Blue pigeon baffling Berkshire residents ‘may have been dyed for gender reveal party’

Bird seen wandering streets of Maidenhead has ‘everyone scratching their heads’, says one resident

A bright blue pigeon that may have been dyed for a gender reveal party has been seen wandering the streets of Maidenhead.
Residents of the Berkshire town are baffled by the “peculiar” markings of the bird, which wildlife experts believe may have been coloured as part of a gender reveal announcement.
Rebecca Machin, from the RSPCA’s wildlife team, said that the rising popularity of gender reveals may have inspired someone to dye the pigeon.
Warning that dye and paints can be toxic to birds, she said: “They would be likely to try to clean any such substance from their coat or feathers, which could result in them swallowing it.
“We suspect this pigeon’s feathers have been painted – something we seem to be hearing about more and more, including, anecdotally, at events like gender reveal parties.”
Simon Bryson, 35, who took several photographs of the pigeon, told the BBC: “I thought it looked quite peculiar – I’d never seen a pigeon that colour before. I got closer and managed to get a few pictures of it.
“When it opened its wings, I thought it was really impressive.
“I’d heard of people dyeing pigeons before, but the inside of its wings were done so intricately.
“People were saying it might have been spray dyed, but I work in car body repairs, and I’ve never seen anyone manage to spray a car like that, let alone the wings of a pigeon.
“It seemed like it was almost supposed to be that colour. It looked like it had a collar on it, so it must belong to somebody.
“I’m not quite sure whose it is – it looks like it’s owned by somebody. It might be a racing pigeon or something.
“I shared some pictures on the local Facebook group and asked if anyone had ever seen a pigeon that colour before, or if anyone had spotted it in the local area.
“It garnered a lot of interest – a lot of people commented and reacted. A lot of people got in contact with me and said they’d seen it, too.
“I’ll be very interested to find out where it’s come from – I think that’s what everyone is scratching their heads about at the moment.”