When it comes to wildlife, Feral pigeons sit in a bit of a grey area, They are descended from a wild species, the rock dove, but almost all of them that are living in the wild today have domestic ancestors that escaped or got lost and set up a new life in the wild. Rock doves were domesticated between 5 and 10 thousand years ago and have been selectively bred for meat, for fancy colours, patterns and shapes and for their unique homing ability. These birds have an inbuilt understanding of their location in the world and can return to their home from hundreds, sometimes even thousands of miles away without ever seeing the route before. This has led to them being kept by pigeon racers who challenge one another to see if their pigeons can get home faster than their opponents but it has also had a much more valuable use, to save lives and send messages in times of war. In fact, during the second world war, 54 dickens medals were awarded by the UK for the service of animals, of these 32 of the recipients were pigeons!
Because of their varied past, Feral pigeons come in a wide range of colours and sizes, from completely black, red, blue, grey, completely white and sometimes a mix of all of the above! They have a wingspan of 63 to 70cm (25-28inches) and weigh from 230 to 370grams (8.1 - 13 ounces). Males are usually slightly larger than females but as their size is so varied, from appearance alone it is almost impossible to sex a pigeon.
Naturally rock doves would have eaten seeds, grains, berries and fruits but as Feral pigeons almost live entirely around human settlements, their diet is far more varied and features a lot of scraps, that are either fed to them or which they get from among rubbish. You may have noticed pigeons missing toes or sometimes even their entire feet and this is a direct result of them getting food from in bins and rubbish. Whilst doing so they become tangled in wire, string or hair and eventually cut off the circulation to their digits.
Feral pigeons can breed from 6 months of age when males will begin courting females. To do this they puff they chest feathers and perform a dance, sometimes spinning, hopping, fanning his tail and making the well known bubbling call. Once a pair is formed, they will often remain together until one of them dies. After pairing, the birds create a flimsy platform nest of twigs and other small objects, naturally this would have been on a cliff edge or in a cave but in cities they prefer to use man made ledges, and almost ironically seem to be pretty good at making their nests on top of anti-bird spikes and among anti-bird netting. Each pair lays 2 eggs at a time. These are white, measure about 4cm (1.5inches) long and take 18 to 19 day to hatch. When the chicks, which are known as squabs first hatch, they are covered in a layer of yellow down. Both of their parents feed them in the nest with a cream like substance known as crop milk, which they produce in their crops, which is a pouch like area within the throats of birds. The squabs stay in the nest for between 24 and 30 days when they leave, fully feathered and the same size as their parents. This is why you might think you have never seen a baby pigeon, because by the time they leave the nest they are almost indistinguishable from adults. Young birds are fed by their parents for a further 2 weeks after leaving the nest, by which time the next clutch of eggs may have already been laid. Unlike most birds, feral pigeons can nest throughout the colder months as long as there is enough food available, meaning in towns and cities they often do so and can rear up to 6 clutches in a year.
I don’t know if its coming across in this narration but I really like feral pigeons and I couldnt make a fact file about them without stating just how intelligent they are. They are one of the only birds that can recognise themselves in a mirror, they can identify every letter of the alphabet, they can count at least up to 9, they can identify humans from photographs and they have even been taught how to play ping pong.
In the wild feral pigeons have an average lifespan of 3 to five years but in captivity the oldest pigeon on record lived for 24 and a half years.
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