A Dunedin building ”not fit for pigeons to live in” has gone from abandoned wreck to winner of the top award at the Dunedin Heritage Awards.
The Dunedin Heritage Re-use Award was won by Ted Daniels for the restoration and preservation of the historic Standard Building in Princes St.
Mr Daniels bought the building eight years ago and has spent several years bringing it back to life through a mixture of preservation of historic elements, recreation of lost details and the careful insertion of new and exciting features such as a main staircase.
”It was in pretty bad condition when I bought it. It was waterlogged, it had rotten floors, the facade was orange, all the ornaments were taken off and pigeons were living inside.
”It wasn’t even fit for pigeons to live in. Most people would have looked at it and thought to demolish it.”
But Mr Daniels saw potential in the building.
”There is a lot of history in the building and that is very important to me. It’s a pretty unique building. It has a bluestone wall in there from 1860 which no-one knew existed.”
Mr Daniels was delighted with the award, and said all the positive feedback he had received about the restoration had made all the money and time poured into it worthwhile.
”It’s been very rewarding.”
The awards, held at Toitu Otago Settlers Museum last night, recognised excellence and innovation in the reuse of heritage buildings and a range of people involved in heritage re-use, including building owners, conservation professionals, project managers and engineers.
Dunedin City Council heritage policy planner Dan Windwood said the winners demonstrated the many uses that could be found for Dunedin’s heritage buildings, making sure the city’s unique history was not lost.
”The awards are an exciting time each year to acknowledge efforts being made across the city to restore and revitalise heritage buildings and show the public some of the excellent work that’s being done.”
Other winners were: Dunedin Heritage Re-use Award highly commended: Gallaway Cook Allan, 123 Vogel St (owner Chris Barnes); Earthquake Strengthening Award: 123 Vogel St; Heritage Interiors Award: 123 Vogel St; Earthquake Strengthening Award, highly commended: 90 Bond St (owner Hayden Cawte); David Cox Memorial Award: New New New, 218 Crawford St.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Cliff has not lost his pigeon racing touch Sport. 00:45Thursday 27 April 2017
Retired docker Cliff Edwards has many pigeon racing successes under his belt, and he showed that he has not lost his touch by taking the first four places in Boston Central RPC’s opening race of the season from Bubwith. Results: 1, 2, 3 and 4 G. and C. Edwards 1853, 1851, 1843 and 1838 yards per minute, 5 and 6 Appleby and Daughter 1817 (2), 7, 8 and 9 Upsall and Grandson 1810, 1798 and 1797, 10 and 11 K. Ward 1788.663 (2), 12 Upsall and Grandson 1788.237. From Wetherby, the first four places were taken by Upsall and Grandson: Results: Upsall and Grandson 1685, 1680, 1666 and 1631, 5 Appleby and Dtr 1620, 6 Frost and Spooner 1615, 7 and 8 G. and C. Edwards 1592 and 1590, 9 K. Ward 1588, 10 Upsall and Grandson 1585, 11 Appleby and Dtr 1581, 12 A Cooley 1574. Swineshead and District RPC results: Bubwith – 1 and 2 Craig Pearson 1687 and 1629.743, 3 and 4 G. Wheatman 1629.587 and 1576, 5 Craig Pearson 1549, 6 G. Wheatman 1429, 7 Mr and Mrs T.F. Welby 1381. Wetherby: 1 and 2 Craig Pearson 1521 and 1515, 3 and 4 Mr and Mrs T.F. Welby 1489 and 1428, 5 Craig Pearson 1402, 6, 7 and 8 G. Wheatman 1343, 1274 and 1211.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
There’s a lot to talk about in the day to day political climate. Bombings, elections, air strikes, Supreme Court justices. The list goes on, and painfully so. But instead of talking about those things, I’m going to take a breather, hop onto a new soapbox and speak in defense of something a little closer, geographically, to Point Park.
Pigeons.
To many, they’re just vermin who get in the way when you’re walking to class. To some extent, that’s all true. Pigeons do in fact carry diseases, and they do have a tendency to get in your way on the street. But if I’m just being completely honest, if you just change a couple words in that sentence you’re also talking about humans.
Pigeons get a lot of crap thrown at them on a day to day basis and almost 100% of it is caused by humans. Be it punk kids trying to kick them while waiting for the bus, or some college kid trying to step on them for a cheap laugh, but have you ever paused to consider the fact that a pigeon has the actual resources to crap on you. Even if they do poop on you, rather than be angry and curse the pigeon, change your perspective. In many cultures it’s good luck to get pooped on by a bird.
To most, they are winged rats. To me, they are survivors. They fearlessly walk alongside man, like equals. They fearlessly walk into oncoming traffic, like warriors. They look danger in the eyes and scoff. They hobble around the city in the most mesmerizing fashion, like a once fabulous woman who spent a few too many nights in her stilettos.
Speaking of fearlessness, during World Wars I and II pigeons were used to relay top secret messages. They were chosen for their instinctual homing capabilities, and for their service they were awarded the Dickens Medal.
So yeah, there are 32 pigeons who are war heroes. Their missions were dangerous, enemy forces would try and shoot down the pigeons in hopes to intercept the message. One such pigeon lost her leg and her eye, but saved the lives of American infantrymen who were surrounded.
Aside from that fact, let’s think critically here. Why do people really hate pigeons? Because they carry diseases? So do humans, so do squirrels, rats and chickens. Because they can poop on you? So does every other species of bird, and humans too. Because they have wings? First of all, they can’t help that. Second of all, so do butterflies and every other species of bird. Because they’re gross? So are a lot of things, humans included.
