Abu Dhabi: Readers across the country responded to a recent report by Gulf News on pigeon trapping, some suggesting that the birds might be captured for their meat.
The article, published last week, reported that residents were concerned about people trapping flocks of pigeons.
Hilary Barreto, 54, said he had witnessed a similar incident near his house on Salam Street.
"They were capturing only the biggest, fattest birds. One bystander told me that the birds are eaten as a delicacy in his country, and supposedly that this was why they were being trapped," Barreto said. He however declined to name the nationality of the bystander.
Gulf News spoke to a number of people and was able to confirm that pigeon meat is considered a delectable dish in Egypt, and in Asian countries like the Philippines and Bangladesh.
"We, however, do not serve pigeon meat in our restaurant here," confirmed a manageress of a Filipino restaurant in the capital. An Egyptian restaurant which lists stuffed pigeons on its menu said they procure the birds directly from Egypt, to ensure that they do not transgress any UAE laws.
When Gulf News approached the owner of a store selling birds and other animals in the Mina Fish Market, the owner said the birds were imported from Syria and Holland."I do not believe we are allowed to trap pigeons in the UAE. We once noticed people capturing birds in this area, and we asked them to refrain from the practice," he said.
He added that people who came to purchase pigeons mainly took them home to keep as pets.
A spokesman at the UAE Public Slaughterhouse said pigeons were never brought there to be slaughtered and advised that people who eat pigeons avoid eating birds trapped in the UAE. "Frozen birds which have been bred specifically for consumption in other countries are better," he added.
A spokesman from the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA) said the slaughtering of pigeons is banned in restaurants, and only allowed in slaughterhouses.
