Kamikazi Pigeons

By Jabo
@jaboUK (64354)
United Kingdom
March 22, 2021 3:54pm CST
Pigeons keep flying into my windows, sometimes killing themselves, sometimes not. I've had four do this in the last few weeks, one on the living room window, the rest on the upstairs bedrooms. I could understand them crashing onto my living room windows as there are large ones both ends, so they could conceivably think they could fly through, but that's not the case upstairs. One made a real mess on my front bedroom window which is so wide that I can't reach it from the inside. I could almost get to it with the kitchen mop but not quite. It will have to be cleaned from the outside using a ladder, but I'm afraid my ladder days are long gone. I'll have to get a professional window cleaner to do it. Pesky pigeons!
32 people like this
32 responses
@MALUSE (69373)
• Germany
23 Mar 21
Here people who have large window panes glue silhouettes of birds of prey onto them to chase away the pigeons.
8 people like this
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
23 Mar 21
That's a good idea.
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
I wouldn't fancy that but I suppose it would do the job.
3 people like this
@MALUSE (69373)
• Germany
23 Mar 21
@owlwings @jaboUK These black silhouettes on the window panes may not look pretty but definitely better than bloody bird corpses below them.
4 people like this
@Tampa_girl7 (50080)
• United States
23 Mar 21
We have a lot of birds, but I don’t recall one ever flying into our windows.
5 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
You're lucky.
4 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
@Tampa_girl7 I don't have any lizards here, though we do have the gardeners' friend - hedgehogs.
2 people like this
@Tampa_girl7 (50080)
• United States
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK I have an occasional lizard on my window screen looking in at us.
3 people like this
@BelleStarr (61102)
• United States
23 Mar 21
That is awfully strange, where are the pigeons coming from? A neighbor with pigeons?
4 people like this
@BelleStarr (61102)
• United States
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK I have never seen A pigeon except in London. I guess they are not indigenous here in New England. or at least not near me.
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
No, they are wild but very abundant here. I think they must see the reflection of the trees and sky and think they can fly through.
4 people like this
@MALUSE (69373)
• Germany
23 Mar 21
@BelleStarr We see pigeons in the centres of all German towns where it's easy for them to find food. There is a small shop in the pedestrian precinct of our town where hot dogs and French fries are sold. One can eat inside or sitting at tables outside when it is warm enough. You have pigeons walking under the tables all the time waiting for a French fry to fall down. They may even jump onto the tables and steal one. But there are also crazy people who feed them although it is forbidden. I know a woman living in the house opposite. She told me that she and her family once went on holiday but forgot to close the window of the bathroom completely. It had stayed open a bit. The pigeons who drove her and her family crazy sitting on the window sills cooing all day long had discovered this. When they came back after three weeks, they found the bathroom full of sh*t! One can argue that this is what a bathroom is for but scratching off three-week-old bird sh*t is no pleasure.
3 people like this
@TheHorse (217891)
• Walnut Creek, California
23 Mar 21
Dumb pigeons? My piano song Little Bird is inspired by a sparrow who decided to do the same thing at my friend's house. I was able to save the little guy from interested kitties. He eventually flew off. Have you seen/heard it? There's a picture of me with a dazed sparrow on my finger at the end.
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
A sparrow wouldn't make the same impact as a pigeon, I don't suppose it even marked the window. These pigeons leave big greasy smears which are hard to clean off. I've not heard your song.
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
@TheHorse Just watched that, it's lovely.
3 people like this
@TheHorse (217891)
• Walnut Creek, California
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK No, they just tend to drop to the ground with a broken neck. My brother lost a canary that way. My parakeet survived my open curtains for many years when I was a kid. I'll attach the song if I can find it. The slide of me with the sparrow is near the very end.
"LittleBird" Composition And Piano by Colin H. SacksSound Recorded by - Michael StenbergLike and subscribe for more songs and videos... :)
3 people like this
@JudyEv (338640)
• Rockingham, Australia
23 Mar 21
Thankfully we only have little birds knocking themselves out on our windows. Of course, that's bad enough but a big bird might break the glass.
