Someone appears to be dyeing pigeons pink in Ashton-under-Lyne.
M.E.N. reader AJ Heeney sent these pics of the garishly-coloured bird in the car park at Ikea wondering if it was one of an ultra-rare species.
And while pink pigeons do exist in the wild - and are one of the most endangered species on the planet - this isn't likely to be one of them.
Fewer than 500 nesoenas mayeri pink pigeons are left in their native Mauritius.
They have a peachy-coloured breast and back, a rust-coloured tail and a dark pink beak.
But sadly one hasn't made the 6,000-mile journey to Greater Manchester.
The RSPB said the colours of the bird spotted in Ashton are unnaturally bright, indicating it may have been dyed.
In 2015, a spate of pink pigeon sightings throughout the UK were traced to a pigeon fancier who claimed dyeing the birds' feathers helped to ward away falcons.
And as the Daily Mail reported earlier this week a similarly coloured pigeon was also spotted in Berkshire.
An RSPB spokesperson told the Manchester Evening News the pigeon's colourings were not natural and it wasn't from the nesoenas Mayeri family.
They added: "Birds are living creatures and dyeing them in this way sends out an extremely worrying message that they could be viewed as novelties rather than as intelligent, sentient beings with feelings.
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"Dyeing a pigeon could cause health problems, impair his ability to fly and make him more vulnerable to predators.
"The dye could also be toxic and he would be likely to try to clean the substance from his feathers which could result in him swallowing it."
