs in the relevant places should ensure that the message gets through.

Case studies

Nottingham City Hospital

Following a visit from Guy Merchant of PICAS in May 2000, the hospital suspended lethal culling of pigeons.

An on-site pest controller was employed, who proofed many sensitive areas and installed nest boxes on several large flat roofs which were heavily populated by pigeons. These were made from recycled staff lockers. The pigeons were then provided with food, water and nesting materials near the boxes in order to encourage the birds to roost there. The pest-controller visited these roosting sites daily in order to remove eggs. Hatchlings were left alone.

The result: “The impact on the trust has been dramatic. In less than a year, the bird population has reduced by an estimated 50%. The cost of cleaning fouling has also reduced significantly.” Statement made in March 2001 by Clive Young, Environmental Services Manager at Nottingham City Hospital NHS Trust.

Barking and Dagenham District Council

As a result of public pressure, this Council decided to explore alternatives to culling pigeons. A colour leaflet was produced which urged the public not to feed pigeons and to dispose of food litter properly.

Council properties, including high-rise flats were proofed in order to reduce the potential breeding sites available to the pigeons. In July 2000 a dovecote was opened in the park which had been identified as the main public feeding site. This generated a lot of very positive publicity.

This Council took some very positive action to reduce pigeon numbers, but their dovecote was designed with aesthetic appearance as the priority, rather than its attractiveness to pigeons and many nearby buildings were not proofed.

Railtrack

Railtrack abandoned culling at London mainline stations in 1999 and began to employ the services of a trained raptor and handler, as advised by PICAS. This proved extremely successful and other train operators are now exploring this option.

Summary

Lethal control of pigeons by culling has been consistently shown to have no long-term effect on population levels. It is also expensive, inhumane and can result in very negative publicity. Extensive research and recent case studies have shown that the use of artificial breeding sites, combined with egg removal, proofing of buildings and public education campaigns can result in a long term reduction of pigeon populations by as much as 50% within months. These control methods are humane, cost-efficient and will generate positive publicity.

The feral pigeon is descended from the rock dove whose natural habitat is cliffs and caves. Large buildings and statues offer pigeons roosting sites which closely resemble these. This, combined with their resourcefulness, tendency to scavenge and lack of territorial aggression has led to large flocks of pigeons living in close proximity with people.

Although it is widely believed that pigeons carry and spread diseases to people, there is very little evidence that pigeons jeopardise human health. (3) Pigeon lung disease is an allergic reaction which affects some people who have prolonged contact with pigeons in confined places. It is easily treated if diagnosed early and can be avoided by wearing a mask if in contact with pigeons in a dusty environment.

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City fights pigeons with hallucinogenic drug

Pigeon Patrol — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 22:43:06 +0000

In a messy but unsuccessful war against pigeons on city buildings, Denver has tried highfrequency sirens, electrified toe strips and an anti-perching product called Hot Foot. But now city officials think they finally have found a weapon that works: hallucinogenic chemicals.

For the past year, the city has been feeding pigeons corn laced with a substance called Avitrol, which sends birds into convulsions, sometimes fatal, that scare away the rest of the flock.

With so many pigeons on bad trips, city workers say it’s the first time in memory that people can walk without fear of plops from the ledges, windowsills and outcroppings of the ornate City and County Building and Greek Theater.

Hand-drawn funny cute illustration – Curious pigeons.

The acidity in pigeon droppings had become such a potent problem that the city is spending $100,000 this summer to power-wash bird scat from buildings around Civic Center.

“It got to the point where you felt like you needed ski goggles to look up at the City and County Building,” said John Hall, manager of public office buildings for Denver. “Pigeons are urban vermin.”

Though the same Avitrol chemical also is being used against pigeons at Coors Field, St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral and Rose Medical Center, not everyone is convinced it’s the No. 1 solution to the No. 2 problem.

Just a few blocks across Civic Center, state maintenance workers worry that Denver Mayor Wellington Webb merely is scattering pigeons from his building to do their business on the state Capitol.

And animal-rights activists are aghast.

“It takes 40 pigeons pooping all day in one place to equal what a dog leaves on my lawn in one drop,” said Catherine Hurlbutt, 87, who has rescued and nurtured hundreds of injured birds at her south Denver home. “You’re not supposed to say a bad word about dogs, but people think it’s OK to poison pigeons.”

