Indian Rock Pigeon

The Rock Pigeon or Rock Dove or Feral Pigeon is a very common resident of India and is widely spread all around the world. The domestic Pigeon is a member of the bird family Columbidae (which includes doves and pigeons) and falls under the species Columbia livia.

This bird is simply referred as the 'Pigeon' is the familiar sight majorly in all the Cities of India. The word pigeon is derived from the Latin word called 'Pipon' meaning young bird, then it has been addressed in French as 'Pijon' and finally it is more commonly addressed as "Pigeon".

Physical Characteristics:

The Rock pigeon is a chunky bird with length measuring about 12 to 14 inches and weighing 238 to 380 grams. It can be seen in varying colors like blue gray, black, white, iridescent and brown. A Typical pigeon has grayish head, glittering green and purple combination on neck and throat (the feather is called as "Hackle", pale gray in the inferior areas like back and belly, combination of pale gray and darker gray in their wings with the length of about 25 to 27 inches, their bills are short, slightly curved dark and colored with gray. Eyes are orange in color and legs are pink.


The adult female differs from the male only by a minute variation. It is almost identical to the male, but the glitteriest on the neck is less intense and that on the breast is often very obscure. Young birds are slightly lustre and paler. During their flight the white under wing of the bird becomes very obvious and it is made V-shaped. The vocal sound can be heard in large when they are in flocks. The typical call is a rapidly fluctuating "croooo-croooo" sound.

Behaviour:

Rock Pigeons are rapid and very agile fliers with a speed up to 85 miles per hour with their tapered or pointed wings and are seen in large flocks. They scavenge mostly on the ground, but rarely scavenge in trees as well.

Unlike their flexible, native cousin, the Band-tailed Pigeon, Rock Pigeons move about only awkwardly in trees. Large groups often gather together along utility wires, window ledges, and rooftops.

Since pigeons are very much used to humans, they often seem semi-tame and will approach the passerby for food without any restriction or fear. The Large flocks of pigeons are constantly searching for food and the birds will sleep or take rest in close contact with one another.

Habitat:

Typical Rock pigeons flourish in human habitats and highly visible in open environments usually on the rock ledges, cliffs, human constructions, mainly at elevation higher than 3400 m. This is one of the most commonly met bird is native to India and is gregarious, living together in flocks and bold.

They nest on the ledges and cliffs and also they are found in wide variety of habitats especially urban, suburban and agricultural areas. Their original native habitat is cliff-sides, and Rock Pigeons can be found in eastern Washington nesting on cliffs.

Migration:

Usually Rock Pigeons do not migrate. If they are misplaced from a nesting area, they have very good homing capability and can return home correctly from any distances. This ability helps them to find their own nests in different cliffs covered in large and various colonies amongst other similar nests throughout the city.

Food Habits:

The Rock pigeon's vital food is seeds and grains. Because of this people can see the birds in large flocks dieting around the agricultural areas, granaries and cultivation lands.

Feeds on seeds and shoots. Apart from farms they can be seen in cities attending various edible foods like popcorn, bread, and other human food which is a usual part of their diet. Offering crumbs, cracked corn and other grain seeds pretty well attract these beautiful gregarious birds.

If they fail to get their usual food, they often, snatch insects and bugs out of the air, and dine on green leaves and grass.

Places Found:

Rock Pigeons are widespread and common throughout India at lower elevation especially in cities and farms. They are more often seen sitting at the top shade of the buildings or shrine or any various constructions, parks where human passerby is high, cracks or broken areas of a building.

Population of pigeon in india:

The population of pigeon is said to uncountable and is primarily associated or to put in other words it is directly proportional to the human population and the dependent on the people who make pigeons as a domesticated bird thereby giving them food and shelter.

Mating and Nesting:

The Rock pigeon are addressed to be monogamous pairs (The practice or condition of having a single sexual partner during a period of time), often does reproduction in consecutive seasons for as long as both birds of a pair live. Each pairs tend to give birth to several broods each year. Sometimes in a single year it may give birth to four or five broods.

Rock Pigeon's courtship ritual could be seen often in parks and playgrounds in various areas. The courting starts out with the male puffing up the feathers at the back part of his neck in an intention to woo or attract the females. Once they have singled out a female, they bow their head and approach her. If the female is not impressed with the male she would fly a short distance away from him. The male follows her bowing again and again.

This is repeated a few more time with the male adding pirouettes or a rapid spin of his body as in a ballet to woo the female. At the end, persistence pays off and the pair then mates.

After mating, the pair then build a nest in urban and suburban areas on a variety of covered, flat surfaces, sheltered cliffs-ledges or on windowsills, under the bridges and buildings , cracks in brick buildings, or under ledges. Usually the nest is saucer shaped and made of stems and leaves.

The pair forms a long-term bond until both live. The nesting habits of rock pigeon are bit unique when compared with other birds. The male opt a site in view of the female, after a successful hunt it brings a stick and lays it in front of his mate. The female who stays at the nesting site accepts the sticks brought by the male and places behind her.

It then finishes building the nest with materials supplied by the male which is almost the platform of the twigs, grass, stems and leaves. The same nest site is used repeatedly and the nesting material is added each time for a new brood. The female may sit on the nest a day or two before laying the first egg.

