The strange tale of the bird ladies of Sellafield

by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 19, 2024 | Bird Netting

Growing up, I loved hearing Tom Lehrer sing “Poisoning the Pigeons in the Park.” Not that I wished harm on the innocent birds. In fact I was something of an aspiring birder at the time. I just enjoyed Lehrer’s dark humor.

But the Sellafield nuclear reprocessing facility, on England’s northwest coast, made that song a reality. Sellafield was poisoning pigeons routinely with its radioactive releases. It was just that, for a while, no one knew it.

Not until, that is, two middle-aged twin sisters, living in the nearby small town of Seascale, began overpopulating their garden with pigeons. Jane and Barrie Robinson fed and cared for the birds out of love. They called their place the Singing Surf pigeon sanctuary.

But the neighbors weren’t so happy about it. Adhering to to the usual pigeon cliché about “flying rats”, and fearing a health hazard from all the droppings, they called authorities on the bird ladies of Sellafield. And the strange tale began to unfold.

It was February 1998, and an inspector from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) came to the Robinson home. Concerned that the birds might be radioactive, given their habit of roosting on the Sellafield roofs, he collected and culled 150 pigeons, who were taken to the reprocessing center for testing. The findings sparked alarming headlines.

“Sellafield scare over radioactive pigeons”, blared The Independent, a national broadsheet newspaper at the time (now online only.) The article said that “a radiation scare” was underway and that “urgent analysis of the dead birds is being carried out.”

The Robinson pigeons showed “significant” levels of radiation. The rattled RSPCA inspector was tested for his own exposure and the group said that in future its staff would wear hazmat suits when handling animals in the Sellafield area.

Another 200 birds were culled and eventually 2,000. The Robinson’s garden was deemed a radioactive waste site and had to be excavated and removed for disposal, taken to the nearby Drigg radioactive waste dump, along with the tarmac driveway. All the garden furniture went, too. Eventually the UK government was forced to issue a ban on handling or eating pigeons within a 10-mile radius of Sellafield.

On Seascale beach there are plenty of warnings about dogs, but none about the Sellafield radioactive contamination there. (Photo: Linda Pentz Gunter)

Of course, the pigeon scare was not the first time radiation exposure had raised concerns in the region. Cumbrians Opposed to a Radioactive Environment had long been watchdogging Sellafield and calling out its inadequate response to accidents and leaks at the facility, as well as the harm it was doing to health and the environment.

The health impacts had been brought into stark focus by a 1991 study by MJ Gardner, who found elevated rates of leukemia among local children.

Gardner noted that “Cohort studies indicated that the excess of leukemia was concentrated among children born in Seascale and was not found among those moving in after birth and suggested that any causal factors may be acting before birth or very early in life.”

The study’s most startling revelation was a connection between the “raised incidence of leukemia in children and father’s recorded external radiation dose during work at Sellafield before his child’s conception.”

But back to the pigeon story and fast forward to June 2, 2010, when it goes from bizarre to worse.

Warning Poisonous Gas Dead Bird Symbol Sign, Vector Illustration, Isolate On White Background Label. EPS10

A 52-year old man called Derrick Bird — yes, that was his name — went on a mass shooting rampage. This was an unusual event in the UK then and now. The first person Bird killed was his own twin brother, David. Then he killed another twin, Jane Robinson, one of the two bird ladies of Sellafield.

Before he was done, Bird had slaughtered 12 people, and wounded 11, before taking his own life. Other than the killing of his twin, the victims appeared to have been chosen at random.

According to a BBC story on the murders, “The coffin of animal lover Jane Robinson was adorned with a pigeon made of dyed grey chrysanthemums and birds’ feathers.”

Bird kills bird woman whose birds were killed….it doesn’t get much stranger.

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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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Boca Raton pigeon problem is a mess

by Pigeon Patrol | Sep 19, 2024 | Bird Netting

BOCA RATON — In a community proud of its well-off residents, fancy shops and upscale resorts, pigeon droppings outside City Hall are taken seriously.

City workers have used pressure sprayers to wash the droppings away and tried electricity and a recording of a hawk screeching to scare off the pigeons, but the birds — and their mess — remain.

“The pigeons hang out on the light fixtures and the droppings get on the sidewalk right in front of the front door,” Assistant City Manager George Brown said.

In their first attempt to get rid of the birds, workers rigged 12-volt wires around the City Hall’s windows, where the pigeons like to roost. That’s not enough electricity to kill the birds, but workers hoped it would make them uncomfortable enough to move, which they did — a few feet away to some light fixtures.

This month, workers installed a speaker on the roof, hoping that recordings of screeching hawks would drive them away. The pigeons, in their own way, just laughed.

“They just decided they like it here for some reason,” Brown said.

Tim Brown, the education director at a nearby wildlife hospital, said the common pigeon — which is actually the African rock dove — lives on stone outcroppings in the wild, making them perfect city dwellers.

“Architecturally, we build all these wonderful habitats for pigeons,” he said. To get rid of the birds, he suggests chicken wire, which would be unsightly, or installing strips studded with needles.

But city officials have other ideas.

“Poison corn,” said Bob DiChristopher, deputy director of municipal services. After a moment’s pause, he added: “That’s just a joke.”

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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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Where Did All the Pigeons Go?

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

Where Did All the Pigeons Go?

People have been commenting on the disappearance of city pigeons for several years, and not just in Portland.

Pigeons? Downtown? Are you feeling feverish, Karrie? Everyone knows there’s never been anything but crows downtown. Pigeons, indeed! Next you’ll be telling me Oceania hasn’t always been at war with Eurasia.

Just kidding! People besides you have been commenting on the disappearance of city pigeons for several years, and not just in Portland: Seattle, San Francisco, Philadelphia and even New York City have all seen dropoffs in the birds’ population. Estimates of the decline nationwide range from 30% to 46% since the 1970s.

What’s going on? Experts point to many factors: modern construction trends that provide fewer nesting spaces, pollution that taxes the birds’ respiratory systems and contaminates food sources, diseases like avian influenza, human activities like trapping or unhealthy feeding, and even climate change, which may disrupt the pigeons’ ability to find food and shelter.

In other words, they don’t know. A popular theory on message boards is that pigeons are being outcompeted by wily crows. This jibes with the anecdotal ob

servation that crows seem to be becoming more numerous, at least in Portland. But I ask you: If crows are so perfectly adapted, why haven’t they been Portland’s dominant avian scavenger this whole time? It seems likelier that pigeons are tanking for their own reasons; crows are just seizing the opportunity.

Still, that does invite the question: Why did pigeons beat out crows in the first place? Well, baby birds need protein to grow. Adult pigeons have the ability to produce a high-protein secretion, called “crop milk,” to feed them. This guaranteed protein supply lets pigeons breed year round. Crows, which have to scare up protein wherever they can, only breed in the spring, when protein-filled bugs and worms are plentiful.

That said, crop milk doesn’t seem to be helping pigeons much now. Perhaps someday we’ll learn why. In the meantime, I can’t help noticing that pigeons’ 1970s heyday seems to coincide nicely with the peregrine falcon’s DDT-fueled near-extinction. Since then, our local population of falcons (a major pigeon predator) has been steadily increasing, even as pigeons’ numbers have waned. I’m not saying it’s a conspiracy, but if somebody catches a crow and a falcon working together to paint the pigeons out of some historical photo—well, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

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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 accused of spying for China freed in India after 8-month detention

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

Pigeon accused of spying for China freed in India after 8-month detention

A pigeon is released from an animal hospital in Mumbai on Jan. 30 after being held for eight months on suspicion of spying for China. (Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times/AP)

A pigeon held for eight months on suspicion of spying for China has been released after Indian authorities determined it was no avian agent of espionage, but a disoriented Taiwanese racing bird that had lost its ay.

