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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Authorities in Kraków, Poland’s second-largest city, have announced plans for a contraception programme intended to curb the pigeon population. The scheme will involve distributing feed treated with a contraceptive drug in specially prepared feeders.
The southern city, which is Poland’s main tourist destination, is known for large flocks of pigeons gathering in its historic centre. Its medieval main market square is often crowded with the birds, creating one of the city’s most recognisable scenes.
The birds are even part of the folklore of the historic city, which used to be Poland’s capital. According to legend, a witch transformed the knights of Henry Probus, the high duke of Poland, into pigeons, which then pecked stones from St. Mary’s Church (pictured above), which turned into gold.
However, in modern times, the large number of pigeons is increasingly seen as problematic, with city officials saying the new initiative is intended to address complaints about fouling of buildings and pavements as well as damage to infrastructure.
The scheme will initially be run as a pilot programme, with contraceptive-laced bird feed placed in selected locations where the largest pigeon populations occur. The measure is intended to gradually reduce breeding and lower the number of birds in public spaces, without resorting to trapping or killing them.
The city is launching the programme in cooperation with academic researchers and an animal rights organisation. Przemysław Baran, a vet who is involved in the scheme, says that it will also help reduce the number of sick and malnourished birds.
“Every day, we receive 20-30 sick pigeons, and we are not the only centre that deals with such pigeons,” said Baran in a video published by municipal news service Krakow.pl. “We decided to find a systematic solution.”
Warsaw Zoo has launched a new facility, open 24/7, at which people can drop off injured wild birds
The project was funded as part of the city's "citizens' budget", in which residents can propose and vote for projects to be implemented with municipal funds https://t.co/0Msq73Uol9
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) February 9, 2026
Sabina Janeczko, Kraków’s animal rights officer, also reassured residents that the contraceptive drugs being used pose no threat to humans. Officials note that similar methods have been tried in other European cities, including Brussels.
Polish cities have in recent years been trying to find humane ways of dealing with growing animal numbers. Last year, Gdynia in northern Poland started planting fragrant flowers such as hyacinths, whose smell is intended to repel wild boars, which are increasingly encroaching on urban areas.
Kraków itself began testing high-tech boar traps in 2021, and in 2023 appealed to residents to stop feeding the animals. Meanwhile, the mountain resort town of Zakopane has installed bear-proof rubbish bins and launched a special police unit tasked with scaring away bears from populated areas.
The Polish city of Gdynia has found an unlikely ally in its ongoing battle with wild boars: flowers.
The animals, which dig up urban lawns and flowerbeds in search of food, are deterred by fragrant species such as hyacinths https://t.co/9ZtDTxUVhu
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) April 29, 2025
Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Main image credit: Monica Kelly/Flickr (under CC BY-SA 2.0)
Alicja Ptak is deputy editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland and a multimedia journalist. She has written for Clean Energy Wire and The Times, and she hosts her own podcast, The Warsaw Wire, on Poland’s economy and energy sector. She previously worked for Reuters.
