The Animal Care department of the City Council of Santa Cruz de Tenerife has disclosed that in December, a total of 1,037 doves were captured within the municipality and placed in the Fauna Control Service facilities at Tenerife North Airport. These doves are to be used to train and enhance the physical abilities of falcons, which are deployed to ensure air safety.
The mayor, José Manuel Bermúdez, explained in a statement that “these captures, conducted through selective trapping cages, are essential to regulate the presence of these birds in the city, and thus, assure optimal public health conditions for the inhabitants.”
Additionally, Councilor for Animal Welfare, Carlos Tarife, remarked that “the quantity of cages will continue to grow and will be moved to different areas of the city for controlling this species, which can pose public health issues and whose droppings can cause considerable damage to historical sites and monuments, which we must safeguard and preserve as part of our cultural and historical heritage.”
The mayor also urges the public to “refrain from feeding the doves” as it is the way to “address the environmental quality problems they cause” and emphasizes that “currently, there are 42 cages installed across the municipality.”
During December, more than a dozen activities were conducted, including the setup and positioning of cages, site inspections, evaluations, and removal of roosters and hens.
All these operations, including the doves’ capture, demanded the expertise of three bird control specialists.