When New York City residents started using Avitrol on pigeons, Grace Slick, the famed Jefferson Airplane singer of the ’60s drug anthem “White Rabbit,” protested to Mayor Rudy Giuliani in a letter.

“I have considerable experience on the subject of mind-altering drugs, and I can tell you that Avitrol is not your run-of-the-mill hallucinogen,” Slick wrote. “It causes violent shaking, trembling, thirst, nausea, convulsions, disorientation and a slow death. Wow, talk about a bad trip!”

Last year, the New York State Assembly passed a bill allowing cities to ban Avitrol, but Gov. George Pataki, heeding a request from Giuliani, vetoed the bill.

All the flap is over a 1-pound bird that was native to Europe but brought to North America in the 1600s.

Supporters call them rock doves, which mate for life and feed milk to their young, and note that their homing ancestors helped in World War II by transporting spy messages. Detractors liken them to rats and cockroaches that carry diseases and dive-bomb passers-by with fecal glop.

Denver has struggled for decades to keep Downtown pigeons under control. When workers put spikes on building ledges to keep pigeons from roosting, the birds simply built nests atop them and enjoyed air-cooled nests in the summer. When workers tried a chemical spread called Hot Foot, birds built new nests and enjoyed warmer roosts for the winter.

When world leaders visited Denver for the Summit of the Eight in 1997, city workers installed electrified wires atop ledges favored by pigeons at Civic Center’s outdoor Greek Theater. The wires suffered from frequent short-circuits.

High-frequency radio speakers were supposed to drive the pigeons batty, but the birds ended up perching atop them anyway.

City officials said their war against pigeons seemed lost – until Denver hired the Pigeon Man.

The latest owner of a 47-year-old family business called Bird Control, Doug Stewart said Avitrol is one of his most effective tools against pigeons. When he started working for Denver a year ago, the City and County Building was home to hundreds of pigeons.

But with a $250-a-month city contract, Stewart started sprinkling Avitrol-laced corn on the roof of city hall. Recently, Stewart scrambled across the roof of the four-story building with his monthly dosage of bait in his backpack.

While the rooftop view of the Rocky Mountains to the west and the state Capitol to the east was magnificent, Stewart was most proud of something he didn’t see.

There were few birds, or fresh droppings, anywhere.

So he laid down a few small piles of Avitrol-laced corn, which costs him $50 a pound, and talked about a job that has taken him across the rooftops of the city, from Lakeside Mall to the steeple at St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral – and some truly disgusting abandoned apartment buildings in-between.

“I get asked all the time: Am I killing pigeons?” Stewart said. “There’s no way in the world I want any dead pigeons. I want to keep them fat, happy and on the move. It’s good for my business.” According to the government-approved warning label, Avitrol is a “poison with flock-alarming properties, used for the control of feral pigeons in, on, or in the area of structures, feeding, nesting, loafing and roosting sites, in such a way that a part of the flock may react and frighten the rest away. Birds that react and alarm a flock usually die.”

Scientific studies show the chemical temporarily alters brain waves and throws the bird into spasms and convulsions. When an Ontario, Canada, environmental official banned the use of non-humane vertebrate pesticides in 1975, a team of University of Ottawa researchers concluded that Avitrol “appears to be humane based on scientific evidence.”

“Upon eating the active ingredient of Avitrol in a corncob base, the birds begin to flap wings, vocalize and convulse,” said the study led by pathologist Henry Roswell.

“Other birds seeing this activity in their colleagues become alarmed and fly away to another area.” Critics of the use of bird repellants such as Avitrol claim that their use merely shifts birds from one area to another.

“Avitrol is not intended to kill birds. However, some do die, although the numbers are minimal in comparison to the hundreds that make up the flock,” Roswell said.

Death-rate estimates range from 1 percent to 20 percent of pigeons consuming Avitrol.

Meanwhile, workers at the Colorado Capitol wonder whether the city is dropping its pigeon problem on the state. In the past year, state workers have installed five special anti-pigeon Plexiglas barriers – at a cost of $300 each – on ledges above the Capitol’s west steps. When told Denver has been using a chemical that may be moving city birds to the state Capitol, state central services director Rick Malinowski said, “Thanks a lot! We may have to retaliate.”

