"Jenny Coupland arrives on the scene a little later than her usual hour, with a backpack brimming with seed. As she begins doling it out, the birds descend from their perches and cover the ground, pecking furiously. The sun catches their bobbing heads, sending iridescent shimmers across their brown and grey feathers. A few passersby stop to watch; one takes a photo. The sheer number of birds is a spectacle not to mention startling, when they all abruptly take flight."
"They're a bit jumpy today, says Coupland, 43. Judging by the wary glances she shoots at the onlookers, she's not just referring to the birds. As the founder of the avian welfare group Peck Savers, Coupland has been feeding pigeons around Norwich for 10 years, but in recent months, she says, it has become a tinderbox situation. I think they're a damned nuisance' Eddie Graci. Photograph: Joshua Bright/The Guardian Over the past year, the flock here has swelled to about 300 pigeons, causing an increasing number of complaints from shoppers and traders."
On Saturday morning, the Memorial Gardens in Norwich attract hundreds of pigeons fed by Jenny Coupland of Peck Savers. The flock has grown to about 300 birds, leading to complaints from shoppers and traders about tables being overrun, food theft and droppings. Local visitors describe the gardens as a mess and national media have used the term "Hitchcockian" for the scenes. Norwich city council explored measures including a Harris's hawk pilot and feeding contraceptives to the flock, but contraceptive feeding lacks a UK licence and the hawk trial was put on hold, leaving the problem unresolved.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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