Pigeons divide city folk worldwide - whether to ban, tolerate or even celebrate the birds?
After all, in the past they have served as messengers and even heroes, such as Cher Ami, a bird who was severely wounded (losing an eye and a leg) in World War I.
Nonetheless, Cher Ami completed her mission to deliver a message that saved the "Lost Battalion" of the 77th Infantry Division of the US Army.
And after all, consider the fact that in Hebrew, for example, the same word is used for "pigeon" and "dove."
But many city dwellers nowadays object to more material issues namely the mess pigeons create. That's led mayors in some places to slam on feeding bans.
In others, volunteers focus more on animal welfare, saying care and the right food are a better approach. Some officials have their doubts whether such gentler policies work.
Where do they all come from and what draws them to urban areas? City pigeons find a wealth of nesting opportunities, particularly in towns, says Sabine Krause of the Dresden City Pigeon Initiative in Germany.
As descendants of the rock pigeon, the birds feel particularly at home in and on stone walls, adds Konstanze Radke from the Leipzig City Pigeon Aid.
At the same time, Radke notes, numerous carrier and racing pigeons end up in the city every year after straying off course.
There are 12,000 to 24,000 breeding pairs in the state of Saxony alone, the local environment ministry says, pointing to a study.
Local authorities generally have no legal obligation to care for the birds. Pigeons are considered stray animals, say Leipzig officials, in response to an enquiry. That makes any care and feeding voluntary.
Nevertheless, the state of Saxony’s three largest local authorities are taking some regulatory action. Leipzig, Chemnitz and Dresden have banned feeding the birds - citing infection control and protecting wild animals. Violations can lead to fines of more than €5,000 ($5,885).
But food availability is not what determines the population size, says Krause. Plus, none of the food they find is appropriate for the species, meaning many of the birds get diarrhoea. Furthermore, feral domestic birds are not used to foraging for food in meadows so instead resort to scavenging from rubbish, she says.
Given that, both groups see feeding bans as ineffective. It amounts to animal cruelty, as the birds have no chance of finding species-appropriate food, says Marta Broll, also from the Dresden City Pigeon Initiative.
Animals breed under all circumstances
The birds, many of which descend from domestic, breeding and carrier pigeons, often breed throughout the year. Pigeons lay eggs even under the most adverse conditions, Radke says. Domesticated pigeons breed between six and eight times a year, says Broll. Wild pigeons, only once or twice.
But Dresden lacks a plan for managing city pigeons. Officials note there are privately-run pigeon lofts, also known as dovecotes, in the city, noting the Dresden City Pigeon Initiative association maintains four.
Such structures, where the eggs of breeding pairs are replaced with artificial eggs, help regulate the population. Broll says teams replace 4,500 eggs across the city every year. Plus, volunteers remove up to 10 kilograms of droppings from the dovecote every day.
The birds spend almost 80% of their day here - which has significantly reduced pollution in the surrounding area.
A population-control idea
The idea comes from Augsburg, in southern Germany, where, more than 20 years ago, lofts were built for all the pigeons and the practice of swapping eggs began.
However, Dresden officials say how effective these dovecotes are for population control is unclear. To effectively manage the population, a dovecote would be needed at every hotspot - which would require more support from the city, in the form of space, say volunteers. Plus, more people to help out.
Meanwhile, vacant buildings in particular offer the ideal conditions for breeding. Here, too, volunteers could swap out eggs to reduce the population. After all, says Radke, the birds are only in the city because of humans.
An entirely different approach
Some may have seen a colossal, hyper-realistic sculpture of a pigeon cast in aluminium in New York, created by artist Iván Argote.
His model presided over the central High Line Park for more than a year. The outsize pigeon served to question popular assumptions about nature, power and domination, and reverse the typical power dynamic between birds and people.