Police found the pigeon near a port in Mumbai in May with two metal rings tied to its leg and what looked like Chinese writing on the underside of its wings. For eight months, the alleged secret agent was held in custody, first by police and then by the city’s Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Petit Hospital for Animals, which confirmed local media reports about the pigeon and its origin.

Mumbai police told The Washington Post that after “deep and proper inquiry and investigations,” they did not find “any suspicious material or fact” associated with the pigeon. It was released last week and is in fine health, according to the hospital.

The animal rights nonprofit PETA helped secure the bird’s release. “Like all birds, pigeons should be free to soar in the skies, forage for food, and raise their young as a couple,” PETA India Director Poorva Joshipura said in a statement, which noted that pigeons demonstrate self-awareness and intelligence.

Experts say the bird probably got lost during a race off the coast of Taiwan and may have hitched a ride on a boat to make the roughly 3,000-mile journey.

“A racing pigeon can fly for up to 1,000 kilometers [about 620 miles] in a day, but for it to fly to India, it had to make stops,” said Yang Tsung-te, the head of the Taiwanese racing pigeon trading platform Nice Pigeon, adding that some racing pigeons from the island have made it as far as the United States and Canada.

Alabama racing pigeon ends mysterious trip across the Pacific in Australian man’s backyard

The espionage allegations follow concern in the United States last year over Chinese spy balloons and amid continued tensions between China and India, two nuclear powers that share a contested border and have been vying for influence in the region.

It’s also not the first time Indian authorities wrongfully locked up a pigeon for alleged spying. A similar incident in 2015 sparked amusement in India and Pakistan, and in 2020, police briefly held a Pakistani fisherman’s pigeon after it flew over the countries’ heavily militarized border.

Although the allegations might sound absurd in an age of satellites and cyberespionage, pigeons do have a history of use in reconnaissance operations.

During World War I, Germany deployed pigeons with cameras strapped onto their chests, and in World War II, Allied forces used the birds to exchange secret messages, according to the National Audubon Society, an American nonprofit organization dedicated to bird conservation. Because pigeons are a “common species,” the camera-equipped birds could conceal their intelligence collection “among the activities of thousands of other birds,” according to the CIA, which also developed such a camera.

According to the International Spy Museum in Washington, pigeons were “distinguished by their speed and ability to return home in any weather.”

Those same qualities make pigeons good for racing — a much more common use of the birds these days. During races, pigeons are released sometimes hundreds of miles from home and owners wait for them to return.

Pigeon racing in Iraq: Pricey birds, obsessive owners and, alas, stone-throwing bandits

Colin Jerolmack, a professor at New York University and the author of “The Global Pigeon,” said it was “quite comical” that Indian authorities saw Chinese writing and assumed espionage, especially considering the enormous popularity of pigeon racing there and the fact that China has many “more sophisticated” tools than a pigeon.

Once dubbed “the poor man’s horse racing,” it is becoming big business, he said, noting that winning pigeons can fetch tens of thousands of dollars at auction — or much more.

In Taiwanese competitions, rather than racing over land, pigeons are brought out to sea and released 124 miles to 310 miles offshore, said Ya-Ching Huang, a researcher at Boston University who has studied Taiwan’s pigeon racing culture. Because of this format, “it’s not uncommon for pigeons to end up landing in neighboring countries or on boats that take them even further away,” she said.

While pigeon fanciers maintain that the birds receive great care during training, animal rights groups and ethicists have long criticized the sport. According to PETA, millions of pigeons die every year in Taiwan’s seasonal races, with many drowning from exhaustion, dying in storms or being killed for being too slow.

In racing and espionage, “pigeons are used as tools for human ends,” said Jan Deckers, a researcher at Newcastle University in Britain who studies animal ethics. “No pigeon chooses to release themselves a long way away from their lofts and to carry messages, tags or rings back home.”

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.

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

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/

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Rock pigeons should not be overlooked. Here’s why

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

Rock pigeons should not be overlooked. Here’s why

I headed out to Wells Harbor this weekend to see what birds were there: Who was back from the south, who was migrating through and whether anyone was changing plumage as their mating season ramps up?

Instead, I was completely distracted (in a good way) by some common pigeons. They were all over the dock: cooing, strutting around, flying from one perch to another. There were pale gray ones, dark ones, and checkered ones. I had been thinking about seasonal plumage changes.

Rock pigeon with checkered plumage at Wells Harbor in Maine Sunday, March 31, 2024.

For example, just this weekend brilliant yellow male goldfinches showed up at my feeders. They’ve been coming all winter wearing their winter drab colors, now that it is time to mate, the males are getting all fancy. The loons at the harbor were also showing signs of change, transitioning from subdued, faded blacks and whites of winter to their summer colors — striking black and white spotted backs with contrasting white breast. What was up with the pigeons? Were some in breeding plumage? Is there a difference between male and females? Were the dark ones juveniles, as is common with some of the local gulls?

A natural adult rock pigeon at Wells Harbor in Maine Sunday, March 31, 2024.

I’ve tended to write pigeons off when I go birding. After all, they are an introduced species, the descendants of domestic pigeons brought over from Europe back in the 1600s. Rock pigeons (Columba livia) are thought to be one of the first domesticated birds, raised for both their meat and their message-carrying ability. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology “Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets and Egyptian hieroglyphics suggest that pigeons were domesticated more than 5,000 years ago. In fact, these birds have such a long history with humans that it’s impossible to tell where the species’ original range was.” Those domesticated pigeons were carried everywhere that humans went, and many escaped, establishing feral populations on every continent except Antarctica.

Aan adult dark rock pigeon at Wells Harbor in Maine Sunday, March 31, 2024.

Spring was definitely in the air at the harbor. Rock pigeons have been known to raise over six broods per year (these are serious breeders!) so I imagine these pigeons were in the throes of mating season. Some of the pigeons were puffing themselves up and strutting around in circles. These were presumably males-displaying to court females: standing tall, inflating their crops, fanning their tails, and strutting in a circle around the female while cooing in their most alluring manner. This will progress to mutual preening (referred to as nibbling) followed by the male regurgitating some seeds or liquid and feeding the female, one of the final behaviors prior to mating. While rock pigeons are monogamous and mate for life, I think of these displays as our date nights (minus the regurgitation). As with long-married couples, these displays strengthen their bond and indicate readiness to mate.

A rock pigeon strutting over to its mate at Wells Harbor in Maine Sunday, March 31, 2024.

It makes sense that they are nesting at the harbor. In the wild they nest on cliffs (hence the name rock pigeon). In cities and towns they prefer window ledges, traffic lights, roofs and under bridges. We don’t have skyscrapers, but we do have docks and rocky outcroppings.

Pigeons do so well around humans because they are prolific breeders, we build structures that they like to nest on, and they like the food that we grow-they like all sorts of seed crops and, of course, they like breadcrumbs. They are also unbelievable navigators and flyers (one reason they made great messenger birds). Even blindfolded, pigeons can find their way home by sensing the Earth’s magnetic field. They might also use sound, and smell-this is currently being investigated. Without a blindfold they can also use cues based upon the position of the sun (allaboutbirds.com/Rock_Pigeon). They can maintain speeds of 40 mph or more for long periods of time (another reason they made great messenger birds). Rock pigeons are also acrobatic flyers-watch them zoom around a city park, or effortlessly fly between the pilings under a dock-these birds can give most predators a run for their money.

An adult dark rock pigeon at Wells Harbor in Maine Sunday, March 31, 2024.