I’m not saying that pigeons deserve to be worshipped or that they deserve to be treated better than people. I’m saying they deserve better. They don’t deserve to be kicked by punk kids or stepped on. They’re products of nature and vital to an ecosystem. It may not seem that way, but it’s true. We used to treat the bees like they were disposable and now we’re facing an environmental crisis because of our neglect. It’s unfair to hate something just because it’s gross or it gets in your way.
It is important now more than ever to show respect to those around us. Sometimes it starts small with working past your prejudices against pigeons. You may think it doesn’t matter, but it does.
Making room in your heart to be kind to pigeons makes room to be kind to people you may not like. It’s an exercise in tolerance, and I think we could all use some exercises in tolerance.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
A PUPPY was savaged by a hawk brought in to see off pigeons from its owner’s posh block of flats.
Chihuahua Dolly was in a garden when the bird sank its talons into her throat and bit her head.
Owner Eunice Barth was left horrified after her pet Chihuahua was savagely attacked by the hawk
Owner Eunice Barth, 80, said: “I remember the moment I heard Dolly scream.
“She was being dragged along the floor and the hawk was just about to fly away when the handler threw it some red meat.
“She was covered in puncture wounds. There was blood pouring everywhere.
The four month old pup was dragged along the floor by the bird of prey
“I was screaming hysterically, Dolly was screaming, it was awful.
“It was shocking, it left me in such a nervous state.”
Four month old Dolly was attacked after she snuck into the garden while her artist owner was taking out the rubbish.
The pup thankfully made a recovery after her owner forked out £400 on vet bills after the attack last June.
But now the hawk has made an unwelcome return to manage pigeon pest control at the luxury flats in Regents Park, London.
Eunice now fears the bird of prey could strike again or even attack one of the newborn babies in the block.
“My dog was savaged. How could they hire that hawk again?
“I can’t bear that it’s come back.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
The City Times has received numerous letters to the editor from Benonians who have found dead birds on their properties.
“We live in Airfield and have had a similar experience,” said Haley Steingrover in response to a previous letter that was published.
“In a space of about two to three weeks we have had four dead pigeons in our garden.
“All the other birds seem to be fine; it’s just the pigeons.
“We are concerned for the poor birds and also for our animals that are around these birds.”
Elizabeth van Genderen, of Rynfield, said on March 15 that over the last month she found two dead birds.
“My son witnessed one drop out of the tree and hit the ground,” said van Genderen.
“When we went out there, it was already dead.
“This is disturbing.”
Judy Davidson, of Wildlife in Crisis, said the deaths should not be a concern and that she is “pretty sure” the cause is E. coli.
She said a dove and pigeon from Marister and Rynfield were taken for an autopsy, which revealed E. coli being the cause of death.
Davidson said the bacteria is species-specific and that there is no danger for other animals or humans.
She said the only confirmed reports of pigeon and dove deaths have been in Benoni.
The non-profit organisation is still searching for two or three fresh carcasses to conduct further tests on.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
“Years and years and years ago, when they first recognized there were pigeons, monks found them in a cliff, and they captured them for food,” according to Charlie Klipsch, a breeder of racing pigeons (called Racing Homers).
Klipsch operates a loft, dubbed “Flying Surprises,” of about 48 birds in his backyard in Sunset Hills.
“Some of these birds escaped, and when the monks went back to get more food, they found that the ones that had escaped were back at the cliff again. And they realized that these birds had a homing instinct,” Klipsch said.
So goes the foundation myth for homing pigeons. It was the beginning of many centuries of partnership between man and pigeon that extended well into the modern era. A Racing Homer was standard issue to English airmen flying over France, and to Allied spies parachuting into it, in both World War I and II. In 1943, three pigeons serving in the Royal Air Force were the first winners of the England’s Dickin Medal for Gallantry (by animals) for their remarkable flights through heavy winds and stormy weather to deliver messages on the locations of downed pilots. In 1944, pigeons flew with American paratroopers on D-Day.
Pigeons also provided the basis for the giant Reuters news service, which began its corporate life as a kind of Pigeon Express shuttling financial market closing prices between points not yet served by telegraph.
Most famous, though not necessarily accurate, pigeons brought early word of Napoleon’s defeat at the Battle of Waterloo to financier Nathan Mayer Rothschild, who turned this news beat into a fortune on the London bond market.
“We know the English used pigeons a long, long time ago,” Klipsch said. “We know the Germans did, the Belgians did, the Italians did. We know the Phoenicians used them!”
Today, the march of technology has ended the economic and military usefulness of Racing Homers, but they retain a mystique that transcends their lost utilitarian value. Their unique capabilities – not to be duplicated even in an age of electronic miracles – still fascinate those who care to look.
For example, what featherless biped could match the prowess of a pigeon traveling from Shamrock, Texas, to St. Louis (approximately 600 miles) with nothing to guide him but the tools nature provided – eyes, ears, nose, brain? Some no doubt could manage it, but a Racing Homer can do it in one day, flying from 45 to 60 mph.
The pigeon’s feathers obviously provide a large speed advantage over earth-bound bipeds. But the accuracy of the flight derives from a suite of in-born navigational tools that for centuries have eluded scientific description.
“To know where home is, when they have never been to a place before, never been 200 miles away, and yet they come home,” said Klipsch. “That’s the homing pigeon.”
Research universities “have studied this for the past hundred years, spent thousands and thousands of dollars on it. They don’t know how the pigeon does it.”
But much has been found out.
“We have proven a lot of theories,” Klipsch said. “We know that the pigeon uses a magnetic sense, from the earth. We know they use the sun as a navigation tool. We know they use their sight – 26 miles they have been registered to see something.”
But the birds have some means of coordinating all these tools that is not understood, Klipsch said.
“If they blindfold them, they can still find their way home,” he said. “They plug their ears, they still find their way home. They put magnets on their wings, and they still find their way home. They know they use all of these things (sensory detectors), but they don’t know how they use them.
