THE days when Venice tolerated tourists feeding pigeons in St Mark's Square are over. It's now illegal, and the sale and distribution of grain to feed the birds has been banned.

The ban ends a tradition that attracted pigeons, and their droppings, to the most picturesque part of the lagoon city. Fines for ignoring the ban start at 50 ($85), the mayor's office said.

But vendors who sold grain to the tourists are not happy: they are now out of a job.

"Thanks, Mr Mayor, for killing off our business after 100 years of sales," read a banner.

Authorities say pigeons are eating away at marble statues and buildings by pecking at small gaps in facades to reach for food scraps blown inside.

Cleaning monuments and repairing damage cost each Venetian taxpayer 275 ($460) a year, it was said.

"The monuments aren't being damaged by the bird droppings. They want to send them away, just like they want to kick us out, and we've been here for decades," one vendor said.

"Sooner or later they'll even take away the gondoliers."

The battle against the birds is part of a broader campaign to improve decorum and cleanliness in Venice, which welcomes more than a million tourists a month.