In general the female pigeon lays 2 white eggs. A pair may raise five or more broods per year. Both male and female will sit on the egg to incubate it even though the female doest the incubation during the night hours. This incubation period lasts for about 16 to 19 days and the nestling takes about ten days and the young bird leaves the nest in four weeks or 22 to 29 days after hatching. Both male and female feed the young with the 'pigeon-milk', a regurgitated, protein and fat- rich liquid food produced from the parent crops. After 10 days period the young are fed with the solid foods such as caterpillars.

Threats and conservation:

Since only some species of pigeons are domesticated and benefited by human and have increased their numbers, the other species decline in their numbers thereby causing threat or succumb to the extinction. Amongst the 10 species that have become extinct the most famous two species are Dodo and the passenger dove.

The Passenger Pigeon was very famous and uncountable in the early times and has become extinct in the modern times. Various conversation techniques are implemented to avoid these extinctions in India. In recent days, the no extinction or endangerment for the species is recorded in IUCN.

In India many religious groups like Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs feed pigeons for various religious reasons. The Sikhs feed pigeons ceremoniously to honor the high priest and warrior Guru Govind Singh who love and has been friendly with the pigeon.

Some Sikhs feed the pigeons with the belief that if they feed in their current life, they would never go hungry in their future life. Other religious groups in India believe that when a person expires his or her soul takes the form of a bird (normally a pigeon) and therefore by feeding birds they are caring for the souls of their departed ancestors.

The pigeon is respected in India with huge flocks numbering many thousands of birds being fed daily at various Hindu temples in town and city centers throughout the country. In the Christian religion the pigeon is depicted as a symbol of peace and of the Holy Spirit.

In the Hebrew Bible, the young pigeons are acceptable burnt offerings for those who can't afford a more expensive animal. In the book of Genesis, Noah sent a dove after the great flood in order to decide how far the floodwaters had drawn back. In Islam, doves and the pigeon in general are respected and privileged because they are believed to have helped the final prophet of Islam, Mohammed, in distracting his enemies outside the cave of Thaw'r in the great Hijra.

Subspecies of Pigeon in India:

There are totally twelve subspecies found widespread out of which three are native to India. Columbia livia, is the nominate subspecies, found native in Asia especially in India.

Columba livia intermedia (Indian Blue Rock-Pigeon):

Indian Blue Rock-Pigeon is very similar to Rock-Dove but the whole body is covered with darker grey feathers, at the same time as the lower back and the upper back are found to be slightly paler; the rump or the inferior area is distinctly darker;

the quills are with the combination of dark and pale grey and inner webs are colored with darker grey. The Total length of the bird is 11 in., the wings are of 8.7 in., the tail si of 4.6 in., the is of bill .79 in., and the tarsus is of 1.2 in. The Indian Blue Sock-Pigeon is found right through the plains and rise the hills of Southern India ranging from 4,000 feet or higher. They are seen lesser than 2,000 feet in the Himalayas areas.

Columba livia neglecta (Hume's Blue Rock-Pigeon):

Indian Blue Rock-Pigeon is very similar to Rock-Dove but the whole body is covered with paler grey, while the lower back differs individually from white to pale grey or pale bluish-grey Hume's Rock-Pigeon breeds practically all the year round in Sind and other places at low elevations ranging about 5,000 feet or higher.

Pigeon as a symbol:

The pigeon or dove has been depicted to be the symbol of peace and love, understanding of gentleness, spirit messenger, communication between the two worlds, maternity, femininity, prophecy, perseverance, home, security.

1. When the Rock Pigeon walks, its head nod back and forth, since the pigeons have monocular vision rather than binocular vision they bob their heads for the depth of perception.
2. Pigeon has been acting as a messenger in earlier days. Incredibly, the last 'pigeon post' service was deserted in India in 2004 with the birds being retired and live out the rest of their days in peace.
3. This remarkable achievement of the pigeon's ability to return to their home or roost has been incredible by anyone in the world. A 10-year study carried out by Oxford University concluded that pigeons use roads and freeways to navigate, in some instances even changing direction at freeway junctions. Other theories include that the pigeon navigate by using the earth's magnetic field, visual clue such as landmarks, the sun and even infrasound (low frequency seismic waves). Whatsoever the theory says, this unique capability makes the pigeon a very special and incredible bird.
4. Pigeons are considered to be one of the most intelligent birds on the planet with pigeons being able to take on tasks previously thought to be the only preserve of humans. It also has the ability to differentiate between the humans when rewarded with food or doing so.
5. The peregrine falcon is the pigeon's real natural predator.
6. The common life span of Pigeons is 15 years old. The maximum record is 33 years.
7. Pigeons can fly up to 40 to 50 miles per hour and has the capability to fly as far as 600 miles a day.
8. Pigeons vary in size from 7 ounces to 3 pounds. The wing span can be range from 12 inches to three and half feet.
9. They are very closely related to doves.
10. Pigeons are gregarious and tend to be found in flocks of around twenty to thirty birds.
11. They construct their nest out of small sticks in natural habitat or in buildings.



12. They have excellent eyesight; they also can see ultraviolet light, a part of the light spectrum that is not visible to humans.
13. They use their beaks as straws to suck up water.
14. They seem to be able to feel the Earth's magnetic fields. This magnetic sensitivity, along with the ability to tell direction by sun, seems to help pigeons find their way home.