Updated on Saturday: adds falconers' statement

A local council is claiming success in its bid to reduce the wild pigeon population – without resorting to controversial measures like culling.

In a matter of weeks, almost 500 pigeons were caught in Birżebbuġa under a plan which included the introduction of fines for feeding the birds, which were becoming pests.

Contacted by the Times of Malta, Birżebbuġa mayor Joseph Cutajar said until recently the problem was out of control: “In some areas residents could not even hang their laundry or wait for a bus, for fear of being hit by pigeon droppings.

“Triq San Filippu and Triq San Patrizju were among the worst hit,” he said.

However, Mr Cutajar, who is also a race pigeon enthusiast, is against the idea of culling. Instead, the council opted for pigeon traps, the likes of which are used in races, which were strategically placed near the fodder.

“With the feeding ban in place, the starving pigeons were easily attracted to these traps, and in a matter of weeks around 470 were caught,” the mayor said.

Asked how the council was disposing of the birds, Mr Cutajar said some of them were being handed over to pigeon enthusiasts on the condition they would not be set free in the wild, while the rest were donated to falconry centres.

A few weeks ago, the council enacted a by-law such that anyone caught feeding wild pigeons was liable to a fine of €46.59, which increased to €69.88 in case of a second offence. The regulations also state that a further penalty of €11.65 will apply for each additional day that the contravention continues.

Apart from banning feeding wild pigeons, the by-law obliges owners of dilapidated and abandoned buildings to seal their properties, as many of them have become ideal breeding grounds for the birds. However, the provisions of the by-law do not apply to those who keep or take care of domestic pigeons.

Meanwhile, the government would not say who had authorised the shooting of wild pigeons in broad daylight on April 5 in Vittoriosa. The culling, which drew the condemnation of the Environment Ministry, was carried out by a group of gunmen equipped with airguns in the presence of police officers.

While noting that the practice went against government policy, the ministry announced that an investigation had been launched. To date it is not known if the probe has been concluded.

The issue was raised in Parliament by Opposition MP Mario Galea, who filed no fewer than 17 questions on it. While Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia said that the go-ahead had been given months before, he gave no reply when asked if steps would be taken against whoever had authorised the culling.

Falconers statement

In a statement Fridericus Rex Malta Falconers and the Malta Falconers Club noted that pigeons were not being fed live to birds of prey.

Although pigeons were part of the natural diet of some birds of prey, falconers did not feed live animals under no circumstance.

Moreover, when feral pigeons were used in the feeding of birds of prey, these were first humanly put down and then taken through a process that involved freezing at very low temperatures to eliminate the risk of exposing falconry birds to diseases carried by the pigeons, the statement read.

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