Pigeons are one of the most if not the most common birds in cities across not just North America but the entire world. For this reason, these birds are often overlooked and under appreciated for just how incredible they really are. Here are five things you may not know about Pigeons and stick around for the last one because it’s pretty crazy.

1. Extreme Athletes

When they’re just walking around parks and cities, pigeons look like they would be clunky and slow fliers but this is far from the truth. Due to a combination of extremely strong chest muscles that actually make up around 20 to 30 percent of their body weight, and an efficient respiratory system, pigeons can fly extremely fast. On average a typical pigeon can fly between 50 and 60 miles per hour, but some individuals, especially racing pigeons have been clocked at over 90 miles per hour, even reaching 100 miles per hour. While even these speeds can’t put them in the same category as supreme fliers like peregrine falcons, it’s still extremely impressive.

2. One of the oldest domesticated birds

The feral pigeon that people know today originated from a bird called the Rock Dove native to parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Part of the reason they’ve been able to spread across the world is that they were one of the first domesticated birds. There are actually a lot of different numbers thrown out there about just how long ago these first domestications happened, but it seems like it’s somewhere between 5000 and 10000 years in Mesopotamia and Northern Africa. These birds were originally domesticated for a reliable source of food, but over time they became useful beyond just eating as they were eventually used for sending messages, as pets, and even as a status symbol. Pigeons were eventually brought to other countries and continents including the Americas in the 1600s and are now found on every continent with the exception of Antarctica.

3. There are tons of varieties

When the word pigeon is mentioned, of course the typical rock pigeon is the one that gets mentioned, but in reality, there are many different types of pigeons across the globe. Some like the band-tailed pigeon live in parts of the Western United States, while other more extravagant looking ones like the Victoria Crowned Pigeon which is the largest living pigeon is native to New Guinea and the surrounding area. Going back to the domesticated rock pigeons though, they alone have multitudes of variants, selectively bred for specific purposes. There are pigeons designed specifically for speed and acrobatic flight, some designed to maximize the amount of meat they produce, and as is the case with most domesticated animals, some designed for beauty, sporting extravagant and exaggerated features. All of these specialized pigeon varieties lead to some birds with fascinating colors and appearances.

4. They’re war heroes

I’ve covered a little bit about how useful pigeons can be for people, but you might be surprised to learn that some pigeons are known for their contributions to war. During some of the most notable wars in human history including world war 1 and world war 2, carrier or homing pigeons were used to deliver vital messages across enemy lines. Before drones and unmanned aircraft were even invented, pigeons were an obvious choice due to their speed, endurance, and ability to make their way back to their roost. Possibly the most well known war-time pigeon is Cher Ami, a homing pigeon active during world war 1 and credited with delivering a message that saved soldiers of the lost battalion. Purported to have survived heavy gunfire, sustaining a bullet to the chest and needing to have a leg amputated, Cher Ami was awarded multiple medals of honor and lived out the rest of his days in the US and retired from duty. This particular incident is just one of many harrowing accounts of pigeons being instrumental during war.

5. They know Art

You may be surprised to find out that pigeons are actually really smart with cognitive abilities even rivaling primates. One of the wildest things I found out about pigeons is that according to studies, they can actually recognize and categorize works by different artists. In a study by Japanese researches, pigeons were trained to be able to tell the difference between impressionist artwork by monet and cubist artwork by picasso. The pigeons weren’t just remembering the paintings though, because they could even tell the difference between the two styles with paintings they had never been shown before. To make it even crazier is that trained pigeons could even tell the difference between these artists and other artists that painted in the same style. They could also discern between art that was considered to be good vs bad although this is a bit more complicated because of how subjective it is. I could go on about these studies all day because of how fascinating they are, but the bottom line is that pigeons have unbelievable cognitive abilities and apparently make great art critics.

One last thing I wanted to throw in there as a bonus fact too is that they’ve actually been trained to recognize cancerous cells in pathology images. They can do this with a success rate equal to that of humans which is almost unbelievable.

Pigeons will probably continue to be maligned for just how common they are, but there are so many reasons to appreciate them for the incredible animals that they really are. I hope you learned something about them that you didn’t already know and if you liked this video, consider becoming part of our membership program and signing up for our email list to never miss an update. I’ll put a link in the description below. As always, thanks for watching, we’ll see you next time, on Badgerland Birding.