Pigeon Bird Man NYC is a photo I couldn’t resist. I saw him in Washington Square Park, New York City, June 1st, 2019, when we sat down to enjoy Greenwich Village falafels.

You might think the birds flock around this man just for food, but look closer. The majority are hanging. They like the pigeon bird man, and he likes them.

• A Greenwich Village Walking Tour

His animal-friendly generosity reaches out to passersby. DONATIONS FOR BIRDSEED reads a bag open near his feet.

Washington Square’s Bird Man NYC’s Don’t Miss Nearby

A hundred yards east, you find Colin Huggins with his piano that kills fascists…

Huggins was once a reasonably sane person who accompanied dancers for the Joffrey Ballet.

Indoors.

For a steady paycheck.

But in 2007, at 29, he decided to busk instead, giving up security and boredom for freedom and creativity.

• Is Pigeon Poop Now Out of Control on Roosevelt Island?
• When RIOC Destroys Habitat, Birds Get Lost
• Bird Law Spells Lights Out for City-Owned Buildings in Bid to Save Feathered Friends
• “You can tell a lot about a man…” Cat Art Print
• Habitat Devastation, Two Years Later, in Southpoint Park

It was tough going at first. Chased from Father Demo and Union Squares because complaints poured in about the large crowds, he moved. Penalized for success in 2011, the city fined him over $6K for playing the piano.

But today, he continues, along with the Pigeon Bird Man of NYC, keeping Washington Square Park the most original of Manhattan venues.

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An Emergency, Apparently

A demolition rushed, an explanation missing, and a community left outside the room.

Eleanor Rivers Dec 19, 2025

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