Those color variations that first caught my eye are just color variations. Pigeons come in a variety of plumages that have nothing to do with gender or age (but probably something to do with the breeding of domesticated birds), so looking for mating displays this time of year is the best way to distinguish males from females. Now that I know more about them, next time I am out birding I’m definitely going to pay more attention to the pigeons.

Susan Pike, a researcher and an environmental sciences and biology teacher at Dover High School, welcomes your ideas for future column topics. Send your photos and observations to spike3116@gmail.com. Read more of her Nature News columns at Seacoastonline.com and pikes-hikes.com, and follow her on Instagram @pikeshikes.

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.

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

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/

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Meet the N.L. couple finding happiness in pet pigeons

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

Meet the N.L. couple finding happiness in pet pigeons

Pet pigeons may be unconventional, but there’s room for love and acceptance

Whether wandering around the Avalon Mall or walking along the harbour during cruise ship season, partners Matthew and Jay Howlett regularly draw curious glances from passersby.

Proudly perched on either of their shoulders is a pigeon wearing pants, and chances are his name is Mr. Earl Grey.

“We get stopped every two seconds,” said Jay Howlett. “[People ask] ‘Is that real?’ Of course he’s real. He’s a gentleman. Look at him.”

Matthew and Jay Howlett are pigeon fanciers who take care of injured and rehabilitated pigeons that need some tender, loving care. Alongside their four pigeons and two diamond doves, the Howletts’ St. John’s apartment is also home to a corn snake, a pumpkin patch tarantula, an African fat tail gecko and a Syrian hamster.

Tiny pants, big hearts: why pigeons make the perfect pets for this St. John’s couple

Jay and Matthew Howlett were already into exotic pets when they discovered the colourful world of pigeon fanciers. The couple began taking in injured birds as pets, and now their apartment is home to a handful of pigeons with big personalities.

Their journey with the small-billed birds began in 2021 when Jay’s friend in Australia showed them their own flock via video calls. Surprised by the notion of pigeon ownership, Jay started researching to find out more about the world of the feathered creatures. What soon followed was a deeper understanding of where the birds — often seen pecking at the ground, eating grit and sand — came from and of their untold stories.

“It turns out that we’ve had them for about 8,000 to 10,000 years in worldwide history. Like, they’ve been with people that long. We’ve had them in World War I and World War II, so they’re veterans. A lot of people own them for racing, which personally I don’t condone. I do find it [to be] cruelty,” said Jay Howlett.

“But the coolest thing in history that I found was that they just co-existed with us. We use their eggs. We use their poop for fertilizer. Unfortunately, they’re on our city streets because of us.”

A man in a beanie stands indoors in a mall with a pigeon on a leash and in a diaper on his shoulder

According to the Howletts, cats and dogs may be mainstream pets, but keeping pigeons can open up a new companionship experience. (Nabila Qureshi/CBC)

Welcome to the family

With a newfound appreciation for pigeons, Jay Howlett reached out to fellow enthusiasts on a pan-Canadian group on Facebook, stating that they were looking to keep a pigeon as a pet.

“W found a really nice fella out in Witless Bay,” he said. “And he was basically like, ‘Pick one, pick two. How many do you want?’ And we end up going with two.”

Named Chai and Mr. Earl Grey, the pigeons took a few months to adjust to their new surroundings and human family. Gradually, their distinct personalities began to shine through.

“Earl Grey is a very dapper, loud gentleman. He loves to strut around the house and hoard all of my yarn. Chai is Earl’s flockmate. He is a little bit more timid and likes to keep to himself. He loves nesting, pretending he has an egg and sitting on it. The egg is a round chapstick,” Jay Howlett said.

A gray pigeon with its eyes closed is wrapped in a blanket. Its eyes are closed.

Waffles rests in a blanket on her first night of being rescued by the Howletts. (Submitted by Jay Howlett)

In 2022, a tip-off from a friend about a starving pigeon outside a convenience shop near Memorial University spurred the Howletts into action beyond mere pet ownership. They brought the bird home, affectionately naming her Waffles.

“We made her very comfortable. We tried our best to make sure that she was hydrated more than anything. We thought she was on the mend, but the stress from being starved and neglected for so long outside in the cold. She ended up having a stroke and she passed away while I was at work,” Jay Howlett said.

Moved by their experience with Waffles, the Howletts devoted themselves to opening up their hearts and home to even more pigeons in need. Along came Peaches, a white homing pigeon found at Bowring Park, and Chilli, whose hunched wings looked like a heavy ash-grey cloak.

“We found him over the summer at Kenny’s Pond and we were just feeding the pigeons like we normally do, and I saw a pigeon that was kind of limping but couldn’t fly,” said Jay Howlett.

“So I picked him up. His wing was broken but already fused in two places and his toe was backwards, so I decided to take him home.”

a man and a woman sit at table, drawing and playing a video game with a pigeon sitting on the man’s shoulder

Jay and Matthew Howlett’s day-to-day life centres on their pigeons and other small pets. (Zach Goudie/CBC )

The Howletts sought care from the Rock Wildlife Rescue, a rehabilitation centre in Torbay. Due to the nature of his injuries, Chilli’s wings had to be clipped, rendering him unable to fly ever again.

“​​He’s a strong bird. He was our latest one and he’s doing fantastic. He just has a big fear of people. But he knows lately he’s starting to come around and understand that we’ve helped him,” said Jay Howlett.

Matthew Howlett said another pigeon was attacked by a hawk.

“Parts of his body were actually missing,” he said, adding that the operator of the rescue group said that since they found him and got him the proper care, there’s a higher chance that he’s going to live.

Learning to build loving, ‘coo’-operative relationships

When asked why they bring their pigeons outdoors, on a leash, in pigeon pants that act and look like a diaper, their answer is education and awareness.

“We want to be a soft rescue. That’s our goal. We want to be somebody who takes in pigeons from the Rock Wildlife that can’t be re-released and give them proper homes because they deserve it,” said Jay Howlett.

a grey pigeon stands on the edge of a sofa. Its right wing droops low.

While Chilli may be flightless due to injury, he soars to new heights when he’s out and about on the Howletts’ shoulders. (Nabila Qureshi/CBC )

By expanding their haven for the birds, the Howletts also hope to play an important role in addressing overbreeding or abuse toward pigeons.

Ultimately, their message is to keep an eye out for any pigeon showing signs of disorientation, injury or panic from being near animals of prey like feral cats and hawks, and to bring them in for care at the Rock Wildlife Rescue.

“[The] least we can do is throw out a couple of seeds for them — not bread — and then just be nice to them,” said Jay Howlett. “They are just as cold as you are in the winter time, [and] as hot as you are in the summertime.”

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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Many Toronto residents won’t be taking anymore crap — from pigeons.

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

Many Toronto residents won’t be taking anymore crap — from pigeons.

“I live here, right across the street, and the pigeons are a nuisance,” said Richard Evans, as he pointed to a condo building at Yonge and Finch.

“They line up on this wire here across Yonge Street, hundreds of them. They have a habit of going to the bathroom on the road and on cars.”

Evans says he hasn’t been ‘lucky enough’ to be used as turd target by pigeons before, but that he hears a lot of concerns from those with balconies on their condos.

These concerns have been heard loud and clear by Esther Attard.

Two gray pigeons eat a piece of bread on the ground, the third is watching them

“(Residents) can’t use their outdoor space, well, because of excrement,” said the chief veterinarian and director of animal services for the City of Toronto.

“It can be a public health risk, but that is a low risk. We haven’t had any of these issues.”

In its quest to find solutions, Attard says a humane option stood out: putting pigeons on the pill.

Ovocontrol, produced by Innolytics LLC, is a contraceptive for pigeons that is made into wheat-flour kibble.

Dubbed ‘planned pigeonhood’, the kibble is put into a timed, automatic feeder and placed on several rooftops in urban areas.

