Bird spikes and netting

There’s a railway bridge not far from us that the city council recently decorated with anti-bird netting and spikes. In previous years we saw pigeons raising chicks there so it made me sad to see it all netted up with spikes everywhere. I wrote a letter of complaint and got a reply explaining that pigeon poo – guano is the industry term – damages steel structures. Fair enough but could we not install an alternative roost for those we displace when we do this?

When Ben and I were on one of our evening walks to feed the fox family I noticed a pile of bird droppings under the bridge. Knowing that it was all netted and spiked I looked up with interest and saw two pigeons had chosen the street lamps as their roost for the night. You can just make out the bird above the lamp in this next photo. It appears suspended in mid-air.

Here’s a close-up of the other lamp.

Is this not a depressing sight? What is the purpose of anti-bird spikes when the birds sit and poo all over them anyway? This image says a lot about our species. We take land from wildlife for our own purposes, forcing them into ever smaller and fragmented pockets. But when they try to live with us we respond with spikes and netting.