PEST control officers have agreed to place anti-roosting wires on Ilkley's Winter Gardens and King's Hall complex to keep the pigeons off the buildings.

And an Ilkley resident has made a plea for people to stop feeding the birds in a bid to keep them away from the town.

District Councillor Martin Smith said that the birds roosting on the Winter Gardens were causing a mess and a health hazard. "The area around the display boards looks like part of the Galapagos Islands because of all the guano," said Coun Smith.

He said he was in favour of putting wires up because the measure would be less unsightly and cheaper than netting.

A cull would not work because pigeons from other areas would just take over the places of the culled birds.

In Skipton, the suggestion of a pigeon cull prompted a demonstration last week outside the town hall by animal rights activists.

It was recently reported that a 37-year-old mother in the Netherlands died after contracting a lung disease from pigeon droppings she regularly had to clean from the fire escape at her home.

Her children, who helped her clean the fire escape, were also affected. It is thought that it is the first time a human has succumbed to disease contracted from feral birds rather than captive-bred birds.

Councillor Smith (Con) said that he hoped that the money for installing the wires would be available in April.

Ilkley resident Jean Clark said she had seen shop keepers in the town putting out food for pigeons.

She said her son, who lives on The Grove, found dead pigeons and eggs in his loft space. Mrs Clark urged residents to stop feeding the birds so they would stay out of the town. "It needs cleaning up - we don't need covering in pigeon droppings," said Mrs Clark.