Punta Marina deploys peacock rangers as population hits 120
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- Punta Marina's peacock population has grown from an estimated 10 in 2018 to 40 in 2023 and about 120 today, with no official census yet, according to local accounts and ornithologist Rosario Balestrieri of the Naples-based Anton Dohrn zoological station.
- Ravenna city council has recruited 'peacock rangers' to clean excrement from streets, homes, and car wheels, and is planning the town's first official peacock census, as tensions escalated after a viral social media post of a resident imitating the mating scream.
- A local police officer dismissed recent reports of an 'invasion' forcing residents away due to public health threats as 'wildly exaggerated,' though residents Francesco and Marco cited sleepless nights from mating screams and unhygienic droppings on balconies and walkways.
- Clama, a voluntary animal rights association enlisted in 2022 after a failed relocation attempt, is distributing leaflets and signage telling residents and tourists they must not feed the birds, with fines possible for those who do.
- Cristina Franzoni of Clama said other Italian regions have offered to 'adopt' the birds but argued removal would cause 'trauma,' stating: 'We need to try to live with the animals instead of making them victims of our choices.'
- Ornithologist Balestrieri attributed the population surge to supplementary feeding by locals and to COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020, when peacocks roamed freely through an empty town and learned to associate humans with food.
Why it matters: With around 120 peacocks now roaming a town of roughly 1,000 residents and no official census yet, Ravenna city council faces a concrete governance test: balancing animal welfare advocates who oppose relocation against residents who report sleep loss and hygiene problems. The decision on whether to feed, relocate, or coexist will set a template for other European towns where ornamental bird populations are booming.
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