Pigeon & Bird
Control Products
One bedazzled pigeon will live to shine another day after getting lost last week.
The pigeon was wearing a flight suit with rhinestones when he was found on a woman’s back porch in Phoenix, Arizona. The bird was then taken to a local rescue called Fallen Feathers, which knew he had to have an owner because of his fancy suit.
It turned out the pigeon, named Olive, had flown out of Marlette Fernando’s car window a few days earlier.
The rescue started posting photos of the bird, while local news reporters tried to help locate his owner.
“I had a friend on Instagram send me a link to one of the news channels,” Fernando told KPHO. “He was freaking out. He was like, ‘You’re not going to believe this.’ Then I click on the link, I saw that Olive was pretty much everywhere online on [the] news.”
The bird is now back home.
About 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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
A devastated pigeon fancier has recalled watching fire engulf his pigeon shed that left around 70 birds dead.
Stephen Salmon, 59, was on the phone when his neighbour started banging on his front door in Trowbridge, Cardiff, saying his pigeon loft was on fire.
The blaze on Tuesday had spread from next door causing the 40-foot long building to catch fire.
Dad Stephen, who has raced pigeons since he was 11 years old, said: “It was absolutely devastating. I was here with my friend at about 4.30pm and he said someone had lit a fire and I should get the washing in.
“It wasn’t big then so I didn’t think anymore of it.”
But around two hours later his neighbour was banging on the door saying the pigeon loft had caught fire.
Stephen said: “I ran into the garden and into the shed to try and save my stock birds.
“But it was just too much. They had to drag me out of there – I didn’t like seeing them die like that.
“The fire brigade came but it was too late, they had all perished.”
Out of around 120 pigeons Stephen had in the shed, around 70 were killed in the fire.
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service sent two crews to the scene, and said the cause of the fire was accidental.
Stephen said: “What is most upsetting about it is my stock birds because over the last 10 years I have built it up and spent thousands, and you can’t replace that.
“My kids paid £600 for two birds for me once and they perished.”
Stephen, who is part of the Llanrumney Royal British Legion pigeon club, said the total loss amounted to around £10,000.
The pigeon loft is currently cordoned off and will be removed by the Cardiff Community housing association.
Stephen praised the quick response of the fire service and said he was “most grateful” for their help.
A fire service spokeswoman said they received reports of a fire at a property in Trowbridge at 6.28pm.
Two crews, from Roath and Cardiff Central, attended the scene.
They confirmed a pigeon loft was damaged and said the crews extinguished the fire.
About 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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
In January, Broadsheet reported on one of Melbourne’s most inspiring residents – the indomitable Parkdale pigeon.
Since at least October 2016 the pigeon has defied the efforts of Public Transport Victoria cleaners to remove its nest on top of an LCD screen at Parkdale Station.
The pig-headed bird has returned time and again to rebuild following the ruthless destruction of its nest, and has now given birth to two new baby chicks.
Pigeons usually stay with the same partner for life, and the randy little critters have been known to give birth up to six times a year, so it’s hard to say how many chicks have been raised at the Parkdale Station nest.
Some call them grey sky demons, but to others they’re a symbol of endurance and perseverance. Keep doing your thing, Parkdale Pigeon. Stick it to the man with your pile of sticks.
See the dedicated work of pigeon correspondent Michael Bell below.
About 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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
A law prohibiting the deliberate feeding of eagles, ravens, crows and seagulls is moving forward following Thursday’s Ketchikan City Council meeting.
The council also approved a memorandum of agreement with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers adding $8.50-per-hour to the base wage for journeyman metermen and electricians.
The bird-baiting ordinance passed in first reading. Two people spoke in opposition during public comment. Martha Thomas is co-owner of Sourdough Tours, which started baiting eagles at its property near The Plaza mall this summer.
Thomas said the ordinance starts the city down the wrong path. It began with a complaint about eagles.
“Now you guys drafted this ordinance. You’ve included seagulls, ravens and crows,” she said. “But again you haven’t talked about the pigeon. My neighbor didn’t like me feeding the pigeons so are you saying he can go up to you guys and say, ‘You know what? Let’s do an ordinance against the pigeons. You know what, I don’t like my neighbor. She’s got too much garbage in her house, let’s do an ordinance against that.’”
After Sourdough Tours started eagle baiting, residents in the nearby Cedar Point condominiums complained to the city about increased eagle feces; and others expressed concern about safety.
That and worry over “copycat” tours adding to the problem prompted the council to move forward with an ordinance. It’s based on one adopted in Homer, and calls for a $500 fine for each violation.
