| Rock Pigeon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Columbiformes |
| Family: | Columbidae |
| Genus: | Columba |
| Species: | Columba livia |
The Rock Dove or Rock Pigeon, often referred to simply as Pigeon (Columba livia) is a common bird in the family Columbidae.
Feral Pigeons, the descendants of domesticated Rock Doves, are amongst the most common birds found in urban areas around the world.
Description[]
The Rock Pigeon has a length ranging from around 30 to 35 cm and a mass ranging from 240 to 380 g. It has very strong muscles within its wings and is incredibly fast in flight. In fact, it is very popular for racing. City pigeons are no more than wild rock pigeons that colonized cities and domestic pigeons that escaped from lofts. In the generic plumage coloration of this species, the body and the head are light blueish-gray, wings are light grey (almost white) with two black bars and the neck has an iridescent green and violet color. The iris is red-orange and feet and legs are pink-red; the bill is black (or dark gray) with white cere. City pigeons and domestic breeds vary a lot in colouration, as they can be white, black, grey, or reddish and have many different patterns.
Behaviour[]
These birds nest inside small areas such as boxes. Commonly, in pigeon coops, when pigeons are owned by humans, there are boxes about one foot (50 cm circa) in width and one foot in length. The Rock Pigeons will nest in these tiny areas. Wild Rock Pigeons live naturally on cliffs near the sea, both in Eurasia and North America (where they are invasive). They do not migrate but are very good fliers. They breed in small flocks and make nests with twigs and straw, lay about three white eggs. Parents are very protective and feed the chicks "crop milk", a nutritious substance produced by both adults. The chicks, also called squabs, have yellow down. Rock Pigeons' predators are Peregrine Falcons, gulls (like Yellow-legged Gulls and Herring Gulls), sparrowhawks, foxes, cats and others. City pigeons nest mainly on terraces and eaves and are very numerous in big cities. They can easily find food in city squares and parks, where people feed them with crumbs of bread, but they also eat seeds and small insects. Rock pigeons don't instantly bond with another. Pigeon fanciers may notice this at the moment they purchase a Rock Pigeon. Pigeons take time to get used to one another due to their nature. Pigeons prefer freedom, thus, the owners have their Rock Pigeons race in the outdoors. This also benefits the owner. Once the pigeons come back, the owner uses mathematics and clocks to time their speed and how long it took them to get back to the coop. Pigeons usually live from five to fifteen years, but can reach the age of thirty years (especially in captivity)
Relationship with Humans[]
As Food[]
Many humans prefer to eat pigeons. Rock Pigeons have become very popular food in Europe. The White King pigeons, however, are dread to be eaten.
In Captivity[]
Pigeons keep good company. Many people prefer to keep them as pets. In times such as war, soldiers would use trained captive pigeons to carry messages to command posts. This was not always successful, as sometimes the rock pigeon would lose the trail or drop the message. Today, captive pigeons are used for racing. They don't easily bond with humans and prefer the company of their own species instead.
Gallery[]
