So, wow its been a while, but tests are done and papers are turned in (for now), so I have time to a bit of research and bring you guys a new post. Though, now I am wishing I had not picked such a huge topic.Pigeons are one of the biggest pests of urban environments.They seem to thrive in cities, going after people's wasted or dropped food, and are looked down upon as disease ridden, and disgusting. But they haven't always been seen that way. In fact pigeons used to be part of high society.
Our interactions with pigeons go back a loooooooong time. Mesopotamians had domesticated the pigeon at least 5,000 years ago, and pretty much every western civilization since then has realized just how awesome these birds are and used them for art, sport, food or even war.
A note here: This is not be going to be on the morphology, physiology, taxonomy or evolutionary history of the pigeon. Rest assured that such a post will come later as they are freaking crazy and and can sense magnetic fields and are related to the Dodo and can play ping-pong and... but I digress. This is going about to focus mainly on the long and interconnected relationship that pigeons have had with humans.
If you have ever been to a church any where, ever, you have probably seen a picture of a beautiful white dove carrying an olive branch back to Noah, informing him that there was land and that God's flood was over. The dove is now a symbol of peace, and "offering and olive branch" means offering peace. But what you may not realize is that that Noah's dove, was a pigeon.
In fact the terms "dove" and "pigeon" can refer to the same animal, and are often used interchangeably, although the term "white pigeon of peace" admittedly does not have the same ring to it.
Pigeons themselves have not only been important, but so has their poop. Yes, the white droppings that carpet city streets and the occasional car, would have made you quite wealthy in ancient Egypt. The pigeon feces were a manure so desired that they were considered semi-precious to Egyptians. Even in 16th England, the manure was so prized that pigeon poop was considered the property of the royal crown.
But the English's need for pigeon poop went beyond usual agricultural use. The feces were a major source of saltpeter, a main ingredient in gunpowder. Pigeon houses even had to have stationed guards to prevent pigeon, or pigeon poop, theft. Something to think about next time you find yourself shooing a pesky pigeon away.
The use of pigeons in warfare is not limited to gunpowder and, and goes much, much farther back in history. Pigeons have long been renowned for their ability to fly back to their nest, no matter where they are taken. The technique is not fully understood by scientists (though under constant investigation) but non-the-less was the basis of long distance communication from the 5th century until the creation of the telegraph. Used by Syrians, Romans, Egyptians, French, English, Germans, Americans, and pretty much every western, and many eastern nations, the pigeons not only functioned as a mail service but were unoveremphasizably important in warfare (unoveremphasizably being a word I just created).
Used to report things like troop movements and loses and defeats, pigeons saved hundreds of thousand of lives in WWI alone, and countless more in the wars before then. During WWII, British forces captured an Italian town much quicker than they had thought they would, a town that the Americans were 20 minutes away from bombing as an intended reinforcement to the British attack, but now would kill over a thousand British troops. With radio's down, the British sent a Pigeon, G. I. Joe, to the American base, stopping just before they took off. G. I. Joe is now considered a war hero.
Additionally, Paul Reuters created his world famous news agency with news carried by pigeons. So successful have pigeons been in long distance communication that the last 'Pigeon Post' was closed only in 2004, in India.
Their success as postmen (postbirds?) has been due, not only to their incredible homing ability, but also to their natural athletic ability. Pigeon racing might not be as well known as horse or dog racing, but it is much, much faster. In fact, pigeons usually fly at over 60 mph, and can regularly fly for over 500 miles a day without stopping. one has even been recorded flying for several hours at 110 mph.
And Pigeons are no small deal in the aesthetic department either. Picasso himself liked pigeons so much that he not only included them in his paintings, but even named his daughter Paloma, Spanish for pigeon. Many people admire these birds, not for their flying abilities or war prowess, but for how they look (so shallow). At least since the 19th century (I was unable to find a better estimate) Pigeon breeders have been creating pigeons of all kinds by choosing some traits over others which they find aesthetically pleasing, creating breeds like roller, tumblers, fantails, and a number of others. Like dog and cat shows, pigeon shows show off the best of the breeds and are highly competitive. This breeding and presentation of fancy pigeons has a surprisingly large and devoted following, including the Queen of England.
Even Charles Darwin, the father of Evolution and writer of the Origin of Species, was an avid pigeon lover and had many breeds. He saw that by choosing for certain traits, he could artificially alter his pigeons' appearances over time, an observation which influenced his discovery and description of evolution, a process which does this naturally, although does not choose traits for their aesthetics.
And what other roles have pigeons played in history? Countless! In fact it seems as if the only time they have been reviled is in modern times. Their success in our cities may have made them into pests in our minds, but those pests have played a part in almost every facet of our history and I highly encourage you to read up on them on on your own, seeing as how I have only scratched the surface here.
Here are my sources:
http://andrewblechman.com/pigeons/cool_facts.html
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pigeonwatch/resources/cool-facts-about-pigeons
http://www.npausa.com/index.htm
http://animals.about.com/od/pigeons-doves/p/pigeons-doves.htm
http://www.deterapigeon.com/21-amazing-facts-about-pigeons.htm
http://www.radiolab.org/2011/jan/25/birds-eye-view/
The picture above was found at: http://www.pestremovalatlanta.com/critters/pigeon-control-atlanta-ga/