During council discussion, the only member to speak against the ordinance was Julie Isom.
“I hate the idea that a company is actually feeding the eagles for profit, but I’m not going to support a law against it,” she said.
The bird-baiting ordinance passed in first reading 6-1 with Isom voting no. It will come back for a second vote.
Also Thursday, the council heard from city employees who asked that raises for some Ketchikan Public Utilities employees be extended to all city and KPU staff. City employees submitted a letter and petition with that formal request.
Public Works Department employee Clayton Hancock addressed the council.
“The issues of competitiveness in the job market and retention of skilled labor are problems that are citywide, not exclusive to one department as highlighted by the fact that there are more than 20 positions vacant throughout the city,” he said. “The city council has informed us they want to commission another wage study before addressing the issue at hand. However, an exception was made for power linemen. The employees are requesting that the city council treat all employees the same.”
During council discussion later, members agreed that the piecemeal approach is not ideal. Here’s Mark Flora.
“Not to say that these folks aren’t worth their bump, (but) we had a room full of people who made it pretty clear that the way this process is unfolding is exactly the kind of thing that kills morale and drives wedges between people,” he said.
Flora also expressed concern about how to pay for wage increases.
But, the council unanimously approved the MOA. With that wage increase, they hope to attract and retain workers. In mid-August, the council approved a $2-per-hour wage increase for KPU journeymen linemen and apprentices, for similar reasons.
The council also held a public hearing Thursday on a community development grant for Women In Safe Homes to potentially take over and renovate the former Ketchikan Regional Youth Facility. Several people spoke in favor of that proposal.
The hearing is a required part of the state’s process to qualify for the grant.
About 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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
Australian readers – and enthusiastic bird-watchers who have visited Australia – may well be familiar with the crested pigeon (Ocyphaps lophotes), an attractive little bird common across the southern half of the continent.
There are two things distinctive about the species. The first, not surprisingly, is the prominent crest on its head. The second is the loud, high-pitched, repetitive whistling sound it makes when it flies.
Ornithologists have long been perplexed about the origin of the noise, which is audible from a considerable distance away, because it is does not emanate from the bird’s beak.
Now however, a trio of researchers from the Australian National University in Canberra have solved the mystery. The noise is produced by a highly modified wing feather.
In a paper published in the journal Current Biology, Trevor Murray, Jochen Zeil and Robert Magrath reveal that the crested pigeon has a very unusual eighth primary wing feather which produces high note when the bird starts to fly.
The researchers acknowledge that noise-making feathers are not uncommon among the world’s bird species, and some research estimates they evolved independently more that 70 times.
However, Murray and his colleagues are the first team to demonstrate that the adaptation, in crested pigeons at least, is specifically a means of non-verbal communication.
The pigeons use the noise produced by the modified feather as an alarm signal, warning other birds of the presence of predators. The sound changes in accordance with wing beat frequency, increasing in pitch as the flight urgency develops.
To make their finding, the team recorded the sound made by the oscillating eighth primary feather – a tone at 2.9 kilohertz – and played it back to birds in conditions where no other possible danger cues were present. When the sound was made, the crested pigeons all took flight.
A control experiment using noises produced by the seventh and ninth flight feathers did not produce the same results.
Murray and his colleagues note that non-verbal noise by birds was mentioned by Charles Darwin in his book on sexual selection. He called it “instrumental music” but made no suggestion about its possible purpose.
“Our results therefore indicate, nearly 150 years after Darwin’s book,” they write, “that modified feathers can be used for non-vocal communication, and they reveal an intrinsically reliable alarm signal.”
About 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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
The 2018-19 general upland game bird hunting season will open in mid-September for several species in specific zones around the state, providing hunters with many opportunities to bring home some delicious table fare for the upcoming holiday season.
September openers include quail (Zone Q1 opens for mountain quail on Sept. 8, and Zone Q2 will be open for all quail on Sept. 29) sooty and ruffed grouse (general season will open in various northern and eastern counties on Sept. 8); white-tailed ptarmigan (which will open Sept. 8); and band-tailed pigeon (the northern hunt zonewill open Sept. 15).
Please note that nonlead ammunition is now required when hunting on California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Wildlife Areas and Ecological Reserves. As of July 1, 2016, the nonlead shot requirement is extended to include the take of upland game birds with a shotgun statewide, with the exceptions of dove, quail and snipe, or any upland game bird taken on a licensed game bird club. Please plan accordingly. For more information, please see the CDFW nonlead ammunition page.
