With the threat of avian flu looming on the horizon, feral pigeons have been thrown into a murky spotlight, ruffling the feathers of various parties that are calling for their extermination.

It is debatable whether pigeons are potential carriers - the Health Promotion Department says that, in theory, they could be, while the Food and Veterinary Regulation Division says they pose a minimal threat - but there is no question that they carry copious amounts of germs and are, in fact, referred to as "feathered rats".

"The only difference is that pigeons fly, which makes them even more problematic," said Health Promotion Department director Mario Spiteri. "They too carry scary amounts of parasites, which is not surprising when considering that when they do not find food they end up eating even horse manure".

Scientific evidence shows that wild pigeons can harbour numerous types of pathogenic viruses and bacteria, such as common food poisoning in the form of salmonellae.

Primarily scavengers, pigeons should not be allowed near food and are even worse than flies in that regard, Dr Spiteri said, appealing to the public not to have "wrong priorities" when it comes to animals and insisting that pigeons are dirty and do no good to the environment.

He said the feeding of wild pigeons should not be encouraged. And, even more importantly, children should not be allowed to hand-feed them. "After all, they would never dream of feeding rats," he said, arguing that it boils down to the same thing.

Dr Spiteri insisted he had no intention of resorting to scare-mongering but stressed that he spoke of facts, based on observation and sound research.

"It is not a matter of guesswork that pigeon droppings are heavily infected," he said, adding that they could also lead to the gross contamination of water. Parched with thirst, pigeons, which have a sucking method of drinking, often suffocate in the process and end up drowning in rooftop water tanks when their lids are blown away by the wind. Their decomposition can have harmful effects.

Taking the matter a step further, Dr Spiteri warned that the free-roaming pigeon population could also serve as a reservoir of disease if infected feral birds, carrying avian flu, joined it.

Although they are not on the official list of birds that carry avian flu and are, therefore, unlikely to pose a threat, according to Mireille Vella, director international and legal coordinator of the Food and Veterinary Regulation Division, Dr Spiteri said feral pigeons were often in direct contact with several species of wild birds and could migrate with them.

Pandemic flu forecasts have been tossed around for decades and whether the avian flu prediction would turn into a reality or not was pure conjecture, Dr Spiteri said. "Even though it may never happen, we can either just wait and see or be proactive," he added.

Whether several strains of avian flu viruses only cause diseases affecting animals or whether these viruses could mutate into forms that also affect humans, remains a big question, he explained.

Whatever the case, however, it was best to adopt timely measures in the form of effective pest control methods, according to Dr Spiteri.

Such action would also protect the many pigeon fanciers who spend a fortune to rear healthy racing pigeons, he said, suggesting the suspension of pigeon races as a temporary precaution, pending further developments in the spread of avian flu.

Dr Vella has said it is, as yet, inopportune to prohibit racing as long as the country from where these birds are released is not under any special restrictions due to an influenza outbreak.

Nevertheless, pigeon fanciers are deeply concerned about the upcoming racing season, which starts at the end of November, and it is "a big question mark", due to the avian flu, for the 1,200 members of the Federation of Malta Racing Pigeon Clubs.

"We are in limbo; we don't know where we stand and have strong doubts whether we will be racing or not. We are currently on tenterhooks because we have no official answer from the authorities," pigeon fancier Tony Fava said.

He explained that feral pigeons are worlds apart from racing pigeons: the former are virus ridden but the latter are treated and vaccinated against a variety of viruses, carried by their wild counterparts, at major costs.

"It is an expensive hobby - keeping an average of 200 racing pigeons could mean forking out at least Lm20 a week. The majority of fanciers keep over 300 pigeons."

Mr Fava expressed concern that "we have reared the young ones at great expense but we may not be able to race them".

He is for the extermination of feral pigeons, saying they often plagued racing pigeon lofts when they got hungry, plus St Luke's Hospital was infested and filthy with feral pigeons.

His views about the hospital are shared by many and a retired medical doctor said parts of the hospital building are caked in pigeon droppings and the ventilators are used as breeding areas.

"Several attempts have been made to get rid of the pigeons at St Luke's but they have not been successful due possibly to a lack of will. One suspects that among the staff are a number of pigeon enthusiasts who even feed these birds, making the situation hopeless."

The problem at St Luke's needed to be tackled, first in the interest of general hygiene and, secondly, because of the various diseases that pigeons may help to transmit. "Such practices as having skips left open for pigeons to feed on should be discontinued," the doctor said, describing the "disgusting" sight at sunset of thirsty pigeons drinking draining water from sinks and baths from the uncovered gullies outside the wards.

From a veterinary point of view it is agreed that the population of wild pigeons should be constantly surveyed and that their numbers controlled.

Mario Borg, general manager of Capital Pest Control, said the extermination of pigeons was complex. The government should educate the public not to feed pigeons, and make it illegal to do so, imposing a steep fine. If pigeons are not fed they do not reproduce, Mr Borg explained.

An interim solution to reduce the population, which is on the increase, is culling. But although it is a quick response, it is not that simple.

And a long-term consideration would be poisoning, and sterilisation, although it is doubtful how much these methods work. The problem was that the poisoned pigeons would not all die on the spot and could fall on cars, or people, while sterilising could take a long time to work.

In localities such as Pietà, Floriana and Valletta, pigeon populations have exceeded saturation point. Moreover, their droppings also contain highly corrosive chemicals, such as ureic acid, which damage limestone building façades and car paintwork.

Mr Borg said that many Valletta and Floriana residents wanted to get rid of the pigeon population but the solution was not that simple.

A public outcry in favour of these birds and against their extermination was also expected.

Moreover, culling could also result in the death of racing pigeons and could cause an outcry from the fanciers, he pointed out.

Local councils have taken limited action against pigeons but it was for the government, or the Health Department, to take action if there was even the slightest risk of avian flu. "There should be no room for doubts," Mr Borg said.

The Veterinary Office has explained that it is the water fowls that are most dangerous; they are naturally resistant, meaning that they can carry the virus without showing any clinical symptoms. In the case of pigeons, they would die within hours if they contracted the disease and it would be possible to know that they were carriers following testing in the case of high mortality.

No EU member states have taken any action against pigeons, Dr Vella said, adding that the Veterinary Office was monitoring the situation very closely. After all, it was responsible to protect the poultry industry.