The pigeon contraceptive is manufactured into a form of kibble made of wheat flour. via Innolytics LLC

Motion-sensing cameras nearby capture the pigeons, or any other creature, that approaches the bait.

In May 2022, the city decided to launch a pilot of the pigeon contraceptive, which Attard says officially got working in May 2023.

For the cost of $24,000 a year, the feeders were placed at three wards: University-Rosedale (includes two sites), Beaches-East York, and Don Valley North.

The daily email you need for Okanagan’s top news stories.

A fifth ward — Spadina-Fort York — is expected to be added to the pilot later this month, for an additional $6,000 per year.

An automatic feeder dispenses the contraceptive once every morning, timed by seconds based on the number of pigeons. via Innolytics LLC

“I’m kind of shocked,” Jenn, who loves pigeons, told Global News Toronto.

“I feel like it could be a way to control the reproduction of pigeons. But is it the most ethical?” she added.

“As long as it’s ethical, I guess it’s fine. There’s a lot of pigeons around the area,” said Jane, who works around the Yonge and Finch area.

The pill works by allowing pigeons to still lay eggs that aren’t fertilized. The eggs won’t hatch because there is no embryo inside.

The CEO of the company behind Ovocontrol said the product is far more humane than other tactics used in Toronto, like poison and lethal traps.

“This contraceptive is effective in species that have feathers and lay eggs. so there’s no risk to your pets, your children,” said Erick Wolf.

When asked how he can be sure that the pill isn’t eaten by other birds, Wolf said the larger size of the kibble, and the high location of the feeders, attract only pigeons.

“Smaller birds usually feed from the tree canopy and below,” he said.

The effects of the pill also cannot be transferred to birds of prey, like owls, that eat the pigeons.

The contraceptive works if pigeons ingest it daily. If they stop, Wolf said, they can reproduce normally again.

Attard also noted that, similar to the birth control pill for humans, missing one day won’t make a big difference.

She says the program has already showed some signs of success, because there’s been fewer birds observed on webcam.

But it’s still hard to be sure, so she’s hoping there will be a clearer picture by the spring or summer of this year.

Four locations, in three Toronto wards, already have the feeders installed. A fourth ward -Spadina Fort York – will be added later this month. Global News Toronto

However, the idea has already taken flight with some.

“I am advocating vigorously for it to come to my ward,” Lily Cheng, Willowdale councillor, told Global News.

“For residents who live in condos, their balcony is a really precious outdoor space for them. Unfortunately due to the pigeon problem, many residents are unable to use their outdoor space … it can also be really stressful when crossing the street ”

Evans knows that stress all too well.

Upon learning about the program, he said he’s glad to hear there’s a solution to the poopy problem that doesn’t seem to harm pigeons.

“If it seems to be working, then why not?”

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.

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

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/

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Feeding pigeons is illegal in Toronto but some residents are doing it anyway

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

Feeding pigeons is illegal in Toronto but some residents are doing it anyway

Many Torontonians are enjoying feeding and playing with pigeons despite it being technically illegal.

Pigeon breeding just started last month, so pedestrians are seeing groups of these birds flocking on city streets.

Although some Torontonians on social media are frustrated about Toronto’s growing pigeon population, others are sharing their new fondness for pigeons on TikTok.

‘Toronto Gone Wild,’ new exhibit explores the city’s ever-evolving relationship with wildlife

TikToker @stav.t posted a video two days ago of a man at Yonge and Dundas Square gracefully feeding pigeons from the palm of his hand.

The man then walks up to the TikToker’s brother who also holds out his hand to hold a bird while grinning.

Another TikToker posted a video a month ago of a man with a pigeon perched on his shoulder.

The man lets the pigeon rest on him as he pushes it up for lift off, but it continues to return to his shoulder.

And Toronto TikToker @jennamakesvideos posted a series of videos last year kneeling on the sidewalk to feed the flocks of pigeons around her.

Unfortunately, Toronto’s Animals Bylaw prohibits anyone from feeding any wildlife or leaving food out to attract animals both on public and private property unless an individual has a bird feeder and the domestic birds are under their care.

Some Torontonians love pigeons so much that they raise them to enter them in races.

Toronto is home to Pioneer Racing Pigeon Club, GTA Pigeon Club Canada, Brampton Pigeon Club, and Pakistan Pigeon Club of Canada.

Breeding pigeons for racing is perfectly safe as long as breeders follow their city’s guidelines, according to the Canadian Racing Pigeon Union.

Toronto officials say residents can keep up to 30 domestic pigeons and up to 50 during the breeding season between April and October.

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.

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

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/

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Mumbai doctors blame pigeons for spike in lung disease

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

Mumbai doctors blame pigeons for spike in lung disease

Doctors treating 5 times more cases of severe lung inflammation called hypersensitivity pneumonitis

Salimah Shivji · CBC News · Posted: Dec 27, 2023 1:00 AM PST | Last Updated: December 27, 2023

A pigeon looks off into the distance in Mumbai, India.

Mumbai’s pigeon population has exploded in recent years and the city’s doctors point to that rise as the reason behind a fivefold increase in cases of hypersensitivity pneumonitis, a severe inflammation of the lungs. (

“Are you around pigeons often? What else are you exposed to?”

The pulmonologist is part of a group of doctors working in India’s most populous city who are increasingly alarmed over what they’ve observed over the past seven years: a fivefold increase in cases of a severe inflammation of the lungs called hypersensitivity pneumonitis.

It’s a steep spike that experts link directly to Mumbai’s exploding pigeon population. The bird’s droppings contain fungi that, if inhaled over a sustained period, can cause the immune system disorder.

“It’s a terrible, progressive condition,” said Dr. Prabhudesai in an interview with CBC News, adding that in chronic cases, hypersensitivity pneumonitis causes irreversible scarring to the lungs, which can require the patient to be on a constant supply of oxygen, or even lead to a lung transplant.

“There are more than 300 reasons to get this hypersensitivity pneumonia and [exposure to] pigeons is one of them,” Prabhudesai said. “Most importantly, this is the most common cause of the disease in our country.”

A doctor speaks to his colleague about patient’s lung condition diagnosis at a clinic in Mumbai, India.

Pulmonologist Dr. Prahlad Prabhudesai, who’s seeing more cases of lung disease hypersensitivity pneumonitis caused by exposure to pigeon droppings, often tells patients to not feed birds. (Salimah Shivji/CBC)

Other causes are allergens found in grains, feathers and air conditioning units that aren’t properly maintained, but several recent studies monitoring newly-diagnosed patients in India identified exposure to birds as the leading link to the chronic disease.

Experts are calling for further data to be collected and the Indian Council of Medical Research has now developed a registry to track cases of the lung disease, along with the identified causes.

Problem with feeding pigeons

The problem is acute in Mumbai, India’s most densely-populated city that has millions of apartment buildings with flat surfaces where pigeons love to roost. The city also has a robust cultural tradition of feeding the birds for religious reasons, such as a deep-seated belief that caring for pigeons brings blessings and will help wash away a person’s sins.

Mumbai is known for its kabutarkhanas, designated feeding parks often located near temples and other places of worship where thousands of pigeons gather and are fed. It’s not uncommon to see people dragging large bags of grain to pour in front of the birds.

“In Mumbai, a lot of feeding is being done near your house, near temple…everywhere you go,” Prabhudesai said.

He often fields questions from patients asking if there is a pigeon repellent or other technology being developed to drive the birds away from homes.

group of pigeons in central Mumbai, India.

Pigeon droppings contain fungi that can cause a severe inflammation of the lungs after prolonged exposure. (Glen Kugelstadt/CBC)

‘I had no idea’

“Patient awareness [of the danger of pigeons] has started to increase over the past five years,” he said, but many of them feel helpless “because they are very stubborn birds.”