Zone maps and information about daily bag limits and possession limits for each game bird species can be found on the CDFW Upland Game Bird Hunting webpage. Additional information about each species can be found below.
Quail
Quail are some of the state’s most popular native game birds. There are three species of quail found in California: California quail, mountain quail and Gambel’s quail. California quail (the state bird) are common and widespread throughout the state in low to mid-elevation brushy habitats with good cover and abundant food. Mountain quail are found in higher elevation habitats. Gambel’s quail are California’s most desert-adapted species and are found in the very arid lands of southeastern California.
The early mountain quail-only season starts on Sept. 8 in Zone Q1and continues through Oct. 19, covering much of the mountainous region of northern and eastern California. On Sept. 29, the early general quail season opens in Zone Q2 for all quail species in several north coast counties. The remainder of the state will open to quail hunting on Oct. 20 and extend through Jan. 27, 2019. Finally, an additional two-day early hunt season will be open on Oct. 6-7 in Mojave National Preserve for hunters with junior hunting licenses.
For all quail species, the daily bag limit is 10 and the possession limit is triple the daily bag. Hunters can still use lead shot for quail until July 1, 2019 unless hunting on CDFW Wildlife Areas or Ecological Reserves.
All three native species of quail are characterized by high reproductive potential associated with adequate and well-timed winter and early spring precipitation. Northern California experienced increased precipitation this spring, benefitting quail habitat and productivity. Hunters should experience good populations of quail this fall.
All three species of quail are most active in the early morning and later afternoon and move in large coveys throughout the day. Quail have distinctive calls that can provide clues to the birds’ location. Quail are more apt to run than flush, making them a more challenging game bird to hunt. Hunting dogs can be useful for locating, flushing and retrieving birds in the field.
Quail can be successfully hunted with legal gauge shotguns. A modified or improved cylinder choke is recommended to avoid damage to the bird. Because of the dense brush habitats where they are usually hunted, downed quail can be hard to find. Despite this challenge, CDFW reminds hunters that wasting game is both unethical and illegal.
CDFW estimates that in the 2016-2017 season, 51,281 hunters bagged 320,913 quail over the course of 184,541 hunter-days. Not surprisingly, California quail is the most frequently bagged of the three species.
Forest Grouse
California has two species of native forest-dwelling grouse: the sooty grouse and the ruffed grouse. Sooty grouse occur in the Sierra Nevada, Cascade and northern coast ranges while the ruffed grouse is restricted to the northwestern part of the state. The general hunting season for both species extends from Sept. 8 to Oct. 8 this year. For sooty and ruffed grouse, the daily bag limit is two (both of one species or mixed species) and possession limit is triple the daily bag.
Although they are fairly large birds, grouse camouflage themselves well and generally hold tight to their location even when hunters are nearby. They flush quickly and fly off in a zigzag pattern, requiring a quick and accurate response from a hunter. Dogs are useful companions to help hunters find, flush and retrieve bagged grouse. Nonlead shot is required for all grouse statewide.
Ptarmigan
The white-tailed ptarmigan is a non-native grouse that was introduced by CDFW to the Sierra Nevada in the early 1970s. This is the smallest species of ptarmigan and the only one found in California. They inhabit the high elevation alpine habitats at low densities from Sonora Pass in Tuolumne County to Kings Canyon National Park.
Hunting these birds can be challenging because of the high elevation and steep terrain. Hunting is permitted from Sept. 8-16. The daily bag limit is two per day and the possession limit is two per season. Hunters should prepare for difficult hiking conditions and be familiar with the area before heading out after this game bird. Nonlead shot is required for hunting ptarmigan.
Band-tailed Pigeon
The band-tailed pigeon is California’s only native pigeon and is a close relative of the extinct passenger pigeon. They look similar to the introduced domestic or rock pigeons that frequent urban areas. Band-tailed pigeons are often found in mountainous terrain throughout the state, using coniferous forests as well as oak woodlands, but populations are migratory and movements can be unpredictable. The federal Harvest Information Program (HIP) estimates that in 2017, 2,500 hunters spent 5,600 days afield in California and harvested 5,600 band-tailed pigeons.
The northern California hunt zone season runs from Sept 15-23. The daily bag limit is two and the possession limit is triple the daily bag. The southern hunt zone does not open until December. Nonlead shot is required for band-tailed pigeons statewide.
CDFW reminds hunters that an upland game bird stamp is required for licensed adult hunters (18 years and older) but not for hunters with a valid junior hunting license. A HIP validation is also required to hunt band-tailed pigeons.
About 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 Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
