City birds appear to like men more than women, but experts have no idea why

A woman wearing a short skirt and pink sandals stands in the midst of a group of pigeons. .

Despite being surrounded by a multitude of people, urban birds may be picky about who can approach them, new research suggests.

After surveying over 37 city bird species in five European countries, experts found that the avians fled sooner when approached by women than by men. The findings, published in December 2025 in the journal People and Nature, suggest that the birds can differentiate between the sex of the person approaching them.