強烈要求 停止安裝並拆除中環半山天橋鳥刺

Call for Immediate Removal of Bird Spikes installed in the Central-Mid-Levels Escalator

背景: 為何被迫遷離原居地?

自從中環街市重新設計，街市外牆裝滿鳥刺後，一班原居民 — 鴿子， 被迫遷到中環街市往半山天橋的天花電線槽, 以作棲息之處，可惜近月電梯管理公司開始於整個電線槽安裝鳥刺工程，令鴿子無處可生。

何謂鳥刺，及帶來的問題?

「趕盡殺絕」式的鳥刺令本來棲身電線槽的鴿子一夜間失去容身之處，他們冒受傷的風險也要硬飛進原本的家，有雀鳥被困於鳥刺陣中，動彈不得，亦有鴿子因而被刺傷翅膀的。

錢從哪裡來?

有區議員指有市民投訴並「鴿子數量多怕有衛生問題」，所以安裝鳥刺工程由政府撥款、區議會通過、管理公司執行。

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所以「香港救援鳩鴿及雀鳥」 現發地聯署，懇請各界人士幫忙向區議員及管理公司提出及解釋：

1. 停止趕盡殺絕，保護動物生存權利

鴿子智商相當高，而且當年1997回歸，政府曾帶領放生 10000 隻鴿子象徵和平，牠們順利成章成為在香港定居的白鴿，再繁殖下一代。

2.移除並停止安裝鳥刺，避免再有鴿子被困，受傷，甚至死亡

鳥刺並不是 「無傷害性」， 香港愛護動物協會指出目前安裝的鳥刺會令雀鳥「易入難出」，而且雀鳥可能會降落到鳥刺之上，有機會刺傷雀鳥。

3.為鴿子平反禽流感，傳播病菌的謬論

需知道，世衛已有報告指出，就算在疫區，感染了禽流感的鴿子低於千分之二的機會 ，比起其他雀鳥更為最少機會被感染。 而更重要的是，多份報告指出，鴿子是 [終端宿主] , 即鴿子傳播禽流感為風險極低。

Background: Where do the birds dwelling in the escalator come from?

With the kick-start of the central market redevelopment project in 2017, the bird spikes are installed and filled all over the exterior wall of the central market, wild birds mainly pigeons and doves as the indigenous inhabitants are being forced to leave and resettle along the Central-Mid-Levels Escalator and rest themselves on the internal beam of the walkway system.

While struggling to scrape by with this bare resource, the birds are further pushed out of a deplorable living by the recent installation of bird spikes along the ceiling of the walkway system which again forcing the birds leaving to NOWHERE.

SPCA has already received reports of birds getting trapped in the panel of bird spikes.

What are bird spikes and how are they jeopardizing the wild birds?

Without any pre-arrangement to make transient place for the birds to rest, the animals were left without choice but to make home in the inside ceiling of the escalator which operates in the neighbourhood.

They were so desperate to find a place for rest that they hovered over the forbidden area and sometimes fell into the maze of spikes.

Who are the parties responsible for the set up of spikes?

The district councilors alleged that they had received complaints from local residents about the birds causing nuisance to the area.

Government funding was approved for the installation of spikes to be carried out by property management companies working on contract.

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We, Hong Kong Pigeon and Dove Rescue, are now pleading to all of you to make request to the district councilors and property management companies involved for the following:

1.Stop driving them out of the community

They are part of the city and have the right of abode! The intelligent pigeons are symbols of peace and love. In the celebration of return of sovereign rights to the Chinese government, the Hong Kong government has released 10,000 pigeons to herald a smooth transition of sovereignty.

The HK government has played a major role in ushering a population of wild pigeons into the city.

2.To remove the spikes immediately

Bird spikes can definitely cause physical harm to birds. As commented by SPCA on recent incidents which reported trapping of birds among spikes, they have made clear that birds can easily fall into the maze of spikes, yet difficult to get out by themselves. Also, birds can get injured while landing accidentally on the spikes

The walkway system serves to provide a convenience for the human activities but is the only place in the area to call home for the birds.

Please return to them this teeny weeny amount of space we have snatched from the wildlife.

3.Pigeons rarely catch bird flu virus and are not the prime carrier of the disease.

There have been various medical studies to confirm that columbidae are not susceptible to bird flu virus.

They rarely catch the disease nor spread it to other birds or species.

That is to say, it would be very difficult to pick up the virus by spending time in a park with flock of pigeons, let alone just walking past by.

Decrying pigeons as the culprit of bird flu virus is simply unfair to the animals.

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Text provided by Gian

Edited on 15 Jan 2019