A Maltese researcher has found that using falconry can be an effective method of controlling the feral pigeon population in urban areas.

Bradon Borg, who recently graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in animal management and veterinary nursing from MCAST, researched the effectiveness of falconry in controlling pigeons from a set of office buildings.

Together with his feathered companion, a Harris’s hawk named Lazer, Borg wanted to find out whether the pigeon population around a group of buildings could be controlled ethically, that is, without harming the pigeons themselves.

The results of his study show that the simple presence of the hawk in areas where the pigeons roost was enough to drive them away, by triggering their instinct for self-preservation in the presence of a predator.

“Pest birds such as feral pigeons are a big problem in urban areas around Malta, as they do not have natural predators in Malta, have easy access to food, water and shelter and they can get used to the normal pest controlling methods,” Borg’s dissertation says.

The falconer needs to build great trust with the bird and must always ensure that he is the pack leader- Bradon Borg

“With falconry, the pest birds have a constant threat, because an apex predator is always lurking and flying around their area, which physiologically tells the feral pigeons that the area is no longer safe to stay, resulting in the feral pigeons fleeing the area.”

Lazer the hawk was trained specifically to chase away the pigeons and not to hunt and catch them. To minimise harm to the pigeons, the experiment was also carried out just prior to the roosting season, to prevent injury to the fledglings, which are flightless.

Using a laser pointer technique, Borg and Lazer deve­loped flight plans around the buildings, differing each time to prevent the pigeons from getting accustomed to a particular flight pattern.

“Harris’s hawks hunt in packs and form a hierarchy within the pack, and for that reason, the falconer needs to build great trust with the bird and must always ensure that he is the pack leader.”

That way, the falconer is always in control of the bird, and not the bird in control of the falconer, Borg said.

Lazer the Harris's Hawk. Photo: Mario Vella

Two locations used for experiment

The study entailed the falconer walking around the areas with the bird following from one place to another.

In footage seen by Times of Malta, the mere presence of Lazer perched motionless atop a building was enough to send a flock of pigeons scrambling to the skies.

As he is recalled, Lazer glides gracefully back to the falconer and receives a reward for a job well done.

Borg focused the experiment on two locations, a group of buildings surrounding St Theresa church in Cospicua and office buildings in Smart City, Kalkara.

Conducted over 12 weeks, Borg first spot-counted the number of pigeons before the experiment, then over the course of the next four weeks conducted a series of free flights with the hawk, each time differing the time of day and the number of times a week that they visited the location.

Following that, another spot count of the pigeons was conducted.

Allowing a two-week break for the pigeons to return, the experiment was then conducted again using the five-week routine.

Borg’s results during the 10-week period show a dramatic decline in pigeon populations around those buildings, with some buildings showing that no pigeons at all had returned to the site following the experiment.

A graph from Borg's dissertation

Pigeons realised hawk was a potential threat

The three buildings in Cospicua and the church started with a total population of 90 pigeons on day one, which went down to just nine pigeons on day 70, while the population on the buildings in Smart City went from 85 to 10.

“This further proves how falconry, when applied properly, can be used as a means of pest control to scare away feral pest pigeons from roosting in buildings,” Borg said.

He said the feral pigeons naturally felt the threat of a bird of prey, even though they do not face this threat on a daily basis in Malta.

“They reacted in a way a prey animal would when the Harris’s hawk is introduced and flown near their roosting areas, as they always scattered off even though the hawk was not actively hunting.”

He said the level of intimidation seemed to increase as the pigeons realised that the hawk’s presence was a potential threat to them.

He concludes that falconry may be more effective than other methods such as culling, as previous attempts to cull populations have shown that the solution is only temporary, with pigeons returning to their previous numbers after a short period of time.

With the proper training of falconers and strategic planning, the data shows that falconry can be used to ethically but effectively control feral pigeon populations, he said.

“This is a demonstrably clear answer that this technique can work when used and implemented properly.”