My Pigeons at the Farm
My flight of pigeons is thriving at my Bedford, New York farm - they are all healthy, happy and enjoying each other’s company in their newly expanded enclosure.
About three years ago, I adopted a small group of pigeons - Homers, Tipplers, Tumblers, as well as one of the oldest breeds, the Syrian Damascene. Pigeons are fascinating, intelligent creatures. Here at Cantitoe Corners, they live in a pen adjacent to my peafowl yard and across from my stable. These birds get lots of attention whenever friends and family come to visit - they make wonderful additions to my flock.
Enjoy these photos and the interesting information on these gorgeous birds.
-
- The pigeons are housed behind one side of my Linden Allee and right next to my peafowl. Their dovecote is the perfect size for these fancy homing birds and the enclosure gives them lots of room to fly.
-
- My Bedford flock started with 10-pairs of birds, which included breeds such as Dunn Tipplers, Egyptian Swifts, Damascenes, and Isabella Tipplers.
-
- Fancy pigeons are domesticated varieties of the wild rock dove, bred by pigeon fanciers for size, shape, color, and behavior.
-
- They love to perch atop the branches waiting for visitors. We “planted” this tree inside their enclosure. Pigeons have excellent hearing. They can detect sounds at far lower frequencies than humans, and can hear distant storms and volcanoes.
-
- The entire coop is well protected from aerial predators. Here is a pigeon enjoying the views from the roof. An adult pigeon is about 13 inches in length and can weigh up to 20 ounces.
-
- 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. This pigeon flew into the coop from this spot on the roof.
-
- Inside 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. They take turns incubating the eggs and both feed the chicks ‘pigeon milk’ – a special secretion from the lining of the crop which both sexes can produce.
-
- On the other side, we made a suitable ladder out of felled branches found right here at the farm. The pigeons love to perch on it and on nearby ledges during the day. Pigeons also breed all year round with peak breeding periods in spring and summer.
-
- 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. 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.
-
- Pigeons are very docile, gentle and sweet-natured birds – everyone at the farm loves visiting them. on the left is an Isabella Tippler and on the right is an Almond Tippler.
-
- Here is a mating pair perched on the narrow ledge – able to see everything around them from this vantage point.
-
- Pigeons are very observant and one of the most intelligent of all the bird species.
-
- I just love the wide range of colors and markings on these birds. Do you know… a group of pigeons is called a flight or a flock. And a baby pigeon is called a squab.
-
- 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.
-
- Pigeons are very social animals. They will often be seen in flocks of 20 to 30 birds.
-
- The tippler is a breed of domestic pigeon bred for endurance. Some of them have been known to fly for up to 22-hours nonstop.
-
- Pigeons have side-mounted eyes. Because pigeons have monocular vision rather than binocular vision, they bob their heads when they move so they have depth perception. This is an Egyptian Swift.
-
- 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.
-
- Oftentimes, pigeons of the same breed will stay close together. The dark bird is an Egyptian Swift. The birds below are Dunn Tipplers.
-
- The dark Egyptian Swift is known for its long tail, long wings, and short beak. Below is an Almond Tippler.
-
- This pigeon is watching all the farm activity from the bottom half of the Dutch door to the coop, perhaps waiting for dinner. I hope you are all able to safely enjoy the outdoors today – take a walk, do some chores or observe the wildlife.
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