But Klipsch knows he can use them – for an absorbing hobby and for simple backyard fun. He races his birds every weekend of the racing season, which runs for several months from spring through autumn. He ships the birds to a launch point, and awaits their return with wife Florence from their screened back porch or lawn chairs.
The birds clock themselves by passing through an electronic detector at the door of their roost. The days of mechanical clocks are over. The birds’ flight times now are recorded to the fraction of a second.
Klipsch, a member of the Mount Pleasant Homing Pigeon Club, is hoping to engender wider interest in racing among the younger generation. He inherited the love of racing (but no birds) from his father, and he from his father before.
But Klipsch’s six children and nine grandchildren so far appear immune to the racing bug, he said.
To enter the hobby, only a simple loft (“mine was just a tool shed when I got started”), and a couple of birds are required, Klipsch said. Breeders will give young birds – as well as the mentoring needed to keep them – to a club member who wants to get started, Klipsch said.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Dubai: Pigeon droppings are causing a huge mess on many apartment balconies in different parts of the city, and for many residents, chasing them away has not been a permanent solution, they say.
Pigeons can be entertaining to watch, but when they constantly return to your balcony and dirty your home as a result of neighbours frequently feeding them , their presence can become very frustrating.
Tenants- especially those living in tall story buildings where it has become a common problem- say they are not only worried from the health risks that could arise from pigeon droppings, they are also not sure of the methods they can use to discourage pigeons from roosting without attracting fines from Dubai Municipality.
Dubai regulations regarding balcony use do not allow residents to hang clothes, install dish antennas, or place junk in balconies as it leads to an unaesthetic look, and violators could face penalties.
According to a municipality official, if an alteration on the balcony spoils the look of the building and goes against the building’s regulations, a warning will be issued to the tenant and they will need to restore the balcony to its original condition.
“As long as the installation does not affect the aesthetic appearance of the city, it’s not a problem. Residents can prevent pigeons from populating their balconies through various methods, but they need to make sure the methods are humane, and are not visible on the balcony,” he said.
He said using chemicals or unapproved products that can harm birds or reduce their population violates animal rights.
“It is a positive intent that tenants wish to keep their balcony pigeon-free and clean, because it also helps the building look clean,” the official said.
According to an Abu Dhabi-based doctor, though pigeons are harmless, what they leave behind can be a health hazard.
“The health risks from pigeon droppings arise from disease organisms which can thrive and grow in the accumulations of the droppings and feathers on balconies, ledges and ventilation ducts of buildings,” said Dr Nirajan Mukherjee, consultant paediatrician at King’s College Hospital London, Medical and Surgical Centre Abu Dhabi
“Fungal spores, bacteria, viruses and parasites can all multiply in this environment and pose problems for people particularly with pre-existing respiratory conditions and weakened immune systems,” he said.
Pigeon droppings, he added, can cause a multitude of infections potentially. “Those who have respiratory conditions like asthma and allergic rhinitis are at an increased risk of exaggeration of their symptoms. People with weakened immune system should not be associated with cleaning of the roosts.”
Marwa Jamal, a Lebanese mother living in Deira, said she has been reluctant about using pigeon-proofing methods for her apartment’s balcony because she does not want to violate regulations. She also said that bringing a cleaner to clean her balcony every week from pigeon droppings is costing her money. “The birds come back because my neighbour keeps feeding them and it is creating a mess in my balcony. I have to make sure it is cleaned regularly so my kids don’t end up catching any disease.”
Stella M., a Filipino resident of International City, says she has given up on reclaiming both her balconies from pigeons and relies on drying her clothes inside the house to avoid getting them dirty again.
“We have a notice below the building that says to not feed these birds, but neighbours continue to do so. It’s a waste to have two balconies and not be able to use them. I have to hang my clothes to dry inside the house. It takes up space and the clothes don’t dry fast.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Pigeon droppings on downtown sidewalks is not the image Park Rapids businesses and city leaders want to portray.
The Downtown Business Association (DBA) sees pigeons roosting atop downtown buildings as a real, and growing, problem in this busy district known for heavy foot traffic in the peak summer visitors season.
The city council on Tuesday authorized the DBA to take steps to eradicate the pigeon population through baiting and carcass removal.
According to information presented to the council Tuesday, pigeons have been a nuisance on Main Street for several years. The Hubbard County Developmental Achievement Center (DAC), with support of the Downtown Business Association, brought forth an initiative to control the pigeon population. The DAC operates the Tin Ceiling store on the 100 block of Main and due to the pigeon problem they power wash the sidewalk daily, and regularly spray the awning in front of the store to remove the accumulated droppings.
The DBA called in a pest exterminator to assess the situation and the DBA decided that baiting pigeons is the desired method to remove the nuisance birds. The Department of Agriculture was contacted and granted permission to bait the birds. The process would most likely involve baiting the pigeons with corn and then place poison for when the birds return to the same location.
“There is a widespread consensus that large populations of pigeons present serious health risks arising from disease organisms that grow in the nutrient-rich accumulations of bird droppings, feathers and debris under a roost. Such is the case when pigeons gather in buildings in downtown Park Rapids,” Cynthia Jones and Molly Luther wrote in a letter on behalf of the DBA and submitted to the city.
The Developmental Achievement Center plans to write a grant to cover the estimated $4,000 to $5,000 cost of the pigeon eradication plan.
“After all of our work to beautify downtown, the pigeon issue often takes center stage,” the DBA letter states. “For example, a resort owner recently reported that while participating in a sports show in Minneapolis an attendee remarked, ‘Oh, you’re from that town that has pigeon poop all over the sidewalks.'”