City workers fear the consequences. At the city’s Greek Theater, maintenance worker Ray Martinez set down his coffee cup one morning on an outdoor step before walking inside an office.

When he returned to his coffee cup a few minutes later, he saw something that jolted him awake.

“I was ready to take a sip and I looked down and thought, “Hey, what’s going on here? I take my coffee black!’
” Martinez said. “I was so mad I threw my cup at that bird.”

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Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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The people of Toronto are fed up with pigeons.

Pigeon Patrol — Thu, 19 Sep 2024 21:59:58 +0000

The people of Toronto are fed up with pigeons. The birds crowd around subway stations, overload balconies with poop, and build their flammable nests in hazardous places. The city has tried trapping and relocating them, scaring them away with falcons, and even debated imposing a feeding ban. Nothing has worked.

The latest tactic? Giving the birds food laced with birth control.

Toronto is far from the only city dealing with pigeon problems. Adaptable and prolific, Rock Pigeons are extremely common—and often despised. City health and sanitation departments caution that pigeon droppings can damage buildings and historic landmarks, and their nests can cause fires on train tracks. This has prompted culling, trapping, or poisoning programs, but pigeon numbers keep bouncing back, pushing some civic leaders to seek more creative solutions.

Now Toronto is placing its bet on a form of avian birth control called nicarbazin. Nearly a year ago, the animal control department deployed four feeders around the city that automatically dispense nicarbazin-infused wheat pellets at a set time each day. The pilot program aims to reduce the metropolitan pigeon population by 50 percent annually—and results are set for release later this summer.

Nicarbazin was originally developed in the 1950s to treat a poultry disease called coccidiosis. But the drug came with a curious side effect: It made hens lay infertile eggs. The compound pokes holes in the membrane around the yolk, and so the embryo can’t develop, says Christi Yoder, a former wildlife biologist who helped conduct early research on the contraceptive capabilities of nicarbazin in the early 2000s. The drug was first tested in the laboratory with chickens and domestic Mallards, and then later in the field on nuisance Canada Geese, both scenarios where nicarbazin performed quite well, Yoder says.

For pigeons, however, the results have been mixed. The drug has had some success, especially with smaller pigeon populations confined to areas like industrial lots or small towns. But the right conditions need to align for nicarbazin to do its job. Pigeons can be conditioned to return to the same places at the same time each day, but ensuring that the birds eat the necessary dose isn’t always guaranteed, especially when other food is available. And if a bird stops consuming the drug for a few days, its fertility will return to normal. “You gotta be taking this stuff consistently for it to work,” says Erick Wolf, CEO of Innolytics, LLC, which sells nicarbazin under the brand name OvoControl, including for Toronto’s pilot.

If a bird stops consuming the drug for a few days, its fertility will return to normal.

That fickleness makes nicarbazin especially challenging to use effectively in cities. A 2022 study in Barcelona found that, while the drug reduced some pigeon colonies by about 55 percent over 3 years, other colonies appeared unaffected. This is likely because of humans. In areas where people feed pigeons, the birds may not always eat the birth-control bait, says Carlos González-Crespo, the lead author of the paper who is currently a researcher at University of California Davis. A separate study on nicarbazin in Barcelona also found that the drug had little effect on the overall population of pigeons across the city, likely because of these confounding human factors.

Giving pigeons birth control also seems to merely stabilize populations rather than decrease them, says Nadia Xenakis, a biologist at BC SPCA who led a year-long study in 2019 on a pilot program in Vancouver. That’s because contraception impacts fertility but not survival. A pigeon’s typical lifespan is two to seven years, so bringing down the numbers solely using nicarbazin can be a waiting game, she says. And for the duration, feeders must be monitored to make sure that pigeons are eating enough for a proper dose and cleaned regularly so they don’t attract rats and other pests. (Nicarbazin poses little risk to those animals, Wolf says, because of its specific effect on bird eggs and its daily dosage requirement.)

Flock of Pigeons crowded on the floor outdoor landscape close up.

All of which raises the question: With its many uncertainties, is birth control the most effective way to reduce urban pigeon populations? The answer, experts agree, is no; stopping people from feeding the birds would likely have a bigger impact. “Many studies for urban pigeons are like, if you’re just reducing the food available to them, their populations will reduce by 50 percent before you even try contraceptives,” says Page Klug, a U.S. Department of Agriculture biologist who led a recent review paper on avian contraceptives.

