Pigeons on the pill
They’ve used it in San Diego, St. Paul, Minn., and had heated discussions about it in Staten Island, NY. All of these came and went without much notice. Then, Ovocontrol-P, a now-popular form a birdie birth control, went Hollywood on us. Literally. The Argyle Civic Association (ACA) – a neighborhood association in Hollywood – decided to give the pill a try. The pigeon population had soared in recent years to the apparent evil doings of someone referred to as the “Bird Lady”; she recently dumped a 25-pound bag of bird feed in 29 Hollywood places.
Hollywood’s response? OMG!
Residents were less than pleased when more pigeons, and more pigeon droppings, got in the way of their high-stress lives of beaches, Beamers and Botox. Panic ensued. The ACA then went the way of twenty-something women everywhere in an effort to fix the problem. During the summer of 2007, they implemented the first dose and expected to see some kind of results in a year. My incessant Googling produced no updates on their current plight, but by 2012, the pigeon population is expected to shrink by half.
After Hollywood, the domino effect was instant. Almost immediately, the Linda Vista neighborhood in San Diego tried Ovocontrol-P for the pigeons roosting on the roof of a popular skate park. Then, a councilman representing Staten Island, NY suggested that birth control could slow the pigeon population at the ferry terminals. Recently, St. Paul, Minnesota employed the tactic just in time for the Republican National Convention.
Why is ‘pilling’ the pigeons becoming so popular? It is a non-lethal and completely humane way to get rid of them. Basically, the pill interferes with the egg development; pigeons will still lay the eggs, they will just never hatch. And since People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) gave Ovocontrol-P the thumbs up, it is all systems go. Even the Brits are considering borrowing (read: stealing) our brilliance to handle their pigeon problem.
I’m not sure how I feel about this. Sure, it will (eventually) rid my life of pesky pigeon poop on my freshly washed and waxed automobile. And I will (eventually) not have to deal with their low-flying, loud and disease-infested presence ruining my ambiance. No more feathers clogging my drains. No more threat of bird mites attacking my bloodstream, making my life miserable. No more lice (courtesy of nests) lurking a few feet above my head.
But…
This seems a bit extreme – even for someone who doesn’t care too much for the little critters. Pigeons, with all their pervasiveness, should be given a shot to procreate as well. No, we don’t want them roosting on our roofs or defecating on our property. But do we really want to stop another living species from, well, living? What happens when we get tired of squirrels; put them on the pill too? How about stray cats? Animals in shelters? One (extremist?) poster on sciforums.com suggested that this is the beginning of the end for humans as well. Overpopulation? No worries! The good ol’ government will just design a gene that makes people infertile. Problem solved.
Though I feel this is somewhat radically overstated, maybe they’ve got a point. The fact remains that these people are treating the symptom and not the problem. There are too many proven effective ways to controlling birds to resort to encouraging their extinction. And besides, putting the current crop on the pill will not stop future fliers from resting where the old ones perished. The roof, ledge, tree, or wherever is still appealing to birds; that won’t change. And the people over at Tree Hugger made an excellent point about human birth control and its dire effect of fish. What, then, will the effect be on Raptors that pray on pigeons?
Hmmm…check out this site to see some of the humane ways (and by humane, I mean will not render barren) to control pigeons and other birds. Pigeons on the pill? What is the world coming to…
Crazy pigeons
Pigeons are so annoying!
I remember the times when it used to be like “Hey, there’s a pigeon in the way so let me just lightly step in its direction and it’ll fly away,” and that was all there was to it. However it’s a completely different story now. They’ve obviously mastered the art of adapting to urban environments.
Now they flock together and glare at you mockingly, daring you to step in “their” territory. When I need to pass, I try to get them out of the way by idiotically stomping like a madwoman and chasing them, which in so many ways never works to my advantage.
After a while their all-too-comfortable presence gets frustrating. I mean, seriously, can you deal with the constant cooing that resonates in your ear, forcing you to scrunch your face in disgust? How about their piercing red eyes, mucky feathers, razor-sharp beaks, and prickly clawed feet? Or how about the thought of them proudly mingling and feasting within five centimeters of your standing area without acknowledging your presence?
I’m a frequent public transportation rider, which unfortunately means that I’m always forced to share my limited waiting space with random flocks of disease-ridden pigeons. Sometimes I wonder how so many birds can manage to remain in the same area for such a long period of time. Oh, wait, I forget that oblivious culprits feed them falling to acknowledge the potential environmental and health risks that come along with doing such a thing.
When I witness these “culprits” feeding them, I always think to myself, “What the heck are you doing?! Do you not see that huge sign with huge letters telling you NOT to feed the birds? I think the sign’s there for a reason!”
I’ll have you know that birds are actually smarter than you think. They are completely capable of adapting to different settings. They just choose not to due to lack of incentive. I respect them as animals and all, but they need not roam about in metropolitan areas. If we continue to feed them nonchalantly, they will never get accustomed to natural wildlife environments.
People generally hesitate to approach unpleasant settings. Luckily I know how to effectively rid birds from any given area. (But sadly I’m no property owner. All I can do is spread the word.) I work for Bird-X, which is a company that specifically focuses on humanely getting rid of pesky birds and other critters. It’s important that solutions are logical and humane because illogical and inhumane fixes are cruel, redundant, and most importantly ineffective. I would love it if local officials considered administering effective maintenance strategies. Heck, I’d love it even more if private property owners did the same. It’s as simple as setting up a few Terror-Eyes, BroadBand PROs, and Spikes. That way pigeons become uncomfortable with the environment and we city dwellers can avoid crazy bird harassment.