A hypersensitivity pneumonitis diagnosis came completely out of the blue for Namrata Trivedi, who just returned to work in the past year after more than a decade of battling the disease.

She began experiencing breathing problems and a persistent dry cough in 2011 and a string of doctors couldn’t figure out what she had.

“When I saw the X-ray from my CT scan, I could see a black layer all over my lungs,” she told CBC News in an interview in Gujarati.

“The doctor looked right at my husband and my mother, and told me I had only three years left to live.”

Namrata Trivedi was incredulous when doctors told her she got the lung disease from pigeon droppings. ‘I had no idea,’ she told CBC.

Namrata Trivedi, who has been fighting severe symptoms of hypersensitivity pneumonitis for years, was incredulous when doctors told her she got the lung disease from pigeon droppings. ‘I had no idea,’ she told CBC. (Salimah Shivji/CBC)

Trivedi, 57, frequently used to feed pigeons and, in one of her previous homes, there were large nests of the birds tucked into a windowsill. Still, she was floored when she was diagnosed and told the cause of her lung disorder was pigeon poo.

“I had no idea, I was completely unaware,” she said. “I remember thinking how can pigeons cause such a huge problem! It’s not possible.”

Trivedi has defied the doctors’ predictions and her condition is now under control, even though she still has occasional lung pain and has to take precautions to avoid large crowds when going out.

The hairstylist wishes more people in Mumbai knew how deadly pigeon droppings can be.

A crowd of pigeons converge on a square in central Mumbai, in front of a large block of apartments.

Experts believe Mumbai’s many apartment buildings, along with a tradition of feeding the birds, have contributed to the city’s thriving pigeon population. (Glen Kugelstadt/CBC)

“People don’t understand, they keep saying feeding pigeons is ‘jeev daya,'” Trivedi said, using the Hindi and Gujarati term meaning to help or show compassion to all living beings, including animals.

“But humans are also worth helping,” she added, saying it breaks her heart to see children suffering from the condition because the people around them insist on feeding the birds.

Hard to avoid the pigeons

Prakash Punjabi, 68, who found out he was suffering from the chronic lung disease due to exposure to pigeon droppings last year, is trying to process the same physical and emotional pain.

He spends at least four days a week exercising at a rehabilitation centre adjacent to Prabhudesai’s clinic in north Mumbai, often hooked up to an oxygen machine.

Prakash Punjabi, 68, who has chronic hypersensitivity pneumonitis, feels grateful to have access to a rehabilitation centre to keep the symptoms at bay.

Prakash Punjabi, 68, who has chronic hypersensitivity pneumonitis, feels grateful to have access to a rehabilitation centre to keep the symptoms at bay. (Salimah Shivji/CBC News)

“It’s very difficult,” he said, panting through his oxygen supply while on the treadmill. “I find it difficult while breathing through my nose, and I feel tired all day.”

Punjabi was not in the habit of feeding pigeons, but he and his doctors suspect he got the disease after spending so much time at home during the COVID-19 lockdown.

“Where I stay, there are a lot of pigeons,” he explained. “We have grills and an aluminum [siding] where all the pigeons dance all day.”

These days, Punjabi doesn’t leave his house without wearing a mask to protect him from dust and pigeon droppings, but he said it’s often hard to avoid with Mumbai’s kabutarkhanas.

A man throws feed towards a crowd of pigeons in Mumbai, India.

Pigeon feeding, seen as a way to help the birds and accumulate religious blessings, is common practice in Mumbai. (Glen Kugelstadt/CBC)

“People have a religious belief that if you feed them, you get the pigeon’s blessings. You can’t ban it, you can’t do anything,” he continued. “But people have to be very cautious when dealing with [pigeons].”

The city of Mumbai technically does have fines of 500 rupees ($8 Cdn) on the books for feeding pigeons in non-designated areas but residents say the bylaw is rarely enforced.

It’s left to chest surgeons like Prabhudesai to sound the alarm and repeat the same advice over and over:

“We always try to tell people: “Number one, don’t feed the pigeons.”

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An animal sanctuary is asking people not to dye birds for use in gender reveal

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

An animal sanctuary is asking people not to dye birds for use in gender reveal celebrations after taking in a bright pink pigeon.

Polly, a pigeon whose wings and feet had been dyed pink and yellow for what is believed to have been a gender reveal, was taken to Pudz Animal Sanctuary in South Killingholme this week.

Sanctuary founder Shena Fairless said birds who are dyed are not only at risk from harmful chemicals in the dye, but are also more vulnerable to predators.

She said: “It’s just for a few minutes of entertainment, then the bird has to live with that for the rest of its life”.

A pigeon that has been dyed bright pink

Pudz Animal Sanctuary said Polly was settling in well.

Ms Fairless said the dyeing was “just not a nice thing for it to go through” and added “you just don’t know what might happen”.

Despite Polly’s ordeal, Ms Fairless said she is settling in well at the sanctuary, adding: “She’s made some friends, she’s eating well, and she’s trying to fly.

“She’s safe, so we’ll see how she goes.”

The RSPCA also issued a similar warning about using birds in gender reveals earlier this year.

A spokesperson for the charity said they feared “social media trends could be fuelling” incidents, and said dyeing or painting their feathers could make it so birds are no longer able to fly.

Gender reveal celebrations are a way for expectant parents to announce whether their baby will be a boy or a girl and have grown in popularity over the last few years.

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.

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

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/

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hospital has postponed dozens of procedures after pigeons nesting

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

A hospital has postponed dozens of procedures after pigeons nesting in the roof contaminated a sterile room.

On Friday staff entering a theatre’s sterile room in West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds noticed the birds above the ceiling.

Faeces had fallen through the joins of some ceiling tiles leading to disruption of procedures.

A spokesperson for West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust that runs the hospital said pest control had been called and it was aiming to resume normal service early next week.

“As soon as staff became aware of what had happened the sterile storage room was immediately closed,” they explained.

“No contaminated equipment has been used and our sterile services team are working hard to re-sterilise all the equipment and deep clean the storage room.”

They added that at no point did the birds enter the sterile storage room or operating theatres.

On Monday, 25 patients had their procedures postponed but emergency, cancer and urgent procedures are continuing as normal.

“Whilst we’ve had to postpone some planned procedures, our teams are working hard to minimise the impact on patients and to re-sterilise the equipment and the storage room as soon as possible,” the spokesperson added.

The roof has since been closed off so the birds cannot re-enter.

Staff working in the sterile services team are also working extended hours to work through a backlog of re-sterilising equipment in the room.

Follow Suffolk news on Facebook, Instagram and X. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk or

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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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Michigan’s Manistee River during trapping season when a far-off gurgling sound startled

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 9, 2024 | Bird Netting

In May 1850, a 20-year-old Potawatomi tribal leader named Simon Pokagon was camping at the headwaters of Michigan’s Manistee River during trapping season when a far-off gurgling sound startled him. It seemed as if “an army of horses laden with sleigh bells was advancing through the deep forests towards me,” he later wrote. “As I listened more intently, I concluded that instead of the tramping of horses it was distant thunder; and yet the morning was clear, calm, and beautiful.” The mysterious sound came “nearer and nearer,” until Pokagon deduced its source: “While I gazed in wonder and astonishment, I beheld moving toward me in an unbroken front millions of pigeons, the first I had seen that season.”

These were passenger pigeons, Ectopistes migratorius, at the time the most abundant bird in North America and possibly the world. Throughout the 19th century, witnesses had described similar sightings of pigeon migrations: how they took hours to pass over a single spot, darkening the firmament and rendering normal conversation inaudible. Pokagon remembered how sometimes a traveling flock, arriving at a deep valley, would “pour its living mass” hundreds of feet into a downward plunge. “I have stood by the grandest waterfall of America,” he wrote, “yet never have my astonishment, wonder, and admiration been so stirred as when I have witnessed these birds drop from their course like meteors from heaven.”