“I don’t think that’s the brand we want as a city,” Jones said in addressing the council Tuesday.
Jones explained the problem has become worse since the old water tower was torn down and now with the likelihood the old seed house on Highway 34 is going to be torn down those pigeons will need to find a new home as well.
“Baiting is not in the minds of some the most attractive way to deal with pigeons, but it is the most efficient and most cost effective way to deal with pigeons,” Jones explained.
CHI St. Joseph’s president Ben Koppelman sent a letter to the city council in support of the initiative to control the pigeon population downtown, citing it as a health and safety concern.
Pigeons roost around the main entrance at the south lobby and leave droppings on the sidewalks, in and around the main signage on the building, windows and window sills and on the brick siding.
“The pigeon population and roosting is more than a nuisance,” Koppelman wrote. “Large populations of pigeons may present serious health issues due to the growth of disease organisms that result from accumulations of bird droppings, roost debris, feathers, etc. Feral pigeons can harbor many pathogens that may be transmitted to humans and nearly 94 percent of the time this is by aerosol transmission. Although the risk for acquiring disease is very low for the general population, those with weakened immune systems (example: cancer, transplant recipients) have nearly 1,000 times greater risk from aerosol diseases.”
Koppelman went on to write that although there are other ways to eradicate pigeons, the baiting method proposed by the DAC in their grant request is the most effective and feasible for this situation.
A specific plan for baiting and the removal of pigeon carcasses downtown has not been laid out yet.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Pasta, pizza, even ice cream, do not excite the taste buds quite like its most delicious of spring delicacies.
Colomba di Pasqua, otherwise known as Dove Cake, even soars above their other festive favourite, panettone, not simply because it replaces raisins with pearl sugar and almonds, but in the way it comes in the shape of a dove. No birds have a closer relationship with humanity than pigeons and doves. Note that the name is interchangeable: the street pigeon’s wild alter ego is the rock dove.
Doves were first domesticated in Mesopotamia 10,000 years ago and have gone on to provide us with their meat, the understated beauty of their plumage as well as running our messages. Albeit, they do leave a few themselves.
More Dickin Medals, the animals’ Victoria Cross, have also been presented to pigeons for their gallantry than to service dogs, war horses and naval cats combined.
The population of their country cousins, wood pigeons, expanded by 162 per cent between 1967 and 2014 to about six million pairs but its meteoric rise has been eclipsed by both the shy, nondescript stock dove as well as the collared dove.
Doves were first domesticated in Mesopotamia 10,000 years ago
Stock dove numbers have risen by 212 per cent since the mid-1960s while collared doves increased 327 per cent between 1972 and 2014.
But one dove species, perhaps the very one immortalised by the tradition of Colomba cake, has suffered the most serious recent decline of any British bird: the diffident, delectable turtle dove.
Few migratory birds match the beauty of this small dove with its tortoiseshell patterning and soft, rippling song. Indeed, its scientific name, Streptopelia turtur, is a reference to the haunting purr it delivers each spring.
The sound has become muted across Europe but nowhere worse than in the UK. Turtle dove numbers here have crashed by 97 per cent since England won the 1966 World Cup. Extinction on our shores seems inevitable over the next few decades.
If ever a bird needed celebrating this Easter, it is the turtle dove. Despite a hunting moratorium on Malta, they still face a fraught spring journey from African wintering grounds to a heavily farmed European landscape increasingly bereft of the hedgerows and copses they require for nesting. Herbicides destroying their weedy food, protozoan parasites and droughts south of the Sahara have only added to their woes.
For all their veneration in Biblical scripts and traditional songs – they are gifted in the Twelve Days of Christmas – turtle doves need just the kind of hero championed in one of the original stories about Colomba cake.
So goes the legend that Fifth Century Lombard warrior King Alboin was so smitten by the gift of a dove-shaped cake during a bitter siege, he not only offered a truce but vowed to always respect doves.
It saved the virtue of 12 virgins offered as peace tokens when, on asking the maidens their names, each told the king it was Dove.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
NEW ULM — Minnesota’s oldest pigeon and poultry club kept its 109-year streak alive, hosting a swap and sale meet at the Brown County Fairgrounds Saturday.
“I’ve been going to shows here since the early 1950s, before this building was built,” said Brown County Pigeon & Poultry Association member Bob Kosek of Morgan.
“The shows are important to help keep historical and rare breeds alive by meeting with other breeders. It’s an effort to keep breeds from not going extinct, so they’re around for next generation breeders,” Kosek said.
For Mankato breeder Larry Wilmes, the poultry shows mean trips across the country. San Diego is his favorite destination because of the weather.
“I’ve been to many shows in many places,” Wilmes said. “I’ve been to national events in Oklahoma, Kentucky, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, San Diego, Salt Lake City, Florida, Texas. I was at one not long ago in Vancouver, Wash.”
Wilmes said he has a good relationship with the U.S. Postal Service who flies his birds to distant shows.
“They (U.S. Postal Service) are very accommodating with special mailing boxes for my birds,” Wilmes said.
He said it would be good to add some younger people to the local pigeon and poultry association since the youngest member is now about 30 years old. Most of the group’s members have been around for decades. None of them voiced any plans to end their hobby.
“Breeding poultry and pigeons can be enjoyed by people in their 80s down to six-year-olds,” Wilmes said.
Doug Grams of New Ulm brought Dominique chicks to the swap meet. America’s oldest breed, they were plentifully bred as far back as the 1820’s.
“Dominque chickens were transported across the country by early settlers,” Grams said.
Also known as Pilgrim Fowl, or Dominickers, the breed descended from chickens brought to New England from southern England during colonial times. A dual purpose breed, Dominiques are valued for their meat and brown eggs.
