What the Flock?! Giant Pigeon Lands in Times Square, Courtesy of PETA
For Immediate Release:
April 14, 2025
Contact:
Alex Payne 202-483-7382
They’re born-and-bred New Yorkers! Reminding everyone that “It Ain’t Just Manhattan,” a humongous pigeon stars in a new sky-high message perched over Times Square this month from PETA. The mighty rock dove confronts viewers with an impassioned plea to show pigeons some courtesy—because, after all, they partner for life, are devoted parents to their young, and are excellent multitaskers, just like any other amiable urbanite.
“Pigeons are naturally curious and friendly animals, and like humans, they don’t want to be harassed on the streets, trapped, or killed,” says PETA Senior Vice President Colleen O’Brien. “PETA urges everyone to take a bird’s eye view of pigeons and understand they’re no different from other New Yorkers surviving and thriving in the city, and they deserve respect.”
Most pigeons in New York today are descended from birds who arrived alongside human settlers hundreds of years ago. They have complex inner lives and powerful navigational abilities; can identify individual humans by their facial features; and are able to recognize patterns and predict the best solution to a given problem. PETA urges everyone to refrain from bullying or maligning pigeons and using harmful bird-repellant sticky caulk that can trap or poison them. Instead, building owners can respectfully encourage pigeons to move on by making simple building modifications, such as angled ledges.
PETA’s billboard is located in Times Square, near 42nd Street and 7th Avenue.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—notes that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
