Pigeons roosting at the top of the church tower of St Mary’s in Swanage, Dorset, have been making the path below too slippery for churchgoers, so the rector Ian Bird has stepped in with a solution.
On Friday 11th September 2026 a decoy peregrine falcon was positioned on the top of the tower which dates back to the 14th century, to keep the pigeons away.
The narrow path at the bottom of the tower was becoming too slippery due to the pigeon poop
“Increasing amount of slippery guano”
The idea is for the fake peregrine falcon to act as a deterrent and to encourage the pigeons to roost elsewhere.
As a bird of prey, a real peregrine falcon is a natural predator of pigeons.
Rector of St Mary’s the reverend Dr Ian Bird said:
“There was an increasing amount of slippery guano on the Purbeck stone path between the church and St Mary’s rooms.
“The pigeons were sitting on a ledge on the tower, roosting overnight, and unfortunately, the inevitable was happening! Seriously, it was becoming a health and safety issue.”
Martin Wickham expertly positioned the decoy to deter the pigeons
The peregrine falcon looks authentic from a distance
“Very wisely cleared off for now.”
A lifelike peregrine falcon was quickly purchased online and positioned on top of the tower by local parishioner and engineer Martin Wickham.
The reverend Bird added:
“So far the experiment seems to be working and we appear to be guano-free at the moment, although it is early days.
“In the past, we’ve had a real peregrine falcon on the church tower attacking pigeons, so it seems the birds have very wisely cleared off for now.
“But we’ll have to move our new friend around, otherwise the pigeons will get wise to our ploy!”
The silhouette of the bird of prey among the rooftops
The pigeons are steering well clear of the church tower for now!
Further information
- More about St Mary’s church and the Swanage and Studland team ministry
