Penang Culled 24% More Birds in June as Council Gains Power to Punish Feeder
Source: Penang Today
Penang island culls jumped 24% in June as the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) tightened enforcement ahead of new laws giving courts power to order community service for people caught feeding birds.
MBPP culled 5,495 birds in June — 3,048 crows and 2,447 pigeons — up from 4,424 in May. The council also destroyed 59 crow nests and issued 21 compounds under Section 47(1)(g) of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974.
The crackdown came days before amendments to the same law took effect on 1 July. The changes allow courts to impose Community Service Orders (CSO) of up to 12 hours on individuals convicted of feeding birds in public areas, on top of compounds of up to RM2,000. Those who refuse a court-ordered CSO face fines of RM2,000 to RM10,000.
MBPP said the CSO provision aims to promote public awareness and “foster a stronger sense of civic responsibility.”
But the council’s own data tells a different story. Despite months of culling and enforcement, pigeon captures have risen year-on-year. In 2025, MBPP captured 10,171 pigeons, up from 9,585 in 2024, even as crow culling fell from 23,336 to 17,750 over the same period.
In June, Lawyers for Animal Rights called on MBPP to suspend a planned shooting operation on 14 June at Straits Quay, Tanjung Tokong and Tanjung Bungah. The group described the use of firearms in urban spaces as “deeply disturbing” and questioned whether any scientific assessment justified lethal force.
“A public notice asking residents to avoid entire neighbourhoods is not a risk-management protocol; it is an admission that the operation endangers the public,” the group said.
The lawyers pointed to non-lethal alternatives used in other cities, including better waste management, restrictions on public feeding and reproductive control programmes.
MBPP urged the public to stop feeding birds, warning that the practice encourages uncontrolled population growth, dirties public spaces and increases disease risk.
Source: The Star, NST, Free Malaysia Today