In earlier times, their feathers were much sought after for pillow and mattress stuffing. They tend to be calm, personable birds, making them successful as show birds or family pets.
The breed survived the Great Depression due to it’s hardiness and ease of up-keep, according to The Livestock Conservancy (TLC).
In 1970, there were only four known flocks of the breed. The remaining owners were contacted and convinced to participate in a breed rescue, the TLC reported.
The close feathering of the breed protects the breed from cold weather and provides material for pillows and featherbeds of their owners.
“It’s wonderful, a great stress reliever,” association member Aaron Dittbenner of Morgan said about breeding pigeons and poultry and meeting with others with like interests.
Brown County Pigeon & Poultry Association member Trevor Nau said he enjoys competing with his birds plus the camaraderie and fellowship of fellow breeders.
The New Ulm Fall Classic Poultry Show is Nov. 18 & 19 at the Brown County Fairgrounds. A summer picnic is set for July 29.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
A PEST CONTROL company attended St James’s Hospital in Dublin 108 separate times to deal with recurrent infestations of rodents, insects and other pests in the past two years.
Pest activity was reported in areas including a dialysis room, an endoscopy theatre, and on bedside tables in hospital wards, documents released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal.
Among the creepy-crawlies reported at the hospital during 2015 and 2016 were mice, ants, cockroaches and woodlice.
Black clock beetles – large, carnivorous insects with sharp jaws – were also discovered by pest-control technicians in a specialised unit for patients undergoing bone-marrow transplants last August.
In 2015, the company attended St James’s Hospital Sterile Services Unit (HSSU) four times in response to reports of rodents. On one occasion, a mouse was caught in the HSSU kitchen, while another was suspected to have scuttled into an autoclave.
The pest-control firm was also called to the hospital’s Breast Care Clinic four times during the two-year period in response to complaints that included a rodent in a staff tearoom, an infestation of flies in the reception area, and a “bad smell” in the clinic which staff said was “a common occurrence”.
Last October, the company responded to an emergency callout and attended a kitchenette located on a private ward, where they found a mouse “actively feeding off bait”. The little culprit was “caught and bagged and removed”, according to the inspection report.
Rodent sighting
Though the hospital declined to comment on the pest control issues seen, the increase may be related to ongoing works surrounding the construction of the new children’s hospital, which is expected to open on the St James’s campus by 2020.
Towards the end of last year, a sighting of a rodent was reported in an endoscopy theatre at the hospital. Traps were set and, three days’ later, a mouse was caught in the theatre’s observatory room.
The company was also called to inspect droppings found in a cupboard beside an operating theatre. “Old very dried up dead woodlice” were found in the same location upon inspection.
On two occasions last August, stubborn pigeons who had entered Mercer’s Institute for Successful Ageing (MISA) at the hospital refused to leave in spite of the pest control company’s best efforts.
“Could not remove pigeon,” the technician noted in his inspection report. “May leave eventually.”
Two days’ later, the pigeon appears to have been joined by a friend. “Two pigeons flying around atrium in MISA,” it was reported. “Technician couldn’t remove them due to height and area involved… Door left open to assist pigeons out.”
In April 2015, two dead birds in a ceiling cavity were discovered to be the source of an infestation of bluebottles in a meeting room in the CEO building of the hospital.
Insecticide treatment was carried out.
Ants were a recurring problem at the hospital during the two-year period. Up to 150 of the insects were found behind a locker in the Department of Clinical Nutrition, while others were found in locations including a dialysis room and on a bedside table.
More than €35,000 was spent on pest-control services by the hospital in the past two years. This included an outlay of €275 in February 2016 for a plastic hawk to scare away pigeons and gulls.
A public relations company contracted by St James’s Hospital was contacted for comment in relation to pest control at the facility. It acknowledged the correspondence but did not provide a response.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
A pest control company went to St James’s Hospital in Dublin more than 100 times to deal with recurring infestations of rodents, insects and other pests in the past two years.
Pest activity was reported in areas including a dialysis room, an endoscopy theatre, and on bedside tables in hospital wards, documents released under the Freedom of Information Act revealed.
Among the creepy-crawlies reported at St James’s Hospital during 2015 and 2016 were mice, ants, cockroaches and woodlice.
Black clock beetles – large, carnivorous insects with sharp jaws – were also found by pest-control technicians in a specialised unit for patients undergoing bone-marrow transplants last August.
In 2015, the company attended St James’s Hospital Sterile Services Unit (HSSU) four times in response to reports of rodents.
On one occasion, a mouse was caught in the HSSU kitchen, while another was suspected to have scuttled into an autoclave.
The pest-control firm was also called to the hospital’s Breast Care Clinic four times during the two-year period in response to complaints that included a rodent in a staff tearoom, an infestation of flies in the reception area, and a “bad smell” in the clinic, which staff said was “a common occurrence”.
Last October, the company responded to an emergency call-out and attended a kitchenette on a private ward where they found a mouse “actively feeding off bait”.
The mouse was “caught and bagged and removed”, according to the inspection report.
Towards the end of last year, a sighting of a rodent was reported in an endoscopy theatre at the hospital.
Traps were set and, three days later, a mouse was caught in the theatre’s observatory room.
The company was also called to inspect droppings found in a cupboard beside an operating theatre.
“Old, very dried-up, dead woodlice” were found in the same location upon inspection.
On two occasions last August, stubborn pigeons that had entered Mercer’s Institute for Successful Ageing (MISA) at the hospital refused to leave in spite of the pest control company’s best efforts.
“Could not remove pigeon,” the technician noted in his inspection report. “May leave eventually.”
Two days later, the pigeon appears to have been joined by a friend.
“Two pigeons flying around atrium,” it was reported. “Technician couldn’t remove them due to height and area involved… Door left open to assist pigeons out.”