Pokagon recorded these memories in 1895, more than four decades after his Manistee River observation. By then he was in the final years of his life. Passenger pigeons, too, were in their final years. In 1871 their great communal nesting sites had covered 850 square miles of Wisconsin’s sandy oak barrens—136 million breeding adults, naturalist A.W. Schorger later estimated. After that the population plummeted until, by the mid-1890s, wild flock sizes numbered in the dozens rather than the hundreds of millions (or even billions). Then they disappeared altogether, except for three captive breeding flocks spread across the Midwest. About September 1, 1914, the last known passenger pigeon, a female named Martha, died at the Cincinnati Zoo. She was roughly 29 years old, with a palsy that made her tremble. Not once in her life had she laid a fertile egg.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the passenger pigeon’s extinction. In the intervening years, researchers have agreed that the bird was hunted out of existence, victimized by the fallacy that no amount of exploitation could endanger a creature so abundant. Between now and the end of the year, bird groups and museums will commemorate the centenary in a series of conferences, lectures, and exhibits. Most prominent among them is Project Passenger Pigeon, a wide-ranging effort by a group of scientists, artists, museum curators, and other bird lovers. While their focus is on public education, an unrelated organization called Revive & Restore is attempting something far more ambitious and controversial: using genetics to bring the bird back.

Project Passenger Pigeon’s leaders hope that by sharing the pigeon’s story, they can impress upon adults and children alike our critical role in environmental conservation. “It’s surprising to me how many educated people I talk to who are completely unaware that the passenger pigeon even existed,” says ecologist David Blockstein, senior scientist at the National Council for Science and the Environment. “Using the centenary is a way to contemplate questions like, ‘How was it possible that this extinction happened?’ and ‘What does it say about contemporary issues like climate change?’ ”

They were evolutionary geniuses. Traveling in fast, gargantuan flocks throughout the eastern and midwestern United States and Canada—the males slate-blue with copper undersides and hints of purple, the females more muted—passenger pigeons would search out bumper crops of acorns and beechnuts. These they would devour, using their sheer numbers to ward off enemies, a strategy known as “predator satiation.” They would also outcompete other nut lovers—not only wild animals but also domestic pigs that had been set loose by farmers to forage.

In forest and city alike, an arriving flock was a spectacle—“a feathered tempest,” in the words of conservationist Aldo Leopold. One 1855 account from Columbus, Ohio, described a “growing cloud” that blotted out the sun as it advanced toward the city. “Children screamed and ran for home,” it said. “Women gathered their long skirts and hurried for the shelter of stores. Horses bolted. A few people mumbled frightened words about the approach of the millennium, and several dropped on their knees and prayed.” When the flock had passed over, two hours later, “the town looked ghostly in the now-bright sunlight that illuminated a world plated with pigeon ejecta.”

Nesting birds took over whole forests, forming what John James Audubon in 1831 called “solid masses as large as hogs-heads.” Observers reported trees crammed with dozens of nests apiece, collectively weighing so much that branches would snap off and trunks would topple. In 1871 some hunters coming upon the morning exodus of adult males were so overwhelmed by the sound and spectacle that some of them dropped their guns. “Imagine a thousand threshing machines running under full headway, accompanied by as many steamboats groaning off steam, with an equal quota of R.R. trains passing through covered bridges—imagine these massed into a single flock, and you possibly have a faint conception of the terrific roar,” the Commonwealth, a newspaper in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, reported of that encounter.

The birds weren’t just noisy. They were tasty, too, and their arrival guaranteed an abundance of free protein. “You think about this especially with the spring flocks,” says Blockstein, the ecologist. “The people on the frontiers have survived the winter. They’ve been eating whatever food they’ve been able to preserve from the year before. Then, all of a sudden, here’s all this fresh meat flying by you. It must have been a time for great rejoicing: The pigeons are here!” (Not everyone shouted with joy. The birds also devoured crops, frustrating farmers and prompting Baron de Lahontan, a French soldier who explored North America during the 17th century, to write that “the Bishop has been forc’d to excommunicate ’em oftner than once, upon the account of the Damage they do to the Product of the Earth.”)

The flocks were so thick that hunting was easy—even waving a pole at the low-flying birds would kill some. Still, harvesting for subsistence didn’t threaten the species’ survival. But after the Civil War came two technological developments that set in motion the pigeon’s extinction: the national expansions of the telegraph and the railroad. They enabled a commercial pigeon industry to blossom, fueled by professional sportsmen who could learn quickly about new nestings and follow the flocks around the continent. “Hardly a train arrives that does not bring hunters or trappers,” reported Wisconsin’s Kilbourn City Mirror in 1871. “Hotels are full, coopers are busy making barrels, and men, women, and children are active in packing the birds or filling the barrels. They are shipped to all places on the railroad, and to Milwaukee, Chicago, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston.”

The professionals and amateurs together outflocked their quarry with brute force. They shot the pigeons and trapped them with nets, torched their roosts, and asphyxiated them with burning sulfur. They attacked the birds with rakes, pitchforks, and potatoes. They poisoned them with whiskey-soaked corn. Learning of some of these methods, Potawatomi leader Pokagon despaired. “These outlaws to all moral sense would touch a lighted match to the bark of the tree at the base, when with a flash—more like an explosion—the blast would reach every limb of the tree,” he wrote of an 1880 massacre, describing how the scorched adults would flee and the squabs would “burst open upon hitting the ground.” Witnessing this, Pokagon wondered what type of divine punishment might be “awaiting our white neighbors who have so wantonly butchered and driven from our forests these wild pigeons, the most beautiful flowers of the animal creation of North America.”

Ultimately, the pigeons’ survival strategy—flying in huge predator-proof flocks—proved their undoing. “If you’re unfortunate enough to be a species that concentrates in time and space, you make yourself very, very vulnerable,” says Stanley Temple, a professor emeritus of conservation at the University of Wisconsin.

Passenger pigeons might have even survived the commercial slaughter if hunters weren’t also disrupting their nesting grounds—killing some adults, driving away others, and harvesting the squabs. “It was the double whammy,” says Temple. “It was the demographic nightmare of overkill and impaired reproduction. If you’re killing a species far faster than they can reproduce, the end is a mathematical certainty.” The last known hunting victim was “Buttons,” a female, which was shot in Pike County, Ohio, in 1900 and mounted by the sheriff ’s wife (who used two buttons in lieu of glass eyes). Almost seven decades later a man named Press Clay Southworth took responsibility for shooting Buttons, not knowing her species, when he was a boy.

Even as the pigeons’ numbers crashed, “there was virtually no effort to save them,” says Joel Greenberg, a research associate with Chicago’s Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum and the Field Museum. “People just slaughtered them more intensely. They killed them until the very end.”

Contemporary environmentalism arrived too late to prevent the passenger pigeon’s demise. But the two phenomena share a historical connection. “The extinction was part of the motivation for the birth of modern 20th century conservation,” says Temple. In 1900, even before Martha’s death in the Cincinnati Zoo, Republican Congressman John F. Lacey of Iowa introduced the nation’s first wildlife-protection law, which banned the interstate shipping of unlawfully killed game. “The wild pigeon, formerly in flocks of millions, has entirely disappeared from the face of the earth,” Lacey said on the House floor. “We have given an awful exhibition of slaughter and destruction, which may serve as a warning to all mankind. Let us now give an example of wise conservation of what remains of the gifts of nature.” That year Congress passed the Lacey Act, followed by the tougher Weeks-McLean Act in 1913 and, five years later, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which protected not just birds but also their eggs, nests, and feathers.

