Offending Pigeon (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
The government of Córdoba confirmed today that is is considering a new measure to control the problem of pigeons in the provincial capital.
With the aim to control the amount of pigeons, the Centre of Applied Zoology of the National University of Córdoba (UNC) and the provincial government have drawn up a plan of action, which proposes that contraceptives be given alongside grain to reduce the population of pigeons, thought to be a public health risk and to spreading disease. This comes a year after an Argentine minster was suspended for suggesting that poor children from the province be fed with pigeon meat.
Biologist Joaquín Navarro, head of the Secretary of Science and Technology of UNC and director of the pigeon project stated: “The same strategy has been used in Europe, in some cases with great success and in others with relative success. The overall solution to the problem requires several tests of different strategies.”
The animals are known to be aggressive and resilient, and the large numbers of pigeons are possibly even affecting the development of other species, such as sparrows and goldfinches.
Navarro went on to explain: “There is a product that has an ability to interfere with the ovulation of the birds. It is mixed with food in order to reach the pigeon population in question.
“We need to find a suitable size of grain, place it down for the birds between certain hours of the day and the collect the excess grain afterwards… we are seeking to reduce the reproduction rate.”
Meetings have been called over the next month to answer logistical questions before starting the joint project to combat the pigeon plague.
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