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
@JudyEv Yes I have double glazing but I wouldn't know if that would make a difference.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
My windows have withstood them so far, let's hope that continues.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (338640)
• Rockingham, Australia
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK Do you have double glazing? And would that make the glass stronger as it were? Our windows are all single panes.
3 people like this
@sunrisefan (28524)
• Philippines
23 Mar 21
I've read a news article about a request to high rise buildings in the U.S. for them to put out their lights at a specific time period during the night because thousands of migratory birds passing through certain areas die because they smash through the windows because of the light coming from the inside. The birds think they can pass through or they see the reflection of the sky. I just can't remember the specific states where the request has been addressed to. Many have complied though.
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
That's interesting Nando. The birds here don't fly at night, not the pigeons anyway.
3 people like this
@sunrisefan (28524)
• Philippines
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK Yes, found the article interesting too, Janet, because it said that birds by the hundreds of thousands die smashing into windows of tall buildings along their migration flight path.
3 people like this
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
22 Mar 21
This used to happen quite often at our previous house where we had a conservatory with large windows and a sparrow hawk used to occasionally chase the pigeons our of the trees in the garden. I think that the pigeons, seeing the reflection of the trees and the sky, simply think that its a place they can escape to safety and blunder into the windows leaving a greasy angel smear. Sometimes they break their necks (and the hawk gets his dinner). Since we have lived in our current house (which is in a city-village and not really near any fields) the pigeons seem to be more aware and we haven't had any incidents except for a stray pheasant which somehow managed to fly into the window of our neighbour's upstairs flat, broke its neck and fell onto the ground below. My neighbour looked at it and didn't want to deal with it so he gave it to me. I didn't much want to deal with it, either - the whole business of plucking and drawing a bird is outside of my comfort zone - so, after asking around, I took it to a local butcher who agreed to do it for me. A day or so later, I picked up the bird. Birds without their feathers are a lot smaller than you think and this was no bigger than you'd imagine a largish crow to be! There wasn't a lot of meat on it. Anyway, I cooked it, relieved it of the flesh and, with quite a lot of help from some liver, made a paté from it. It turned out quite well and did us for a couple of lunches. Of course, I gave half of it to my neighbour, whose window it had sullied!
2 people like this
• United States
23 Mar 21
That is some story. I would never want to do that. Glad you took it somewhere yo get it dressed.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
22 Mar 21
How descriptive - 'leaving a greasy angel smear' - that's exactly it! Wish I'd thought of that. Thanks for telling me of your experience with the pheasant. I certainly have no desire to pluck or 'dress' a bird. Some years ago we decided to raise some geese for the table - far more trouble than they were worth.
2 people like this
@snowy22315 (179715)
• United States
23 Mar 21
Poor pigeons...I would hate to have that happening here. I have the grids on the windows though so they don't think it is open air space. I am sure that helps immeasurably.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
I think some of them don't die as I don't often find a body, but they might knock themselves out for a bit. You're probably right about the grids but I wouldn't like them on my windows.
1 person likes this
• Pamplona, Spain
23 Mar 21
Last year one flew straight through the window onto the floor a young one. I managed to get the brush head underneath him and he perched on there and flew out into the open. Oh my goodness I was more scared that he could not fly than he was himself he was perfect
2 people like this
• Pamplona, Spain
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK We both knew that I was not going to hurt him so he calmed down on the brush head I was biting my nails till I saw him fly sraight and strong up into the sky.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
@lovinangelsinstead21 That must have been a lovely moment.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
That bird was lucky that the window was open. Mine weren't so lucky.
2 people like this
@jstory07 (139336)
• Roseburg, Oregon
23 Mar 21
Can you clean it by using a water hose.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
The trouble is that it's greasy so it needs really scrubbing so a hose on it's own wouldn't do the job.
2 people like this
@rakski (120549)
• Philippines
23 Mar 21
oh my, poor pigeons.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
Yes, they are to be pitied.
