Dietary habits of urban pigeons (Columba livia) and implications of excreta pH – a review

Spennemann, Dirk H. R.; Watson, Maggie J.

doi:10.1515/eje-2017-0004

Cited by 38 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 89 publications

(128 reference statements)

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“…Since the diet of these feral pigeons consists almost exclusively of field crops, the birds by implication have to leave the city limits regularly to feed [14]. More than other bird species, feral pigeons exhibit a behavior of short term resting, in the form of perching on elevated spots [15]. This would include the Sasol library on the main campus of the UFS (top floor is 16 m above the ground) and the ETB Building on the main campus of the Central University of Technology (CUT) (top floor is 15 m above the ground).…”

Section: Feral Pigeons In Bloemfonteinmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pigeon Presence on PV Modules ARE Largely Random Events

2019

IJITEE

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The presence of pigeons on PV modules can negatively affect the output power of a solar renewable energy system. The body of the pigeon itself (and especially the tail) may cause short periods of shading of individual cells, leading to the formation of hotspots. Bird excreta left by the pigeon may cause longer periods of shading, leading to an extended reduction in output power. Some type of intervention may be required to repel pigeons from PV modules, in order to try and maintain the overall efficiency and sustainability of a system. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the reduction in output power of a picosolar system in order to determine if a possible pattern, or routine, exists with regard to the presence of pigeons. A 10 W pico-solar system was installed in a semi-arid region of South Africa that is home to the feral pigeon (Columba livia). A pigeon detection technique was developed and applied over a period of 13 months to determine when and for how long these pigeons rest on top of a PV module (these are referred to as events). Although these events are primarily random in nature, results do indicate that feral pigeon presence is lowest on a Wednesday during the week and in the summer periods of January to March during a calendar year. They tend to spend, on average, 118 seconds perched on top a PV module, where their tail and droppings cause the most significant impact in terms of interrupting the direct beam radiation from the sun for an individual cell. It is recommended to use these results in formulating an appropriate intervention that may be used as a scare tactic to repel feral pigeons away from PV modules.

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Section: Feral Pigeons In Bloemfonteinmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pigeon Presence on PV Modules ARE Largely Random Events

2019

IJITEE

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“…La Paloma de Castilla, Columba livia, habitaba, originalmente, en acantilados costeros alrededor del mediterráneo europeo, africano y asiático, pero actualmente se distribuye por casi todo el mundo (Stringham et al, 2012;Stock & Haag-Wackernage, 2014). Las construcciones en las ciudades ofrecen oportunidades de anidación, reproducción y descanso similares a las que ofrecen los acantilados de donde provienen (Spennemann & Watson, 2017).…”

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“…En su hábitat natural estas aves son principalmente granívoras, aunque ocasionalmente pueden ingerir invertebrados (Murton & Westwood, 1966;Spennemann & Watson, 2017). Por el contrario, en las ciudades, se alimentan principalmente de la comida que las personas les proporcionan (Ramírez et al, 2008;Ryan, 2011;Spennemann & Watson, 2017). Estos alimentos, generalmente cargados de carbohidratos, azúcares y condimentos, se alejan de la dieta original de la especie provocando desnutrición, peso reducido y un porcentaje de grasa corporal elevado (Municipalidad de Heredia, 2013;Spennemann & Watson, 2017).…”

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“…Por el contrario, en las ciudades, se alimentan principalmente de la comida que las personas les proporcionan (Ramírez et al, 2008;Ryan, 2011;Spennemann & Watson, 2017). Estos alimentos, generalmente cargados de carbohidratos, azúcares y condimentos, se alejan de la dieta original de la especie provocando desnutrición, peso reducido y un porcentaje de grasa corporal elevado (Municipalidad de Heredia, 2013;Spennemann & Watson, 2017). Además, en la naturaleza, al contrario de las zonas urbanas, el alimento es escaso y no se acumula en lugares puntuales (Ryan, 2011), por lo que las aves se ejercitan al buscarlo, mejorando su proporción corporal de grasas y proteínas (Ciminari, Moyano, Chediack, & Caviedes-Vidal, 2005).…”

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Tradición: una nueva razón para alimentar las palomas urbanas (Columba livia; Columbiformes: Columbidae), y cómo controlarlas de manera sostenible

Cabalceta¹,

Barrientos²

2019

URJ

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Tradition: a new reason to feed urban pigeons (Columba livia, Columbiformes: Columbidae), and how to control them in a sustainable way". Introduction: The rock pigeon, Columba livia, is considered a pest in many cities around the world, where people feed them in parks and control measures have mostly failed; however, they also provide entertainment and income to people. Objective: To identify the reasons why humans feed pigeons, the type of food and their perception of the problem. Methods: We worked in eight urban recreation parks of Costa Rica (total: 59 visits). From July to September 2017 we interviewed 161 people feeding pigeons and 90 who were in the parks but did not feed them. Results: People fed them scraps from their own food or, preferably, if they were sold for the purpose, seeds. The reason why people said they fed pigeons was independent of age, academic level and visit purpose (contingency chi square tests, all: p>0,01). One of the reasons was tradition; other reasons were "for fun" and empathy; men were more focused on empathy than women. Most people who fed pigeons did not consider them a pest and were uncertain about any need for control. Non feeders mostly considered them pests that need to be controlled. Almost everyone found contraceptives acceptable. Conclusions: A sustainable strategy for urban pigeons would include controlled food sales and contraception, instead of prohibition or extermination; this is the first time that tradition is found as a reason for feeding pigeons anywhere in the world.

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Proximity to anthropogenic food sources determine roosting and nesting prevalence of feral pigeons (Columba livia) in a tropical city

Lim

Soh

Loo

et al. 2023

Ecol Sol and Evidence

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The feral pigeon (Columba livia) is a globally commensal bird that can cause dis‐amenities such as soiling and is a potential vector of various diseases. Aside to limiting food as a management strategy, reducing the availability of roosting and nesting sites can help regulate feral pigeon populations. Despite their prevalence, current knowledge of their roosting and nesting preferences is lacking. Feral pigeons commonly use railway viaduct expansion gaps in Singapore for roosting and nesting. These gaps provided an ideal experimental platform to examine feral pigeon roost and nest site selection while controlling for differing cavity sizes which can significantly affect their reproductive success and site selection decisions. We also conducted an in‐situ experiment to test the efficacy of nest removal as a management option. Our nationwide surveys of 80.3 km of railway viaducts and 6048 gaps revealed that feral pigeon day roosting and nesting preferences are influenced by structural height and more importantly, their proximity to human food sources. There was a significantly higher probability of feral pigeon roosting in a gap if it had more pigeon feeding incidences in its vicinity and was higher. The probability of feral pigeon nesting in gap was higher if it was closer to a railway station, lower and further from water bodies. In our field experiment, we did not find any significant differences in the proportions of the abundances of feral pigeon to other urban commensal bird species at the gaps before and after nests were removed. Overall, our results suggest that a concerted effort to reduce anthropogenic food availability to feral pigeons is central in limiting their reproductive success and controlling their population.

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Dietary habits of urban pigeons (Columba livia) and implications of excreta pH – a review

Cited by 38 publications

References 89 publications

Pigeon Presence on PV Modules ARE Largely Random Events

Pigeon Presence on PV Modules ARE Largely Random Events

Tradición: una nueva razón para alimentar las palomas urbanas (Columba livia; Columbiformes: Columbidae), y cómo controlarlas de manera sostenible

Proximity to anthropogenic food sources determine roosting and nesting prevalence of feral pigeons (Columba livia) in a tropical city

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