People in Marlow have expressed their anger after the RSPCA revealed they ‘strongly suspect’ that a pigeon had been grabbed before being dyed pink.

Kate Robinson, who took the photo of the bird on July 9, spotted the winged creature in the town’s Globe industrial estate before posting it on social media.

She said: “Why would anyone do this to a pigeon? It is currently on the Globe industrial estate on top of the cafe roof.

“It has been pottering around and then flew up onto the roof. I'm so glad to see it can fly.

"Some water has been put out for it, but it seems very tame or could be in distress.”

Another user said they saw a similar bird with the same colour pattern in Bourne End.

A spokesperson for the RSPCA said: “We’d be concerned by the possibility that someone may have intentionally painted the pigeon’s feathers.

“This is very worrying as it could cause health problems, impair their ability to fly and make them more vulnerable to predators.

“Dye and paints can be toxic to birds and animals, and they would be likely to try to clean any such substance from their coat or feathers which could result in them swallowing it.

“If you spot an animal or bird in distress, call the RSPCA’s 24-hour emergency hotline on 0300 1234 999 for advice or to request help from an officer.”

This comes after an orange ‘exotic’ bird was taken to Tiggywinkles in Haddenham, which turned out to be a herring gull covered in curry.

READ MORE: 'Exotic' bird found in Bucks