PIGEONS By Robert Mangile

1. PIGEONS By Robert Mangile http://mail.sumnercomm.net/~rmangile/Pigeons/index.html

2. Some things about myself. I love spaghetti and meatballs!

3. Some things about myself. I love Ice Cream!

4. Some things about myself. I love Pigeons!

5. And little great grand daughters!

6. Have been involved with pigeons since eight years of age. Above: Me with a pair of Swiss Mondain pigeons - about 1950.

7. Spent 35 years building heavy machinery at McNally Manufacturing Corporation in Pittsburg, Kansas

8. Inside vacant McNally building after it closed in Feb. 2002

9. These are two of several dam gate hoists that wound up back east. The large gear is 12 feet in diameter.

10. Have no formal higher education but many say I possess a degree of “difficulty”!

11. Elaborating on all the various aspect of pigeons and pigeon keeping can a very lengthy process. Being unsure of what might be of interest to the general public is a dilemma so I’ve broken this presentation into a mixture of those aspects. Courtship and reproduction. Associations with Man Hobby Food & Business Military and Homing Pigeons Research

12. Names for pigeon in various languages. Dutch = duif German = Taube Irish = colm Norwegian = due Italian = colomba Czech = holub Hungarian = Galamb Polish = Rzecz Swedish = duva Scientifically speaking, there is no difference between a pigeon and a dove. There are about 300 species of pigeons/doves in the world. The word ‘pigeon’ is derived from the Latin word ‘pipio’, meaning ‘young cheeping bird’. The word ‘dove’ is of Norse origin and first appeared in the 14th century as ‘dova’ or ‘douve’.

13. Orange Fruit Dove Crowned Victoria Pigeon Nicobar Pigeon Crested Pigeon Emeraled Dove White-winged Dove Seychelles Blue-Pigeon Diamond Dove Inca Dove

14. Wood Pigeon C.palumbus Stock Pigeon C.oenas Rock Pigeon C.livia Band-tailed Pigeon C.fasciata Snow Pigeon C.leuconota Spectaled Pigeon C.guinea

15. Some things about all pigeon species. • Very strong fliers. • Monogamous - pair for life. • Build flimsy nests. • Lay only one or two white or creamy white eggs per clutch. • Both sexes incubate eggs and feed young. • Feed newly hatched young “pigeon milk”. • New hatchlings are altricial - (baby chicks are precocial). • The only birds that drink in drafts - like a horse. • Produce various versions of a cooing sound.

16. Some things to remember about Columba livia . Breeds range in size from six ounces to over three pounds. Male pigeons are called “cocks”. Female pigeons are called “hens”. Courting males do what is called a “Bow Coo” Male & female pigeons physically “kiss” - called “billing”. Tend to be cavity nesters if given a choice. Male pigeons produce a long groaning “nest call”. Male pigeons “drive” their mates to the nest site. Nestling pigeons are called “squabs”. Fledglings are called “squeakers” because they squeak. They love taking a bath.

17. The operculum on a pigeon is the fleshy tissue at the base of the bill. Pigeon fanciers call it the wattle. The fleshy tissue around the eye is called the cere, a term used for the waxy substance on the bills of raptors. Rock Doves/Pigeons are considered to the the ancestors of all domestic breeds and weigh from 10-15 ounces.

18. It is likely that the original wild Rock Doves (now called Rock Pigeons), due to interbreeding with feral pigeons, are no longer considered “pure”. Sometimes called Blue Rock Pigeons.

19. A real Blue “Barless” Rock Pigeon from Europe.

20. Bow Coo by male courting female - dragging his tail to produce a swooshing sound.

21. Courting and billing.

22. Right: Swing Pouter flight. Most free flying pigeons glide in the fashion after mating. Top: Mating - male treading hen.

23. Fighting - slapping with wings. Fighting - pecking at each other’s head.

24. Pigeons love taking a bath.

25. Flimsy nest of coarse material - even wire. White pigeon eggs which are laid about 44 hours apart.

26. Brooding parent on a nest of pine needles & feathers. Hatching takes about 18 days. Body temperature 107 degrees Fahrenheit.

27. The egg tooth, used to pip open the shell, is absorbed in a few days after hatching.

29. An Oriental Frill regurgitating pigeon milk to its new squab.

30. Crop/Pigeon Milk is produced by both the cock and the hen. It develops as a thickening of the crop wall during incubation and is about 50% protein.

31. Well fed squabs - notice the large crops full of milk. Solid food in gradually included at about a week of age.

32. Leg bands are actually applied to the foot!

33. How to apply a seamless band at 5-7 days of age.

34. A photo sequence showing the down plumes that are mostly worn off at fledge. Each down plume is pushed out by the incoming feather.

35. Fledglings are called “squeakers” because of the squeaking sound they make. Notice the soft pale wattle on upper bill, dark eyes , the dull plumage and lack of down plumes.

36. Though completely defenseless squabs display a formidable appearance by standing upright, puffing up their body to appear larger and will wing-slap and/or thrust their head forward making a popping sound with air from their lungs.

37. Top right: Three weeks. Bottom right: Four weeks. Top left: One week. Bottom left: Two weeks.

38. Drinking in long drafts unlike other birds. Food ration should contain 12-16% protein depending on season. Whole Yellow Corn Whole Popcorn Whole Milo Whole Wheat Hog-Finisher Pellet Egg-Laying Pellets Pigeon Pellets Canada Field Peas Maple Peas Austrian Peas Mineral Mixture - also called “grit”. 60% Crushed oyster or clam shells. 38% Crushed limestone or granite. 2% Trace mineral salt. Fresh water available at all times.

39. Egyptian pigeon towers.

40. Iranian pigeon towers.

44. Thomas Jefferson designed a grand dovecote for Monticello. Two views of the same Colonial Williamsburg dovecote.

45. South Carolina dovecotes. The cote on left built before 1880 and a more modern cote on the right.

46. English dovecote. Squabs near fledge were tethered.

47. Hapyco Lofts

48. This loft belongs to a correspondent of mine in Minnesota.

49. Walsh Loft in North Carolina.