Bolton actress Helen Flanagan has been left feeling baffled after spotting a bright pink pigeon.
The 33-year-old was in Bury town centre at the weekend when she spotted the bird roaming the streets.
Helen, known for playing Rosie Webster on Coronation Street, posted a video of the bird to TikTok. At the time of writing it has amassed more than 269,000 views.
The video was captioned: “Not my most glamorous post but a pink pigeon [is] roaming the street of Bury town centre.”
In the video she said: “It’s pink! What the hell, it is actually pink.
“No seriously what bird is that? Is that a pink pigeon?
“I mean am I being stupid? I have never seen one of these before."
@hjgflanagan1 Not my most glamorous post 😅 but a pink pigeon roaming the streets of Bury town centre 😂💗
♬ original sound - Helen Flanagan
Hundreds of people have since commented on the video, also confused about the bird.
One person said: “It really is a properly pink pigeon [it doesn’t appear to be] dyed! I didn't believe it myself at first.”
“It’s a ‘flamingeon’,” said another
A third commenter said: “I’ve seen two posts with pink pigeons in the UK in the past few days i wonder if it’s the same bird.”
“It’s another Barbie collaboration,” joked another.
Helen, who went to primary school in Bromley Cross, is not the first person in Bury to have seen a pink pigeon at the weekend and many are speculating about the cause of its pink colour.
Even Greater Manchester Police say its officers saw the bird while out on patrol.
A Facebook status said: “"Officers are out on foot patrol this afternoon as part of #OpHeartbeat Officers quickly came across a rare pink pigeon in the town centre.
“Have you seen Bury's Pink Pigeon yet? Let us know and come and say hi when you spot us."
Some have questioned if the bird’s feathers have been dyed pink or if they are naturally like that.
According to the Lancashire Wildlife Trust (LWT), there are pink pigeons, a rare bird on the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean but the real pink pigeons look more like doves and the pink is quite understated.
A spokesperson for the LWT believes that the pigeon has been dyed.
They said: “The bright pink colour of the pigeon in Bury is obviously dye. Someone has caught the pigeon and dyed it for some reason. I have heard that it is something people want to do at weddings and other events.
“It's a pretty horrible thing to do to capture a wild animal and then put it through a frightening experience like this.
“We don't know if the dye is toxic so it may affect the bird and any predators that attack it. It is also more exposed to attack, pigeons tend to use a flocking technique to get out of trouble.
“Being part of a flock is a good defence. A coloured pigeon stands out and will be targeted by any passing peregrine and other birds of prey - we have a lot of nesting peregrines in North Manchester and Lancashire.
“We are so lucky to have colourful birds, like pigeons in our parks and gardens, so why would we want to change their colour? Pigeons are great characters and really useful in clearing up a lot of mess humans leave behind.
“My advice is to enjoy wildlife as it is and don't spoil it for everyone else in this cruel and unnecessary way.”
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