Buildings are their cliffs, a few twigs suffice as a nest and human food scraps do nicely as meals. City pigeons, also called feral pigeons, among other names – some nasty – are notorious for their droppings and are widely seen as pests.
To make matters worse, they breed fast and are not shy.
But perhaps we view them too harshly. After all, the poor birds are descendants of fugitives and outcasts.
“City pigeons are [descended from] domesticated pigeons that escaped,” says Jens Hübel, a veterinarian specialising in ornamental, zoo and wild birds.
Domesticated pigeons were bred – whether for their meat, ability to carry messages or racing – from wild rock pigeons, which inhabit remote cliffs and rock ledges.
Those that were abandoned by their owners or flew the coop – er, dovecote – returned to the wild, many taking up residence in urban areas.