Flock of baby pigeons found abandoned in Fife layby after nests moved

A flock of baby pigeons, alongside a dead adult pigeon, were found dumped in a layby in Fife after their nests were disturbed.

The Scottish SPCA were alerted after a member of the public discovered the birds huddled together in Kirkcaldy.

After being transported to a vet practice, the animals were collected by an officer and taken to the National Wildlife Rescue Centre at Fishcross on May 29.

It was found that the ten nestlings are of differing ages, so it’s likely the pigeons came from multiple nests.

Chris Smith, wildlife manager at the centre, said the nests were likely disturbed before being moved, but they do not know where they came from.

He explained: “We suspect that multiple nests were disturbed by a member of the public who then moved them to the layby location.

“No nests were found on the ground near the birds so we have no evidence of who or what location they may have come from.”

Each nestling has been split into groups based on age to ensure they all receive the required care from the centre.

They were tube fed on arrival, with smaller birds placed in temperature-controlled incubators.

They were then tube-fed three to five times a day with an easy-to-digest hand-feeding formula to support their growth before their release back into the wild.

Chris added: “Once they are large enough, the pigeons will be placed in an outdoor aviary with up to 15 others to build up their flight muscles and encourage more natural foraging behaviour before they’re released.

“A nestling will either be fluffy, sparsely feathered or have no feathers at all. They are too young to survive out of the nest so are highly vulnerable.

“If you come across a nestling and you know where the nest is, you can carefully put the bird back into the nest.

“If the nest location is unknown, you can create a replacement using a small cardboard box and line it with moss, grass and tissue before placing the makeshift nest in a bush or tree near to where the nestling was found so that its parents can feed it from there.

“It is advised to watch from a distance and the parents should come to attend to the young bird.

“It is very common for well-meaning people to disturb or accidentally rescue a baby bird when it doesn’t need to be rescued at all.”