Life finds a way

The hall window outside my lab faces a parking deck. In an attempt to deter birds from flying in to the deck, they have placed some wire mesh and a couple fake owls above the exit from the roof level. 

I have been watching a large family of pigeons that has nested in the mesh, behind the owls. I have seen that you-tubers report mixed results using these owls as a pigeon deterrent. It's simply amusing to me that the pigeons here are nesting directly behind the owls. Maybe they are cocky Philly pigeons: "I ain't gonna let no owl stop me from using this prime real estate." Maybe they are smart - "We are less afraid of this immobile, plastic-smelling owl than of other pigeons and predators messing with our nest." But whatever their reasoning, they have probably picked a pretty good home, and they have clearly raised a successful clutch, despite attempts to reduce their number in the garage. I find this appealing... although I would not find this as appealing if, instead of pigeons across the alley, we were considering ants in my kitchen.

I remember from college, decades ago, a long evening chat session. One boy asked "Why don't we yet have an entirely safe, effective chemical birth-control? Is it just political?" To which, one girl answered "No, it's biological. Living organisms are are defined by their ability to reproduce; it's what we are primarily designed to do. It is difficult to override such a major body function." 

Or as Jurassic Park's Ian Malcolm says "Life finds a way."