“Think pink” took a whole new turn when a pink-coloured pigeon was found in Manhattan’s Madison Square Park on Jan. 30, according to the New York Post.
Wild Bird Fund, an Upper West Side non-profit bird rehab group, tweeted out the Pepto-Bismal-hued bird was “deliberately dyed” for a gender reveal or a wedding.
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“Pigeons come in many different colors and plumages, but pink isn’t one of them,” the WBF tweet said.
“This is a domestic pigeon who was deliberately dyed this color and released.”
Pigeons come in many different colors, but pink isn't one of them. This king pigeon was deliberately dyed and released. As a domestic bird unable to find food in the wild, fly well or escape predators, this poor kid had it bad enough before being dyed.
📷: Phyllis Tseng pic.twitter.com/SnhdIOJsHU
— Wild Bird Fund (@wildbirdfund) January 31, 2023
The group says live birds shouldn’t be used for such events.
“Please never release domestic birds to the wild. Not for weddings, funerals, celebrations, art projects, anything. (We’d hope that “don’t dye them” goes without saying, but …) They will starve or be preyed on,” the group said on Twitter.
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The pink pigeon showed “signs of long-term malnutrition” but was “now safely in care,” the group added.
“This poor bird has it bad enough as a domestic bird unable to find food in the wild, fly well or escape predators, but being a bright, unusual color makes him even more of a target. He’s also barely more than a fledgling but shows signs of longer malnutrition.”
ABC 7 reported Tuesday that the pink pigeon may have been bought at a poultry market and had likely not flown before.
