It’s not like I actually read the New York Post. Well, in this one instance I did. But someone left it on the subway, so it’s not like I paid for it or anything. You still respect me, right?
Well, with that out of the way, I have to thank the Big Apple’s Yellow Press Express for bringing it to my attention that today is National Pigeon Day. The event honors the ubiquitous Columba livia in all its guises. Great domestic pigeons of the past – mostly messenger pigeons used to carry dispatches in wartime – are lauded. Pigeon poaching is decried.
Pigeon poaching?
Yes, one of the aims of the day is to raise awareness about pigeon poaching, and I have to admit, it worked on me, because I was not aware of that problem at all. Apparently, there are individuals in this fair city who make it a practice to go out, spread seed, net the pigeons who gather, and sell them.
Which raises, inevitably, the question of who is buying?
The Post alleges that some of the birds are sold for racing – which strikes me as wildly improbable, since raising pigeons are specially bred from specific domestic strains. They also claim that some are shipped to Pennsylvania for pigeon shoots, while others may end up as chow – more plausible, to be sure.
Now, poaching implies illegal. Feeding street pigeons to unwitting consumers would be mad illegal, or at least I dearly hope so. Transporting pigeons across state lines, as to a pigeon shoot in Pennsylvania, apparently requires a license which these miscreants haven’t got. That too makes good sense from an animal welfare and disease control point of view. But the actual taking of pigeons – the poaching – is it poaching? Pigeons, being non-native and non-migratory, aren’t protected by law any more than House Sparrows or Starlings.
However, if there’s a demand for them, then the supply ought to be properly regulated. A sensible, humanely conducted pigeon harvest could balance pigeon control, animal welfare, sustainability (not that I think Rock Pigeons will be hunted to extinction, but people didn’t think that about the last Pigeons I posted about either…) and public safety; it could create revenue for the city (perhaps we could get a punning headline in the Post by earmarking it for statue and park maintenance or something) and who knows but maybe they are safe enough to eat, in which case, hey, cheap, locally-grown, free-range protein!
Hmmm…
Happy National Pigeon Day!
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June 14, 2008 at 4:05 am
I had no idea people were poaching pigeons, but it’s not that surprising. I have doubts about pigeons – or at least city pigeons – being safe to eat. They absorb all the urban airborne and waterborne toxins, and probably eat some of them too. At least some of that must build up in their bodies and get passed on to whatever eats them.
June 16, 2008 at 11:02 pm
John: You’re probably right, but it might be worth checking on anyway. Perhaps we could do a ranking of cities based on how healthy their pigeons are.
June 17, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Poaching means killing a regulated game animal in an illegal time, place, or by illegal methods, or in illegal numbers. How does this apply to the Rock Dove / Pigeon?
All pigeons (thanks to the Passenger Pigeon) are listed as regulated game birds in the Migratory Bird Treaty, and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which governs most bird hunting in the United States. In certain years (or every year), USFWS can “close” the season for regulated game birds, which means none can be killed, or “open” the season which means that a whole detailed set of “rules of taking” are invoked….these rules include bag limits and hunting seasons. All these rules are adjusted yearly by Federal biologists to make sure that we do not hunt any more species into extinction, like we did in the early 20th century. These laws can only be circumvented if a significant risk to human health can be documented.
If the state of NY chooses to open pigeon & dove season (usually September to January), which I’m not sure they do, then you are restricted to taking only 10 to 15 (state regulation) doves and pigeons per day, in an area where shooting is allowed, and on properties where you are legally permitted to hunt. Migratory birds are technically property of the United States of America.
The article implies that people are basically swiping pigeons from other peoples property (or city property), which would violate the limit of birds per day, season dates, and “permission to hunt” regulations all at the same time.
So there you go…poaching.
June 17, 2008 at 7:32 pm
Interesting… I didn’t realize that Rock Pigeons fell under game animals by virture of their Pigeon-ness. I was under the apprehension that they were under vermin with House Sparrows and Starlings.
I’ve heard of people hunting Mourning Doves before but it seems like a lot of ammo for a little bit of meat. RPs are a bit bulkier, of course.
June 23, 2008 at 3:06 am
I’m pretty sure that Rock Pigeons are not protected under the MBTA since they are an introduced rather than native species. At least, they are not on either the migratory birds list or the gamebirds list. I think that’s why exterminators can get away with killing pigeons.
January 8, 2009 at 2:52 am
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