In April 2015, two dead birds in a ceiling cavity were found to be the source of an infestation of bluebottles in a meeting room in the CEO building of the hospital. Insecticide treatment was carried out.
Ants were a recurring problem during the two-year period.
Up to 150 of the insects were found behind a locker in the Department of Clinical Nutrition, while others were found in different locations including a dialysis room and on a bedside table.
More than €35,000 plus VAT was spent on pest-control services by the hospital in the past two years.
This included an outlay of €275 in February 2016 for a plastic hawk to scare away pigeons and gulls.
A public relations company contracted by St James’s Hospital was contacted for comment in relation to pest control at the facility.
It acknowledged the correspondence but did not provide a response.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
When several children took turns releasing about two dozen homing pigeons, most onlookers rejoiced in the celebratory atmosphere, but everyone knew the birds hadn’t flown the coop.
“They’ll fly back to Franklin and beat us home with the tailwind today, so when we get home, they should be home,” said Bill Baker of Franklin, Pa., who, along with his wife, Cheri, brought about 25 of the 100 white birds they raised to Sunday morning’s Release of the Doves gathering at First Presbyterian Church, 3654 S. Main St. (state Route 46).
The couple runs Pa. Doves of Love, a Franklin-based organization that trains the birds to return to their loft from locations up to 100 miles away. In addition, Doves of Love, which serves northwest Pennsylvania and Northeast Ohio, conducts such releases for weddings, funerals, Relay for Life events and other special occasions, Bill noted.
First Presbyterian Church is about 70 air miles from the couple’s home, he added.
For many years, such birds have represented peace, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, love and tranquility, which makes the release a highly fitting celebration between Sunday’s two Easter church services, noted the Rev. Jamie Milton, pastor.
“This is our gift from God,” he said.
After the Rev. Mr. Milton’s homily, the youngsters opened the nine baskets individually, which allowed one to three birds at a time to start their airborne trip to the Bakers’ home.
One of the youngsters who gave several of the pigeons a good send-off was Mason Meyers, 6, of Warren, who was on hand with his parents, Valerie and Jeff Meyers.
“He really, really enjoys it,” said Valerie, who has been a First Presbyterian Church member for more than 20 years.
The Meyers family’s holiday dinner plans, however, were to include a different bird: a turkey, along with carrot cake and homemade Easter bread, she said.
Also doing her part to release a few birds was 5-year-old Natalie McMullen of Berlin Center, who came to the gathering with younger sister Hailey, 3, and the girls’ mother, Nicole McMullen.
The first step in training the birds for the feat is to get them to fly to a designated spot a half-mile away, then increase the distance in increments of one, five, 30 and 50 miles, Bill Baker explained, adding that it took about a year to fully train his pigeons.
“It takes a relatively short time to get them out to 50 miles,” he noted.
A core piece of their training is ensuring the birds receive their vaccines consistently. Also, Baker said, he mixes apple cider, water and vinegar, because such a combination keeps their systems healthy.
It remains a mystery how the pigeons can find their way to a given location many miles away, but part of the answer could be that they identify and memorize certain landmarks along their journey, he said.
Baker said he and his wife derive great pleasure by having their pigeons as a main attraction for special occasions such as the Easter celebration.
“We really enjoy it,” he added. “We enjoy the services as much as they do.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
CINCINNATI — When the most famous bird in the country died at the Cincinnati Zoo, it was more than the extinction of a species: an American way of life was gone.
Every local schoolkid thinks they know the story of Martha, believed to be the world’s last passenger pigeon: She was born in captivity, then lived with a flock here until her death on Sept. 1, 1914.
Found on the floor of her cage that afternoon, the zoo had her carcass frozen into a 300-pound block of ice, then shipped her to the Smithsonian Institution to be preserved.
“By the time she arrived, the ice I think was pretty much gone,” said Dan Marsh, the zoo’s director of Education and Volunteer Programs. “That’s the best they could do in those days. It can still be pretty hot in September.”
Marsh became the zoo’s in-house expert on passenger pigeons leading up to the 100th anniversary of her death. Martha became one of the Smithsonian’s “most treasured possessions” because of how she’d shape the future of American conservation.
She’s now part of a new exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, chosen from 145 million artifacts and specimens to show how they help scientists understand nature and human culture.
For Martha, the story is much bigger than many people realize.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
BIRDS of a feather not only flock together, but learn together too – according to Oxford University research.
Boffins from the university have discovered that homing pigeons may share the human capacity to learn from others and improve their navigational efficiency over time.
Until now it was thought that being able to pass on and improve knowledge down the generations was something only humans and possibly some other primates could do.
But Takao Sasaki and Dora Biro, who are both research associates in the Department of Zoology, conducted a study testing whether pigeons could improve their flight paths over time.
The pair gave groups of birds a specific navigational task and then replaced birds familiar with the route with inexperienced birds which had never flown the route before.
They found that, over time, the student became the teacher as the pairs’s homing performance consistently improved, with later ‘generation’ groups eventually outperforming birds that flew solo or in groups that never changed membership.
Dr Sasaki said: “At one stage scientists thought that only humans had the cognitive capacity to accumulate knowledge as a society.
“Our study shows that pigeons share these abilities with humans, at least to the extent that they are capable of improving on a behavioural solution progressively over time.”
When humans share and pass knowledge down through generations our culture tends to become more complex over time.
By contrast when homing pigeons do it the end result is an increase in efficiency, in this case navigational.
Dr Biro said: “One key novelty, we think, is that the gradual improvement we see is not due to new ‘ideas’ about how to improve the route being introduced by individual birds.
“Instead, the necessary innovations in each generation come from a form of collective intelligence that arises through pairs of birds having to solve the problem together – in other words through ‘two heads being better than one’.”
