01. 06. 12. - 13:58
Linz officials hail pigeon coup
Council officials say a policy of feeding feral pigeons corn laced with contraceptives has seen numbers drop from 20,000 to less than 9,000 in Linz, Austria, in just 10 years.
The birds have been part of the city scene for as long as anybody can remember but they don't have a great deal of fans mainly because of the enormous amount of mess that they leave, and the fact that they spread disease not only among people but also among pets.
The contraceptive pills have been mixed in with the birds feed since 2001 which is then spread out for them to eat at certain centralised locations (AEC, Hauptplatz, Schillerpark, Südbahnhofmarkt, Andreas-Hofer-Platz, Urfahraner Jahrmarktgelände).
Coupled with the project is a ban in the city on feeding the birds which means they either have to eat the contraceptive food or alternatively spend a lot more time flying out of the city find alternative foods – leaving less time for breading.
