Stop the pigeons

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Gisborne Herald readers have given a big thumbs up to a cull of pigeons in the city centre.

When asked if they think pigeons in Gisborne city should be culled, 72 percent of respondents to this week’s Gisborne Herald Web Poll said “yes”.

The web poll follows a story last week in which Richard Jackson, a member of the Emerald Hotel Body Corporate, told the Future Tairawhiti committee the ‘‘pigeon problem’’ was so bad that Gisborne District Council, rather than building owners, should assume responsibility.

The body corporate wants a ‘‘major cull’’ done by the council this year, followed by an “annual maintenance cull’’.

That stance was backed by 234 respondents, many of whom said pigeons were not only a nuisance but dirty.

“They make such a mess and make lots of noise at night,” one person said.

Another respondent agreed, saying pigeons were “smelly, dirty, gross problem birds”.

Others who agreed with the idea of a cull, however, suggested it be done without poison.

One respondent said the birds should not be poisoned as that would have a flow-on effect to other animals who may eat them.

The smell from dead bodies and the body fluids as they decompose leaching into places where they die also had to be considered, they said.

“It has to be humane and a quick death with no pain or fear to the pigeons.”

Some who agreed suggested property owners should take responsibility for culling the birds.

“Anyone with more than three pigeons on their property should be compelled by a council bylaw to reduce their number,” one person suggested.

Those that disagreed with a cull mainly did so for humane reasons.

“They should be free,” one respondent said.

Another suggested that “indiscriminate poisoning” could put other species at risk and a cull “certainly” should not be carried out at the expense of ratepayers.

A total of 323 people responded to the poll, with 234 agreeing with a cull and 73 people against the idea. Another 16 said they did not know.