The findings of the study are published today in the journal Nature Communications.
Dr Sasaki and Dr Biro now intend to build on the study by investigating if a similar style of knowledge sharing happens in other species’ social groups.
Lots of animal groups have to solve the same problems repeatedly and they may use feedback from past outcomes to help them make better decision in the future.
But Keith Shipperley, assistant secretary of City of Oxford Racing Pigeon Club, said he was sceptical of the findings.
The Headington resident, who has raced pigeons since 1965, said: “It would surprise me greatly. There are not many pairs where one is a winner and they breed a winner.
“You would have a great difficulty convincing me.
“Winners are rare, if you want to buy the babies of a champion pigeon you are talking about £25,000 to £30,000.
“These champion pigeons are few and far between”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Homing pigeons may share the human capacity to build on the knowledge of others, improving their navigational efficiency over time, a new Oxford University study has found.
The ability to gather, pass on and improve on knowledge over generations is known as cumulative culture. Until now humans and, arguably some other primates, were the only species thought to be capable of it.
Takao Sasaki and Dora Biro, Research Associates in the Department of Zoology at Oxford University, conducted a study testing whether homing pigeons can gradually improve their flight paths, over time. They removed and replaced individuals in pairs of birds that were given a specific navigational task. Ten chains of birds were released from the same site and generational succession was simulated with the continuous replacement of birds familiar with the route with inexperienced birds who had never flown the course before. The idea was that these individuals could then pass their experience of the route down to the next pair generation, and also enable the collective intelligence of the group to continuously improve the route’s efficiency.
The findings, published in Nature Communications, suggest that over time, the student does indeed become the teacher. The pairs’ homing performance improved consistently over generations – they streamlined their route to be more direct. Later generation groups eventually outperformed individuals that flew solo or in groups that never changed membership. Homing routes were also found to be more similar in consecutive generations of the same chain of pigeon pairs than across them, showing cross-generational knowledge transfer, or a “culture” of homing routes.
The necessary innovations in each generation come from a form of collective intelligence that arises through pairs of birds having to solve the problem together – in other words through ‘two heads being better than one’.
Dora Biro, Associate Professor of Animal Behaviour at Oxford University
Takao Sasaki, co-author and Research Fellow in the Department of Zoology said: ‘At one stage scientists thought that only humans had the cognitive capacity to accumulate knowledge as a society. Our study shows that pigeons share these abilities with humans, at least to the extent that they are capable of improving on a behavioural solution progressively over time. Nonetheless, we do not claim that they achieve this through the same processes.’
When people share and pass knowledge down through generations, our culture tends to become more complex over time, There are many good examples of this from manufacturing and engineering. By contrast, when the process occurs between homing pigeons, the end result is an increase in the efficiency, (in this case navigational), but not necessarily the complexity, of the behaviour.
Takao Sasaki added: ‘Although they have different processes, our findings demonstrate that pigeons can accumulate knowledge and progressively improve their performance, satisfying the criteria for cumulative culture. Our results further suggest that cumulative culture does not require sophisticated cognitive abilities as previously thought.’
This study shows that collective intelligence, which typically focuses on one-time performance, can emerge from accumulation of knowledge over time.
Moving forward, the team intend to build on the study by investigating if a similar style of knowledge sharing and accumulation occurs in other multi-generational species’ social groups. Many animal groups have to solve the same problems repeatedly in the natural world, and if they use feedback from past outcomes of these tasks or events, this has the potential to influence, and potentially improve, the decisions the groups make in the future.
Dora Biro, co-author and Associate Professor of Animal Behaviour concludes: ‘One key novelty, we think, is that the gradual improvement we see is not due to new ‘ideas’ about how to improve the route being introduced by individual birds. Instead, the necessary innovations in each generation come from a form of collective intelligence that arises through pairs of birds having to solve the problem together – in other words through ‘two heads being better than one’.’
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
In experimental research, scientists tend to assume that — unless they are looking specifically at reproduction or sexual behavior — male and female animals are alike, and mostly use males. But a new study by researchers at the University of California, Davis and the University of New Hampshire, published April 18 in Scientific Reports, shows surprisingly big differences in tissue gene expression between male and female rock doves. The work is part of an attempt to make science more gender-inclusive and aware of physiological and other differences between the sexes.
“There’s a problem of sex and gender inclusion at all levels of science from faculty to the animals we use,” said Rebecca Calisi, assistant professor of neurobiology, physiology and behavior at UC Davis and senior author on the paper. “We’re trying to ameliorate that, at least in reproductive biology.”
The problem for experimental science, Calisi said, is that males and females can react very differently to different treatments, even when these don’t seem to be sex-related. For example, drugs as well-known as aspirin have different effects in men and women, and women report a higher rate of adverse reactions to drugs than do men.
Hundreds of Differences in Gene Activity
Calisi and co-author Matthew MacManes at the University of New Hampshire are exploring this problem using the reproductive system of the “rock dove,” or common pigeon, as C. Samuel Craiga model. Scientists back to Charles Darwin have worked with pigeons, and their physiology is well-studied. Like all other vertebrates, the gonads (testes and ovaries) are influenced by hormones produced by the pituitary gland, which itself is controlled by hormones from the hypothalamus, a structure in the brain. Sex hormones produced by the gonads (testosterone and estradiol) in turn feed back to the hypothalamus. This “hypothalamus-pituitary-gonad” axis is found in animals from fish and lizards to birds and people.
Calisi’s team looked at the baseline “transcriptome,” capturing all the genes expressed in the hypothalamus, pituitary and gonads in male and female pigeons when they were not engaged in reproductive behavior. They found hundreds of differences in gene activity between males and females.
