Delaware River Keeper sues Phila. Gun Club over pigeon shoots
For three decades animal welfare activists have waged an Quixotic struggle to stop live pigeon shoots in Pennsylvania. They have battled gun clubs with powerful local constituents, the gun lobby which controls Harrisburg and district attorneys who regularly block attempts by humane offficers to file cruelty charges.
Delaware River Keeper sues Phila. Gun Club over pigeon shoots
Amy Worden, Inquirer Staff Writer
(A rare pigeon shoot survivor rescued from Delaware River)
For three decades animal welfare activists have waged a Quixotic struggle to stop live pigeon shoots in Pennsylvania.
They have battled gun clubs with powerful local constituents, they have fought the gun lobby which controls Harrisburg and waged war with district attorneys who regularly block attempts by humane officers to file cruelty charges for the inhumane treatment of wounded birds.
Several years ago the animal rights group SHARK won the support and financial backing of game show legend Bob Barker. His million-dollar donation has financed lawyers and high tech equipment to document the brutality of pigeon shoots (see video at SHARK site www.pashame.com) but they have not been able to halt the shoots through legislative or court action.
In fact, more shoots are cropping up at gun clubs beyond Bucks, Dauphin and Berks counties.
But recently the anti-pigeon shoot forces landed a new powerful ally in the Delaware River Keeper Network - environmental protector of the waterway that courses the length of eastern Pennsylvania.
The group filed a lawsuit against the Philadelphia Gun Club in Bensalem, Bucks County, alleging that the activity - with its near-weekly hailstorm of lead shot and slain birds over the Delaware - is polluting the river.
My colleague, Bob Moran, reported on the suit for the Inquirer:
Their complaint alleges that the pigeon shoots, which occur many times a year, pollute the Delaware with lead shot and fragments, as well as dead and injured birds.
The shoots attract animal-rights' protesters, including one who positioned a boat near the club during a shoot and recorded video of what appears to be shot and fragments falling into the water around him.
The gun club did not respond to a request for comment.
According to the suit, the club is about 132 years old and hosts at least a dozen trap-shoot meets a year. Instead of using clay targets, the club uses pigeons.
The pigeons are stuffed into steel traps and then launched into the air to be shot at, the suit says. Hundreds of dead and injured birds land on club property, the shoreline, or in the river.
In 2010, the club submitted applications to the U.S. Coast Guard to request a "safety exclusion area offshore" for safety reasons, according to the suit.
At some point, the club withdrew its applications, but has continued to host the pigeon shoots, the complaint alleges.
A Coast Guard spokesman could not be reached for comment.
Van Rossum, whose title is Delaware Riverkeeper, said the suit was necessary because "none of these regulatory agencies or the police are stepping up to do something about this."
Her group sent a notice to the club in October 2010 threatening a lawsuit if the shoots didn't end. The notice satisfied a 60-day-notice requirement for filing a suit based on the Clean Water Act, Van Rossum said.
"Shooting over the river is also a safety hazard and a disturbance for those who are trying to enjoy this reach of the river for wild birding, boating, fishing, or otherwise," she said.
The complaint asks the court to halt the pigeon shoots until the club complies with federal environmental laws. It also asks for the club to remediate any damage to the environment and be subject to civil penalties.
The suit also seeks reimbursement of the plaintiffs' legal costs.
Comment removed.
As long as they eat what they kill, I don't have a problem with it.— CCRichards- Comment removed.
- Yeah, but you don;t stuff them into boxes, then let them fly out to be instantly shot. Where's the sport in that? Following a deer or bear or hoping to get a pheasant to pop up in a field is sporting. You may get a shot, you may not and you have to work for it. This is just garbage.