The passenger pigeon story continued to resonate throughout the century. In the 1960s populations of the dickcissel, a sparrow-like neotropical migrant, began crashing, and some ornithologists predicted its extinction by 2000. It took decades to uncover the reason: During winters, the entire world population of the grasslands bird converged into fewer than a dozen huge flocks, which settled into the llanos of Venezuela. There, rice farmers who considered the dickcissels a pest illegally crop-dusted their roosts with pesticides. “They were literally capable, in a matter of minutes, of wiping out double-digit percentages of the world’s population,” says Temple, who studied the bird. “The accounts are very reminiscent of the passenger pigeon.” As conservationists negotiated with rice growers during the 1990s—using research that showed the dickcissel was not an economic threat—they also invoked the passenger pigeon extinction to rally their colleagues in North America and Europe. The efforts paid off: The bird’s population has stabilized, albeit at a lower level.

Today the pigeon inspires artists and scientists alike. Sculptor Todd McGrain, creative director of the Lost Bird Project, has crafted enormous bronze memorials of five extinct birds; his passenger pigeon sits at the Grange Insurance Audubon Center in Columbus, Ohio. The Lost Bird Project has also designed an origami pigeon (like the one bound into this magazine) and says thousands have been folded—a symbolic recreation of the historic flocks.

The most controversial effort inspired by the extinction is a plan to bring the passenger pigeon back to life. In 2012 Long Now Foundation president Stewart Brand (a futurist best known for creating the Whole Earth Catalog) and genetics entrepreneur Ryan Phelan cofounded Revive & Restore, a project that plans to use the tools of molecular biology to resurrect extinct animals. The project’s “flagship” species is the passenger pigeon, which Brand learned about from his mother when he was growing up in Illinois. Revive & Restore hopes to start with the band-tailed pigeon, a close relative, and “change its genome into the closest thing to the genetic code of the passenger pigeon that we can make,” says research consultant Ben Novak. The resulting creature will not have descended from the original species. “[But] if I give it to a team of scientists who have no idea that it was bioengineered, and I say, ‘Classify this,’ if it looks and behaves like a passenger pigeon, the natural historians are going to say, ‘This is Ectopistes migratorius.’ And if the genome plops right next to all the other passenger pigeon genomes you’ve sequenced from history, then a geneticist will have to say, ‘This is a passenger pigeon. It’s not a bnd-tailed pigeon.’ ”

Revive & Restore plans to breed the birds in captivity before returning them to the wild in the 2030s. Novak says the initial research indicates that North American forests could support a reintroduced population. He hopes animals brought back from extinction—not just birds but eventually also big creatures like woolly mammoths—will draw the public to zoos in droves, generating revenues that can be used to protect wildlife. “De-extinction [can] get the public interested in conservation in a way that the last 40 years of doom and gloom has beaten out of them,” he says.

Other experts aren’t so sanguine. They question whether the hybrid animal could really be called a passenger pigeon. They doubt the birds could survive without the enormous flocks of the 19th century. And they question Novak’s belief that the forests could safely absorb the reintroduction. “The ecosystem has moved on,” says Temple. “If you put the organism back in, it could be disruptive to a new dynamic equilibrium. It’s not altogether clear that putting one of these extinct species from the distant past back into an ecosystem today would be much more than introducing an exotic species. It would have repercussions that we’re probably not fully capable of predicting.”

Blockstein says he wanted to use the 100th anniversary as a “teachable moment.” Which eventually led him to Greenberg, the Chicago researcher, who had been thinking independently about 2014’s potential. The two men reached out to others until more than 150 institutions were on board for a yearlong commemoration: museums, universities, conservation groups (including Audubon state offices and local chapters), libraries, arts organizations, government agencies, and nature and history centers.

Project Passenger Pigeon has since evolved to be a multimedia circus of sorts. Greenberg has published A Feathered River Across the Sky, a book-length account of the pigeon’s glory days and demise. Filmmaker David Mrazek plans to release a documentary called From Billions to None. At least four conferences will address the pigeon’s extinction, as will several exhibits. “We’re trying to take advantage of every possible mechanism to put the story in front of audiences that may not necessarily be birdwatchers, may not necessarily even be conservationists,” says Temple.

The commemoration goes beyond honoring one species. Telling the pigeon’s story can serve as a jumping-off point for exploring the many ways humans influence, and often jeopardize, their own environment. Today an estimated 13 percent of birds are threatened, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. So are 25 percent of mammals and 41 percent of amphibians, in large part because of human activity. Hydropower and road construction imperil China’s giant pandas. The northern bald ibis, once abundant in the Middle East, has been driven almost to extinction by hunting, habitat loss, and the difficulties of doing conservation work in war-torn Syria. Hunting and the destruction of wetlands for agriculture drove the population of North America’s tallest bird, the whooping crane, into the teens before stringent protections along the birds’ migratory route and wintering grounds helped the wild flock build back to a few hundred. Little brown bats are dying off in the United States and Canada from a fungus that might have been imported from Europe by travelers. Of some 300 species of freshwater mussels in North America, fully 70 percent are extinct, imperiled, or vulnerable, thanks to the impacts of water pollution from logging, dams, farm runoff, and shoreline development. Rising sea temperatures have disrupted the symbiotic relationship between corals and plant-like zooxanthellae, leading to a deadly phenomenon called coral bleaching. One-third of the world’s reef-building coral species are now threatened.

If public disinterest helped exterminate the passenger pigeon, then one modern-day parallel might be public skepticism about climate change. In an October poll by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, only 44 percent of Americans agreed there was solid evidence that the earth is warming because of human activity, as scientists now overwhelmingly believe. Twenty-six percent didn’t think there was significant proof of global warming at all. In another Pew poll, conducted last spring, 40 percent of Americans considered climate change a major national threat, compared with 65 percent of Latin Americans and slimmer majorities in Europe, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region.

This denial of both the threat and our own responsibility sounds eerily familiar to those who study 19th century attitudes toward wildlife. “Certainly if you read some of the writings of the time,” says Blockstein, “there were very few people who put stock in the idea that humanity could have any impact on the passenger pigeons.” (Audubon himself dismissed those who believed that “such dreadful havoc” as hunting would “soon put an end to the species.”) Today attitudes toward climate change sound similar, continues Blockstein. “It’s the same kind of argument: ‘The world is so big and the atmosphere is so big; how could we possibly have an impact on the global climate?’”

Even the political rhetoric of those who don’t want to address climate change aggressively has 19th century echoes. “The industry that paid people to kill these birds said, ‘If you restrict the killing, people will lose their jobs,’ ” notes Greenberg—“the very same things you hear today.”

Project Passenger Pigeon might not change the minds of hardcore climate skeptics. For the rest of us, though, it could serve as a call to take responsibility for how our personal and collective actions affect wildlife and climate. Maybe a close look at the history of human folly will keep us from repeating it.

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Dead pigeons in SkyTrain cages not neglect but caused by hawk killings

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 8, 2024 | Bird Netting

More than 2,000 people have signed a petition over concerns arouund the dead bird

A number of pigeons found dead in traps along SkyTrain routes in Vancouver have sparked concern from the public, but the pest control company that runs these traps says it has nothing to do with neglect.

Commuter Zahra Ahmdz started a petition against transit operator TransLink in the summer of 2021 after noticing the traps inside the Stadium-Chinatown station on her way to work, and what she said was very clearly multiple dead pigeons inside.

“It was very, very shocking. I didn’t think this would happen in Canada,” she said.