2 people like this
@rakski (120549)
• Philippines
24 Mar 21
@jaboUK oh, I did not know that. Thanks for that info
1 person likes this
@DianneN (247186)
• United States
23 Mar 21
Ugh! We don’t have pigeons in our yard, but we occasionally have that happen with birds.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
Up until these last few weeks it has only been an occasional happening, but 4 of them since then seems a bit much.
2 people like this
@DianneN (247186)
• United States
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK Yes, things come in fours these days. lol
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26641)
• Singapore
23 Mar 21
Yes, some days are past. I still have in mind your riding a horse with nonchalance.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
I'm afraid limitations do come with age, that's inevitable, but it does have it's compensations
2 people like this
@Shiva49 (26641)
• Singapore
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK Yes, mine is taking life easy, stretching my legs. And not forgetting, priority in vaccination!
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
@Shiva49 Yes - all of the above!!
2 people like this
@CarolDM (203422)
• Nashville, Tennessee
22 Mar 21
They can be pesky for sure. What a mess they can make. Thankfully we don't get those here, but I see them when I go out.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
22 Mar 21
There are lots of these birds round me, it's very rare that I look out of the window and don't see any.
2 people like this
@CarolDM (203422)
• Nashville, Tennessee
22 Mar 21
@jaboUK I am so sorry you have these around.
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
22 Mar 21
@CarolDM Yes, and their cooing can get so monotonous. They repeat the same notes overe an over, not like proper birdsong.
4 people like this
@much2say (55318)
• Los Angeles, California
25 Mar 21
I know we've had some little sparrow type birds smacking themselves into our windows, but they seem to be ok and fly away thereafter. But oh, pigeons !
1 person likes this
@much2say (55318)
• Los Angeles, California
25 Mar 21
@jaboUK I imagine they make such a crashing sound too . Right - I mean I know I've run into glass doors just by walking . . . flying into one would be a different story!
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
25 Mar 21
Most of the ones that smack into my windows do manage to fly away as I don't often find their bodies. Whether they die elsewhere I don't know but they must at least be stunned.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
25 Mar 21
@much2say It's quite a loud thud when they do it but I don't always hear it if it's upstairs. I just find the telltale marks.
1 person likes this
@kaylachan (68501)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
22 Mar 21
Those poor birds.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
22 Mar 21
I suppose that's one way of looking at it, but they are rather stupid.
1 person likes this
@LeaPea2417 (37334)
• Toccoa, Georgia
23 Mar 21
That's happened to us a couple of times, birds flying into our clear sunroom window and killing themselves. It's quite sad.
1 person likes this
@LeaPea2417 (37334)
• Toccoa, Georgia
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK Yes, that's it.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
Yes it is sad, I think they are fooled by the reflection.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (470745)
• Switzerland
23 Mar 21
I cannot understand the reason, we only had an accident with a dove, it did not kill itself, but it flew in the window of our French door in the dining room.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (470745)
• Switzerland
23 Mar 21
@jaboUK It is possible, now I keep the curtains inside closed, it never happened again after I kept them closed.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
@LadyDuck I don't want to live in a darkened room in daytime, so my curtains will remain open.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
Owlwings has suggested that they mistake the reflection for real trees or sky etc.
2 people like this
• Midland, Michigan
24 Mar 21
I hope they quit bothering your windows. Sometimes we use extendable poles for higher windows when or ladder guy is busy.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
24 Mar 21
It would probably cost me as much to buy an extendable pole as to pay a window cleaner
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
24 Mar 21
@MarshaMusselman Oh yes, I'd get him to do the whole house while he's here. It costs £30 for inside and out which I think is reasonable.
1 person likes this
• Midland, Michigan
24 Mar 21
@jaboUK probably. If they'll do just the windows the birds messed up unless you're thinking of them all too perhaps?
1 person likes this
@thelme55 (76843)
• Germany
23 Mar 21
What an awesome photo! Sometimes, pigeons are coming on my balcony. Every time I want to take photo of the pigeon,it flies away.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
23 Mar 21
The photo is from pixabay but I was pleased to find it. There are lots of pigeons round here as we are surrounded by trees.
2 people like this