“There are incredible differences in gene expression, especially in the pituitary,” Calisi said. The results show that there are far more sex-based differences in the pituitary than previously thought, she said.
The team has created a publicly accessible database for researchers of all the patterns of gene activation that differ between male and female pigeons. The results should generate new leads for investigating male and female reproduction, and encourage researchers to look harder at the effect of sex bias in physiological studies.
Having established baseline genomic data for the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonad axis in the pigeon model, Calisi and MacManes plan to use it to look at the influence of sex on other conditions, such as stress and parental care.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Homing pigeons may share the human capacity to build on the knowledge of others, improving their navigational efficiency over time, a new Oxford University study has found.
The ability to gather, pass on and improve on knowledge over generations is known as cumulative culture. Until now humans and, arguably some other primates, were the only species thought to be capable of it.
Takao Sasaki and Dora Biro, Research Associates in the Department of Zoology at Oxford University, conducted a study testing whether homing pigeons can gradually improve their flight paths, over time. They removed and replaced individuals in pairs of birds that were given a specific navigational task. Ten chains of birds were released from the same site and generational succession was simulated with the continuous replacement of birds familiar with the route with inexperienced birds who had never flown the course before. The idea was that these individuals could then pass their experience of the route down to the next pair generation, and also enable the collective intelligence of the group to continuously improve the route’s efficiency.
The findings, published in Nature Communications, suggest that over time, the student does indeed become the teacher. The pairs’ homing performance improved consistently over generations – they streamlined their route to be more direct. Later generation groups eventually outperformed individuals that flew solo or in groups that never changed membership. Homing routes were also found to be more similar in consecutive generations of the same chain of pigeon pairs than across them, showing cross-generational knowledge transfer, or a “culture” of homing routes.
Takao Sasaki, co-author and Research Fellow in the Department of Zoology said: ‘At one stage scientists thought that only humans had the cognitive capacity to accumulate knowledge as a society. Our study shows that pigeons share these abilities with humans, at least to the extent that they are capable of improving on a behavioural solution progressively over time. Nonetheless, we do not claim that they achieve this through the same processes.’
When people share and pass knowledge down through generations, our culture tends to become more complex over time, There are many good examples of this from manufacturing and engineering. By contrast, when the process occurs between homing pigeons, the end result is an increase in the efficiency, (in this case navigational), but not necessarily the complexity, of the behaviour.
Takao Sasaki added: ‘Although they have different processes, our findings demonstrate that pigeons can accumulate knowledge and progressively improve their performance, satisfying the criteria for cumulative culture. Our results further suggest that cumulative culture does not require sophisticated cognitive abilities as previously thought.’
This study shows that collective intelligence, which typically focuses on one-time performance, can emerge from accumulation of knowledge over time.
Dora Biro, co-author and Associate Professor of Animal Behaviour concludes: ‘One key novelty, we think, is that the gradual improvement we see is not due to new ‘ideas’ about how to improve the route being introduced by individual birds. Instead, the necessary innovations in each generation come from a form of collective intelligence that arises through pairs of birds having to solve the problem together – in other words through ‘two heads being better than one’.’
Moving forward, the team intend to build on the study by investigating if a similar style of knowledge sharing and accumulation occurs in other multi-generational species’ social groups. Many animal groups have to solve the same problems repeatedly in the natural world, and if they use feedback from past outcomes of these tasks or events, this has the potential to influence, and potentially improve, the decisions the groups make in the future.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
The ability to pass on and improve on knowledge is known as cumulative culture
Until now only humans were thought capable of passing on such information
Over generations pigeons streamlined their route to be more direct and faster
Homing pigeons are known for their impressive ability to navigate home over long distances.
Now a new study suggests this skill may be passed on between generations.
Researchers believe that homing pigeons share the human capacity to build on the knowledge of others, which explains why their navigational accuracy improves over time.
This is the first time that the ability to find and improve on knowledge over generations has been seen in a non-human species.
Researchers from Oxford University conducted a study testing whether homing pigeons can gradually improve their flight paths over time.
They removed and replaced individuals in pairs of birds that were given a specific navigational task.
Researchers simulated generational succession by replacing birds familiar with the route with inexperienced birds that had never flown the course before.
The idea was that experienced individuals could pass their experience of the route down to the next pair generation.
This would enable the collective intelligence of the group to continuously improve the route’s efficiency.
The findings, published in Nature Communications, suggest that over time the student does indeed become the teacher and pigeons learn from each other.
Results showed that the birds’ homing performance improved consistently over generations – they streamlined their route to be more direct, making them faster than those that worked the route out on their own.
Dr Sasaki, co-author of the study, said: ‘At one stage scientists thought that only humans had the cognitive capacity to accumulate knowledge as a society.
‘Our study shows that pigeons share these abilities with humans, at least to the extent that they are capable of improving on a behavioural solution progressively over time.
‘Nonetheless, we do not claim that they achieve this through the same processes’, he said.
Dr Dora Biro, co-author of the study, added: ‘One key novelty, we think, is that the gradual improvement we see is not due to new ‘ideas’ about how to improve the route being introduced by individual birds.
‘Instead, the necessary innovations in each generation come from a form of collective intelligence that arises through pairs of birds having to solve the problem together – in other words through “two heads being better than one.”‘
Moving forward, the team hopes to build on the study by investigating if a similar style of knowledge sharing and accumulation occurs in other multi-generational species’ social groups.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
JANAKPURDHAM: Over a dozen of pigeons were found dead in and around the Janaki Temple in Janakpurdham in Dhanusha district recently.
According to a social activist Nathunilal Das, the pigeons domesticated in the temple area were found dead and the cause of the death was unknown till now.
He said many of his pigeons also died in past three days.
The Dhanusha District Livestock Service Office is yet to ascertain the disease behind the deaths.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
