Strasbourg, France doesn't really want to be pigeon-free, but it would like to reduce the numbers and it has a nearly Rube Goldberg plan to do it, involving building pigeon lofts, staffing them with tame pigeons and sterilizing eggs.
Pigeon planning in France can be complicated by pro-animal groups that have opposed programs that cull pigeon populations and other animals considered pests.
Strasbourg's plan has already placed two lofts like the one above and are adding two more. Each starts with a dozen tame pigeons. At first they can't leave, but when they are released, they attract wild pigeons to make their home in the lofts and lay their eggs in the 72 niches in each one. Pigeons pairs can produce up to 20 offspring a year.
City officials will visit the lofts and needle-pierce eggs to keep them from developing and hatching, leaving one untouched egg per pair. The official in charge expects a 15% a year drop in pigeon population, or nearly 50% over three years.
Other cities in France, and some in the U.S., have gone a less complicated route by distributing grain dosed with bird contraceptives in areas where pigeons flock together.
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