The pigeon culling exercise in Balzan last week raised controversy given that it literally involved men walking around with air rifles taking pot shots at the birds.
The first thing that must be pointed it is that while removing the health hazards that pigeons create is necessary, there are other solutions which are more humane, safer and more effective.
One of the first issues pointed out about culling is that it is inhumane on the grounds that some of the birds are shot, but they do not die immediately and bleed out slowly. The second issue with this, as pointed out by experts is that when the birds do not die, they try and find shelter and they end up dying in all sorts of places, such as, people’s house vents. So, rather than reduce the risk, you actually end up increasing it.
There are other ways. People should stop feeding the birds intentionally and unintentionally. Leaving any scraps of anything lying around only entices the birds to hang around for a guaranteed free meal. Researchers have found that if the invading flock cannot all feed, then it will disperse, only allowing as many as can be supported by the surrounding reply to continue to stay in the area in question.
But the most effective and cost effective way to do it is to use contraceptive seed. It is not exactly a contraceptive, but the feed makes the females lay eggs which never develop. It is a win-win situation.
Pigeons can apparently raise up to a dozen and more young per year, which gives an idea of the scale of the problem we can deal with. Some countries have tried the idea of adhesive gel, but this also harms the birds and can lead to nasty death as their feathers lose their water proof coating and impedes them from flying. It must also be pointed out that these gels are indiscriminate and can hurt other creatures.
The argument about whether pigeons are vermin or not also came to the fore. One may agree or disagree, but the clincher here must be the fact that shooting the birds caused more health hazards than healthy birds.
The is no doubt, pigeons are pests. They make a mess and they are unhygienic. But the authorities should look into the matter once and for all. Local councils are impeded by small budgets, so as a result, the government should get involved and launch a strategy to control the population in the whole of Malta.
We tend to think of a ‘nationwide’ project as something huge, but this is not. With a bit of planning, research and bulk buying, Malta could drastically reduce the problem, which is understandably a daily chore for some people, especially those living in Malta’s older cities where the birds can roost at will.
We do not need men with air rifles walking down the street like it’s the Wild West; what we need is a scientific approach to find a humane solution to a problem.
It’s called bird feed. Surely, it shouldn’t be that hard.