The traps are one of several methods TransLink uses to control the population of pigeons at SkyTrain stations, but the birds are never supposed to die inside. TransLink hires a pest control company to check the traps once a week, ensure there is adequate food and water inside and humanely kill any birds captured.

Media relations advisor Thor Diakow said it’s possible some pigeons did die inside the cages last summer, as TransLink was between pest control companies and didn’t maintain the cages itself in the meantime.

Ahmdz said the problem didn’t stopped there though.

Photos she said she took in March and May appear to show more dead pigeons inside the cages. And Ahmdz said after she complained to TransLink and the BC SPCA, small barriers were erected making it more difficult for her to see the birds.

“This is cruelty,” Ahmdz said.

The pest control company in charge of the cages disagrees. Atlas Pest And Wildlife Control has been working for TransLink since around November or December 2021, according to its president Raymond Arthurs. He readily admitted that they sometimes find pigeons dead inside the cages during their weekly checks, but said it’s not because of neglect on their part.

“Sometimes a hawk will get inside and kill them,” Arthurs said. “That’s kind of all natural.”

As for the barriers, Arthurs said they’re partially to stop people from tampering with the cages and partially to protect the birds from water dripping from the ceiling or other elements.

He said if the weather drops below zero, they leave the cages open as they know the water bowls inside will freeze over. They don’t have a system in place yet for hot weather, as they haven’t worked a summer for TransLink yet, Arthurs added.

He said he couldn’t comment on the exact number of pigeons that have died in his company’s cages. They keep weekly records of their activities, but Arthurs said only TransLink can decide who to provide them to. TransLink agreed to give them to Black Press Media, but said they weren’t available at the time of publication.

A move toward birth control  Both emphasized that they are starting to move away from traps and towards birth control methods.

The BC SPCA pushed TransLink to pilot test OvoControl birth control in several stations for 18 months in 2019 and 2020 after similar complaints about trapped pigeons were brought forward.

BC SPCA chief scientific officer Sara Dubois said the results were exactly what they expected – the population stabilized. She said she was disappointed when TransLink chose not to continue with the long-term solution.

More than a year later though, Diakow said TransLink is now recommitting to the method and will have permanent OvoControl dispensers in some SkyTrain stations come summer.

TransLink also uses bird spikes, netting and low-charge electric strips to deter pigeons from roosting in stations. Diakow said their main concern is the potential for bacterial infections from the birds’ droppings, but that pigeons are also one of a number of animals that regularly set off TransLink’s highly sensitive intrusion alarms.

In 2021, Diakow said wildlife set off the alarms 544 times, resulting in between 12 and 20 hours of transit delays. He said it’s impossible to know how many pigeons alone were responsible for.

Feeding wildlife is feeding the problem

He and Dubois said a large part of the problem is people drawing the pigeons to the stations.

“There’s these regulars that always show up and feed the birds,” Diakow said.

Often times, he said they do so just off TransLink property, so staff can’t actually do anything about it.

Dubois said she’s hopeful Vancouver’s new bylaw banning feeding wildlife in city parks could help, though. She said she’d like to see TransLink work with bylaw on solutions.

Diakow said they’re looking into putting up signage at the stations.

READ ALSO: Unanimous approval for ban on feeding any wild animals in Vancouver parks

As for Ahmdz, she said she’d like to see Vancouver create pigeon aviaries as some cities in Europe have done. She said seeing the cages on her commute everyday is having a serious impact on her mental health.

“The entire day at work I have anxiety,” she said.

Her petition has been signed by more than 2,000 people as of Thursday afternoon.

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.

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

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Indiana fire kills nearly 2,000 competitive racing pigeons

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 8, 2024 | Bird Netting

WANATAH, Ind. — A fire at a northern Indiana facility has killed nearly 2,000 racing pigeons from around the world that were housed there for a race.

Hoosier Loft owners Jim and Kelly Ward say the fire swept through the loft late Saturday or early Sunday in the LaPorte County town of Wanatah, about 60 miles (96 kilometres) east of Chicago.

The (Northwest Indiana) Times reports the fire prematurely ended the 2019 Hoosier Classic Million Dollar One Loft Race by killing the birds ahead of Monday’s final race from Matthews, Missouri, back to Wanatah.

The Wards are organizers of the race, which is one of competitive pigeon racing’s premier events. They said on the race’s website that they’re “completely devastated” by the fire.

The couple says LaPorte County authorities are investigating the fire.

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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.

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

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/

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2,000 Racing Pigeons Die In LaPorte County Loft Fire

by Pigeon Patrol | Jul 8, 2024 | Bird Netting

2,000 Racing Pigeons Die In LaPorte County Loft Fire

EMILIE SYBERGFollow us on Twitter Find us on Facebook

Article origination WBAA-AM

Two thousand racing pigeons died in a fire at Hoosier Loft in LaPorte County Sunday. The fire destroyed the facility, seen here in a photo from the Hoosier Loft website taken before the fire. – Courtesy Hoosier Loft

Two thousand racing pigeons died in a fire at Hoosier Loft in LaPorte County Sunday. The fire destroyed the facility, seen here in a photo from the Hoosier Loft website taken before the fire.

Two thousand racing pigeons burned to death in a bird loft in LaPorte County early Sunday. The fire, which destroyed the facility, housed birds from around the world.

On their website, Hoosier Loft owners Jim and Kelly Ward say they are “heartbroken” about the fire, which effectively ended this year’s final weekend of the Hoosier Classic Million Dollar Race. They also combat claims from some breeders that the fire had been purposefully set.

“It is the 9/11 of pigeon racing in the world,” says Jim Gabler, an Illinois pigeon breeder.

Gabler estimates he had about 30 birds housed at Hoosier Loft during the blaze, and says he still thinks the Wards are trustworthy caregivers.

“I can only say they are the salt of the earth type of people that represent and protect our pigeons to the highest level possible,” Gabler says.

The racing pigeons were due to fly between Indiana and Missouri, with a half a million dollars going to the winning bird’s breeder.

The Wards say they are refunding race entry fees, and plan to host the race again in 2020.

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.

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

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at https://www.pigeonpatrol.ca/

Bird Gone, Pigeon Gone, Pigeon problems, pigeon spikes, 1-877-4NO-BIRD, 4-S Gel, Bird Control, Pigeon Control, bird repellent, Bird Spikes, sonic bird repellent, stainless steel bird spikes, bird spikes Vancouver, Ultra Sonic Bird Control, Bird Netting, Plastic Bird Spikes, Canada bird spike deterrents, Pigeon Pests, B Gone Pigeon, Pigeon Patrol, pest controller, pest control operator, pest control technician, Pigeon Control Products, humane pigeon spikes, pigeon deterrents, pigeon traps, Pigeon repellents, Sound & Laser Deterrents, wildlife control, raccoon, skunk, squirrel deterrent, De-Fence Spikes, Dragons Den, Pigeon, Pigeon Patrol, Pigeons Roosting, Vancouver Pigeon Control, Bird Spikes, Bird Control, Bird Deterrent, Pigeon Deterrent, Surrey Pigeon Control, Pest, Seagull deterrent  Vancouver Pigeon Blog, Birds Inside Home De-fence, Pigeon Nesting, Bird Droppings, Pigeon Dropping, woodpecker control,  Keep The Birds Away, Birds/rats, seagull, pigeon, woodpecker, dove, sparrow, pidgeon control, pidgeon problem, pidgeon control, flying rats, pigeon Problems, bird netting, bird gel, bird spray, bird nails, bird guard, Pigeon control, Bird deterrents, Pigeon deterrents, Bird control, solutions, Pigeon prevention, Pigeon repellent, Bird proofing, Pest bird management, Pigeon spikes, Bird netting, Humane bird control, Bird exclusion, Urban bird control, Anti-roosting devices, Pigeon removal, Bird barriers