— mike l - humans are rats with 2 legs. we spread more disease, cause more environmental destruction than any species. rats are actually there to clean up our mess. so go get a clue, ya mutant! — pbnewcomer
- no they are birds that are a living animals with the same organs as us and they do form emotional bonds. therefore when you kill one it is emotioanlly painful to the others. anyone who enjoys starving these birds and then shooting them is a pathetic human being and a psychopath. which do you fit? — hockeygal23
- These shoots are brutal and disgusting. Those who support them teach others that it is okay to blow defenseless creatures into pieces for the fun of it. By way of an analogy, the fact that a creature is an insect does not mean that it is acceptable to pull off its wings and watch it die. Indeed, engaging in such an activity is a predictor of future abusive behavior.
I don't like pigeons either, but that does not make this activity acceptable to me. Raising an animal, terrifying it, and then blowing it into small pieces or, worse, injuring it and leaving it somewhere to die, strike me as the truly unfortunate and uncivilized manifestations of behavior that is only marginally human.— BarbaraM - Stupid. At least these birds are born, you know, real birds. They are not shooting eggs. — mike l
- Anti-abortion is fine but a very different problem. The comparison does not hold up.
Anyway, staying on topic here . . .
I'm a hunter and find these sort of "Canned Hunts" repugnant. Lacking in sportsmanship or personal honor. Killing weakened, caged animals that are shoved out in front of you displays a weakness of one's character, nothing more.
— EnufIs2Much - VOTE OUT THE CONSERVATIVE LEECHES— tynol10
- Well okay but only if we can vote out the liberal leeches, the libertarian leeches and all other super-partisan leeches.
Just cleaning up one side won't fix anything.— EnufIs2Much - I would think it would be better sport to shoot the animal rights activists. They should offer themselves up in place of the pigeons. Have them jump off a tower and let the gun club guys blast them on the way down. Win-win.— hawk
- So what you are saying is that killing just to kill is a respectable activity whether it is an animal or a human? Lovely. I guess you think that hurling a pigeon from a box to the point that it is not even flying is some how sporting? Do you ever stop and think about it? So decaying and rotting animals around those clubs and in our rivers are totally fine with you? How about the birds that are not actually killed and die an agonizing death? If you are they type that enjoys that sort of thing, I suggest you let people with pets and children around you know...so they can avoid being around a sociopath.
- These shoots are not 'sporting' at all. They shoot the birds out of a box like a clay and then the idiots shoot them. I am not against responsible hunting but this is not hunting. They just sit there and wait for a pigeon to be hurled in their direction. They they leave the dead or dying birds to rot in the river, the shoreline or in the woods. This sounds like a good thing to ANYONE? REALLY?— scargosun
- Just as George Soros and the rest of the liberal community wants...using lawyers and wastful lawsuits to break individuality and individual civil rights in America.— Citizenc92
- dummy, there are plenty of conservatives that disagree with this practice. Would you prefer the libs to start shooting at the shooters? Yeah, probably would. BUt you'd run the other way. — mike l
- Out here in Arizona I hunt, own firearms, have a Concealed Weapon Permit. And I am against these sort of "hunts". Shooting a starved, dehydrated and weakened animal that's shoved out of a cage in front of you displays a severe lack of character, a failed sense of sportsmanship and a twisted view of hunting.
— EnufIs2Much - Pigeon shoots are the most pathetic events imaginable. These gentle birds are forced into the equivalent of a chinese food take-out box. The terrified, disoriented birds are shot at moments after they are released. It doesn't take skill to shoot them, it takes someone who has no sense of fairness or kindness. It is pure bloodlust, and there is no justification for it. If these birds are so disgusting, the lame claim made by pigeon shoot advocates, why are they intentionally being bred? The birds aren't disgusting, people who enjoy treating them so dementedly are. Pigeon shoots are something straight out of Deliverance, as are those who engage in them. They are a disgrace to Pennsylvania, and they should be banned immediately.— MaryF
- Filthy, dirty, disgusting birds . . .— Disco Dave
- I started hunting when I was a kid. I don't view it as something noble, or about some connection with the land, or anything like that. It's something I enjoy doing, and I enjoy eating what I hunt, and that's pretty much where my analysis of it ends. I go out every few seasons, and I'll probably teach my kids to do it. It's just one of those cultural things some people do. But whatever these guys are doing, it isn't hunting. And its isn't sporting. And it isn't even skillful. And I'm damned glad that someone is suing them for it, in whatever way will stop it. Head over to pashame.com and watch a few of the videos. Anyone -- hunter or non-hunter -- should be disgusted by what they're doing. They're basically shooting trap with live pigeons popped out of a box, at short range, and before the animal really has even a chance to take wing. Even worse, they're not eating what they kill, or even making sure what they wound is dead. This is a disgrace.— SCCL
- Way to go Shark and Delaware River Keeper!!
