I'm infested with pigeons

We have Dunnocks, the cunning little beasts

Truly, you learn something new every day on this site. Thanks flower

Yep broomsticks they certainly do. If you have any dunnocks they are fun to watch. The female has two suitors, A and B. B skulks in the undergrowth, and takes his chance when A goes off 'hunting' She (little madam) twirls her tail and entices B to mate with her. (They are the fastest copulating birds in the world apparently) B then scuttles off and A pops back to peck her cloaca which releases the former bird's sperm sack TMI - sorry. He then mates with her. This ensures that there are two 'daddys' to feed her while on the nest and the young. Clever Eh?

Yes, I thought they must be a pair. I hope we get babies (eggs, chicks).

If they were both male robins they'd be fighting to the death!

Yes, female robins have red breasts too.

Can't remember which book it's in but there's a comment somewhere about not liking birds to hang about as you get older in case they're vultures.

We've got two robins now. I assume they are a pair as they seem to get on. Do the females have red breasts too?

The pigeons are now mating. Oh joy!

Aka, thanks for that, it's made me smile.
It also reminded me of a Dolphin walk we did with our children, then aged 5 and 6. We were staying with nanny and grandad on the south coast. At the end of the Dolphin walk, the children proudly told the number collectors, that one of them had seen 20 and the other 15 dolphins. The number collectors were so kind, and didn't tell the children they'd been counting waves. Neither did we.
Vultures now - that's another thing all together.

I'd barely finished typing this when two youngish men arrived and we were treated to a display using their lure
Very exciting.
GS thrilled. He got to stroke it.
Chickens all accounted for.

meant aka x
whoops a daisy !

lovely thread Akax

Aka!

7-year old GS practising for the forthcoming RSPB Bird Watch later this month.

'Nana, I've just seen a robin'
'Very nice dear' (distracted by complicated knitting pattern)
'Nana, there's a magpie on the fence'
'Yes, we get a lot of those' (k2 tog, PSSO)
'Nana, there's a vulture on the top of the climbing frame'
'Very nice dear'....????? ... (transfer remaining stitches ......??)
Glance up and there is indeed a vulture sitting in the top of the climbing frame (drop stitches)

Phone castle, yet again. Yes, they'll come and collect it immediately.
Last time it was a Golden Eagle which went AWOL from the flying display.

Pick stitches up, transfer to holder. Note to self, count chickens when it's gone.

For a couple of years ago we've had a sparrow hawk who sits in on of the big trees as the back of our garden. She (I looked her up in a bird book) sat imperiously, deciding which of the several bird tables would provide her next snack. I came into the kitchen one day, to see her sitting under the bird table, with the body of a pigeon in her mouth, its feathers were on the ground around her. Watching her, watching me, and then her takeoff, slowly, her snack safely in her mouth was a memorable experience. i've accepted the pigeons will be regular visitors, but it's worth it to have all the finches, thrushes, black birds and others around as well.

I do agree with the not feeding birds in the garden policy, not even seeds or nuts. I am sad about this, but it's the only way not to have patio areas full of pigeon poo.We had so many pigeons in my village BUT since the red kites have done so well in the last few years and are spreading [they coast about in the air looking for pigeons] there are fewer about thank goodness. My son and DGS were looking out of their window at a pigeon strutting about when a kite pounced on it and there was a flurry of feathers [son turned DGS the other way not to see it] then next doors cat pounced on BOTH birds and made off with the pigeon.Nature eh? Red in tooth and claw.

When I had a fleeting visit from a rat a few weeks ago, (it's not been back!), the pest control man said " No bird food or scraps, and tell all the neighbours!"

Pigeon numbers are now up to twenty. There is no food they can actually get at but they sit like vultures on the roof hoping the little birds might spill something. It can't be a good way to make a living.

There is also a large hole at the bottom of the garden. Rats? Still it's a long way away.

No fleas mercifully

Two pigeons roost above son's bedroom window and the cooing annoys him a bit so his dad leans out of our window and"shoots" them with a water pistol. They do move out for a while. My partner used to run a pub where the loft was infested with pigeons. The amount of poo they produced caused the living accommodation to be overrun with small beetles. When he left he said he would write a book "my life with the beetles!"

Not crabs then Ana ?

That's what we had to do, Agus - never been bothered by pigeons until this year.

BTW, every time I look at the title of this thread, I think of fleas, or headlice!

Sadly and very reluctantly I came to the conclusion that the only way to get rid of them was to stop putting out bird food. Apart from smaller birds being bullied, the mess they made meant I had to clean a lot of areas before GDs could play outside during the summer. No matter what feeders I used, they still,appeared looking for leftovers.

I have just started putting out food recently as in winter, we do not use outside areas very much..

I think the dead ones were the worst bit !

Probably a bit like my old loft!

Remembering the way a woodpigeon smashed through my neighbour's double glazing in it's attempt to escape I think a peregrine would be very effective
A theatre I was involved in rebuilding had had generations of pigeons living on the top floor. The state of the rooms up there was beyond description.

We do have a very pretty little feather lined nest under our floorboards upstairs. Probably rats or mice though as I can't see how pigeons could get in there. We just put the floorboards back and pretended we hadn't seen it. Can't hear anything scuttering about at least.