The problem is that human behavior is difficult to manage. González-Crespo recalls how challenging it was to stop city residents from feeding pigeons for his study, since they thought that they were doing a good deed. In reality, feeding the birds can harm them, he says, by leading to overcrowding and unsanitary conditions.

Indeed, it was opposition to a feeding ban that ultimately led Toronto to try the approach the press has dubbed “planned pigeonhood.” Although the program’s impact won’t be clear until the summer, the city recently added a fifth birth control dispenser in a new location. Officials are also encouraging residents to seal off food sources and potential nesting nooks. Pigeon problems can’t be solved with contraceptives alone, González-Crespo says. “You cannot expect wonders from doing just one thing.”

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Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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The New York Pigeon: Behind the Feathers

Pigeon Patrol — Thu, 19 Sep 2024 21:50:59 +0000

The New York Pigeon is a photography book that reveals the unexpected beauty of the omnipresent pigeon as if Vogue magazine devoted its pages to birds, rather than fashion models. In spite of pigeons’ ubiquity in New York and other cities, we never really see them closely and know very little about their function in the urban ecosystem. This book brings to light the intriguing history, behavior and splendor of a bird that we frequently overlook.

The result of eight years of passionate inquiry is a photographic study of the birds’ power and allure (as seen on the cover of New York magazine and the New York Times). The dramatic, hyper-real individual studio portraits capture the personalities, expressiveness, glorious feather iridescence and deeply hued eyes. High-speed strobe photography illustrates pigeons’ graceful flight and dramatic wing movements (as featured in Audubon magazine).

While The New York Pigeon is primarily a photography book, it also tells the five-thousand-year story of the feral pigeon. Why are pigeons so successful in cities and not in the countryside? Why do they have such diverse plumage? How have pigeons adapted to survive on almost any food? Why are pigeons able to fly up to 500 miles per day but rarely do?

How did Harvard psychologist B.F. Skinner teach pigeons to do complicated tasks, from tracking missile targets to recognizing individual human faces? Why can pigeons see in the ultraviolet light spectrum and half of their brain is used for visual perception?

The New York Pigeon lovingly describes and illuminates the beauty of nature that is alive in our midst. With this book, the beautiful, savvy, graceful, kind pigeon will be invisible no more.

Andrew Garn is a native New Yorker who grew up surrounded by pigeons, he has been photographing, rehabilitating and observing Columba Livia for eight years. Since 2008, when he exhibited photographs, video installations and sculptures of pigeons at A.M. Richard Fine Art in Brooklyn, NY, he has continued to photograph them. Documenting the entire spectrum of development, including full-grown pigeons, newborns, babies and “squeakers”, he has grown to love these birds.

Mr. Garn is a fine art and editorial photographer whose work has been widely exhibited and appeared in the pages of numerous magazines including the New York Times Magazine, Fortune, Forbes, Interview, Vogue, Vibe, Time, Newsweek, Der Spiegel, French Photo, Elle Décor, New York and Bloomberg LP. He is also the recipient of grants from the New York State Council on the Arts, the Graham Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the J.M. Kaplan Fund, among others.

Singapore, Singapore – April 2, 2024. Pigeons standing on wire in Chinatown, Singapore

His previous books include Exit to Tomorrow: The History of the Future (Rizzoli, 2007), Subway Style: Architecture and Design of the NYC Subway (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, and the MTA 2005), winner of New York Society Book Award, The Houseboat Book (Rizzoli/Universe 2003), and Bethlehem Steel (Princeton Architectural Press 2000).

Emily S. Rueb is an editor for the New York Times metropolitan section. She writes regularly on avian subjects and was the creator of Bird Week and the “Hawk Cam” which chronicled the lives of a red-tailed hawk family in Washington Square Park.

Rita McMahon is the founding director of New York City’s only wildlife rehabilitation facility the Wild Bird Fund. The non- profit facility, operated by

volunteers and vet science trainees helps over 4,500 injured birds per year.

Pigeon Patrol

Canada’s top wholesaler for bird deterrent products for twelve consecutive years.

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