You guys are awesome! thanks for protecting our waters, our environment and our over all well being to live in peace and enjoy a healthy natural environment. You have our support 100%!— tulipwalk - I'm all in favor of gun rights and hunter's rights, but this is ridiculous. Use clay shots instead--they are probably harder to hit anyway. Hunting for food/skins, etc. is something I'm OK with. This just seems silly to do--its not like the bird is already flying; they get shot out of a box and barely have a chance to start flying before getting blasted. However, I doubt the shot and animals are contributing that much to polluting the Delaware-its already polluted.— ena1977
- More anti-gun activism in the name of the environment. I guess pigeon shoots cause global warming too?
Lead pellets and/or decomposing pigeons are not an environmental hzard on this level. I hope the suit gets thrown out. What a crock.
Pigeons are disease carrying scavengers. I love the picture in the article. How cute. It is not so cute when you or your children contract a disease spread by pigeons or pigeon droppings.
Think of the children!— Pilot - Stand your ground against pigeons! — CCRichards
- Killing creatures that are symbols of peace just for fun is sick! humans are definitely the worst species on the planet.— pbnewcomer
- Pigeons are not symbols of Peace. They are symbols of Poop. I don't like the hunts either, not in any way sporting. But pigeions are exactly as Mel Brooks described, filthy disgusting boids . . . — EnufIs2Much
- I may not be from the area, but as an active gun owner, you woud think that gun clubs would be more judicious in not only how they run their clubs but how they project themselves to the public who can either support of protest against them. All of the posts that I have read so far all have valid points to some degree. I can say though that if the gun club is not careful, instead of a bird getting shot, a person may accidently get shot that is an innocent bystander. What will they do then? Shouldn't preventative measures be started now on that instead of when it happens? I must say, it would 'kill two birds with one stone'...hmmmmm?
— 19pennyannie72 - Yes, SHARK is a caring organization! Thats why it's leader Steve Hindi beat me so badly March 31,2012 that I needed medical attention for a concussion, bruised ribs and a broken front tooth. Ask to see the video his companion made of the beating of me on the beach in front of his fellow SHARK members and not one offered me medical assistance. These people are just creating a job for themselves. there is nothing to see at this club as it is completely enclosed so that no pellets can escape into the river. The empty shotshell cases that they found are old cases from duck hunters and could have floated with the tide for many miles. SHARK members come clean and get rid of Steve Hindi as he is a violent convicted felon who is giving all of you a bad name. Watch what he is doing with Mr Barkers money. Keep a good account of it because a tiger doesn't change his stripes.— brddog
- Whats so different about this and catching a stocked trout? One critter is cute and the other isn't?— valentsgrif
- Out here in Arizona, I've been a gun owner and hunter most of my life. I eat what I kill or I do not hunt it. The very idea of using caged animals for recreational or competitive shooting events is repugnant to me. Were they cooking and eating these birds that would change matters somewhat, doesn't sound like they are doing that though.
As for the comparison to fishing for farm raised trout, that is not a good comparison. The fish are released into the wild well nourished and in good health. They are not held in cages and weakened by withholding food and water until it is time for the trap to be sprung. Now then, if they want to create a private preserve where they release birds into the wild to grow and flourish and then be hunted, well okay then.
Short of that this form of "Hunting" strikes me as lacking in sportsmanship and entirely dishonorable in execution.
— EnufIs2Much
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