A Visit with My Fancy Pigeons
My pigeons continue to thrive here at my Bedford, New York farm.
If you follow this blog regularly, you may know I have about two dozen fancy pigeons. I’ve had them for two-and-a-half years. Many of the birds were featured in the well known New York City “Fly by Night” performance by artist Duke Riley and were members of Duke’s personal flock. Others were borrowed or rescued from pigeon fanciers for the performance. And now, a small group of them lives here at my farm in a protected enclosure adjacent to my peafowl pen. Pigeons are actually very fascinating. They have been domesticated for thousands of years and have been kept by people worldwide for their companionship, their sport, and their loyal service. Caring for these birds is a nice way to pay tribute to the pigeon and to learn all about these intelligent and wonderful creatures.
Here are some photos - enjoy.
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- The pigeons are housed in this coop across from my stable – it is the perfect size for these fancy homing birds and gives them lots of room to fly and roost.
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- The coop is in the center of the enclosure and completely netted to protect them from predators.
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- Fancy pigeons are domesticated varieties of the wild rock dove, bred by pigeon fanciers for size, shape, color, and behavior.
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- My Bedford flock started with 10-pairs of birds, which included breeds such as Dunn Tipplers, Egyptian Swifts, Damascenes, and Isabella Tipplers.
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- They love to perch atop the doorway waiting for visitors. And, they have excellent hearing. They can detect sounds at far lower frequencies than humans, and can hear distant storms and volcanoes.
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- Inside the coop is an entire wall of nesting spaces. Pigeons mate for life and both female and male pigeons share the responsibility of caring for and raising their young.
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- Pigeons also breed all year round with peak breeding periods in spring and summer.
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- Oftentimes, pigeons of the same breed will stay close together – these are all Dunn Tipplers.
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- Pigeons are very docile, gentle and sweet-natured birds – everyone at the farm loves visiting them and talking to them as they pass their coop.
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- This is a dark Egyptian Swift known for its long tail, long wings, and short beaks.
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- The Damascene pigeon is thought to have originated in Damascus, Syria. It is loved for its beauty and companionship – it is even believed that the Damascene was an avian companion to the prophet, Muhammed.
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- A pigeon’s diet contains about 50-percent grain crops, and 10-percent oilseed, rich in vitamins B and E. An average adult-sized pigeon can eat about 30-grams of food each day. Like all our birds, we make sure the pigeons always have fresh food and water.
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- Pigeons are very social animals. They will often be seen in flocks of 20 to 30 birds.
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- And like humans, pigeons can see in color, but they can also see ultraviolet light, a part of the spectrum that humans cannot see. As a result, pigeons are often used in search and rescue missions at sea.
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- The pigeon has side-mounted eyes. Because pigeons have monocular vision rather than binocular vision, they bob their heads when they move for depth of perception. This is an Isabella Tippler. The tippler is a breed of domestic pigeon bred for endurance. Some of them have been known to fly for up to 22-hours non-stop.
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- Although they love to roost, pigeons can fly at altitudes of 6000-feet or more. Pigeons can also fly at average speeds of up to 77-miles per hour.
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- Pigeons are thought to navigate by sensing the earth’s magnetic field and using the sun for direction. Other theories include the use of roads and even low-frequency seismic waves to find their way.
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- They’re very observant and one of the most intelligent of all the bird species.
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- All my birds have lots of perches made out of felled branches found right here at the farm. We “planted” these trees for the pigeons and the peafowl and they all love them.
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- This white bird is a Homer – among the most famous pigeon breeds. Homers come in a variety of colors and have a remarkable ability to find their way home from very long distances.
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- This pigeon is watching all the farm activity from the window of the coop – perhaps it’s waiting for mealtime. See you soon, my dear pigeons.
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