laitimes

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

In costume dramas, we can often see the scene of the flying pigeon passing the book, the pigeon can always find the recipient accurately, and it seems that there is no mistake.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Niangniang, this pigeon is very fat, stewed for you (bushi)

Image source: TV series "The Biography of Zhen Huan"

Is the Flying Pigeon Book really so godly?

Letters can be sent, but not so godly, otherwise there would be no post office courier now, and don't forget, the contract is to "release pigeons".

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Carrier pigeons: I will never let you pigeons

Pigeons are one of the earliest domesticated birds of mankind, and they have an unusually powerful ability to know how to go home. The ancestors of domestic pigeons are wild original pigeons with a mostly light grey body and two dark spots on the wings, distributed in Europe, the Middle East, India and North Africa.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

A handsome original pigeon

Image source: Wikipedia

The original pigeons choose to settle in caves or crevices in the cliffs and cliffs, and every day they go out in groups to forage for food and then return to their nests to rest. Although the pigeons do not migrate, they are also very good at flying, and their speed and endurance are first-class among birds, and strong individuals can fly continuously for several hours at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour.

People first started raising pigeons, probably just to eat it, until 3,000 years ago someone had a whim, why not use the habit of pigeons eager to return to the nest to convey information?

The "Flying Pigeon Letter" in the film and television drama is often like this: the owner pulls out a white pigeon from his arms, and the pigeon has a foot ring containing a letterbox tied to his foot, or wears a "vest" with a letterbox tied to it and places the letter in the letterbox. Then mutter a few words to it, throw it into the sky, and the pigeon will deliver the letterhead to the recipient.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Letters, letters

Image source: The movie "Red Cliff"

Is this method of communication reliable? In fact, if the recipient is at home, there is no problem, but if it is anywhere outside the home, this plot cannot be established. When using carrier pigeon communication, the pigeon needs to be taken with you, and the pigeon is going to fly to its hometown.

Because the pigeon does not take the initiative to send letters, it is only very paranoid about going home, and by the way, it is impossible to carry back the letters tied to it, and it is impossible to expect the pigeons to take the initiative to fly to a strange place.

If the direction is reversed, the consequences can only be:

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

In most cases, carrier pigeons can only communicate in one direction.

But there is a way to train the pigeons to travel back and forth between two places: two lofts, one for the pigeons to rest at night, the other to provide food, and after repeating the training habit, the pigeons can achieve two-way transmission. However, this training method is time-consuming and laborious, and most of it is just a fun time for pigeon lovers, which is far less practical than raising two groups of carrier pigeons directly.

Moreover, not all carrier pigeons can go home smoothly and may be lost if they are not careful. Some are lucky enough to fly home after being rescued, and some may become roast pigeons...

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

This pigeon was luckier

Image source: China Pigeon Information Network

Messenger of Peace, old love battle

Although the pigeon is a symbol of peace, the is very competitive and often fights for territory (nest), food or mate.

Before the battle, the cocks will bulge their necks and grunt in place, bluffing in hopes of forcing each other to retreat. If it doesn't work, it will rush directly to the other party and flap hard with its wings. If the war continues to escalate, the two sides will twist together, their chests will wrestle together, they will not stop pecking at each other's heads and necks, and they will also smoke their opponents.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Top you!

Image credit: Nathanfriedlipski

Sometimes battles take place in narrow cages, and the weak have nowhere to escape, often receiving serious injuries, most commonly the scalp being pecked off, which can lead to death.

Fall in love and kiss a little mouth

Although pigeons like to move in groups, married life adheres to a stricter monogamous system. During courtship, when a single occupies a nest, it will stay in the nest and make a low grunt-grunt-grunt- sound, calling the girls to come on a blind date.

Outside the nest, the in heat will swallow air into the sac (the bulk of the bird's posterior esophagus to store and soften food), causing the neck to swell and the neck feathers to appear more shiny. The cocks then pace and circle around the hens, making a "grunt, grunt" cry, unfurling their tail feathers from time to time and rushing towards the hens one after another.

If the hen is satisfied, he will kiss the. The then jumps on the hen's back to mate, then soars into the air and doubles.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Kiss what kiss, don't prick your mouth!

See watermark for image source

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Oops, no eyes

After a successful courtship, the next step is to spawn and brood. Pigeons are one of the few birds that can "feed" chicks, and both males and females can produce "milk" during the brooding period.

Mammalian milk is secreted by the mammary glands, while pigeon milk comes from the epithelial cells that fall off in the brood sac. From the middle of incubation, the inner wall of the parent bird's bursa begins to thicken. After the chicks come out of the shell, the walls of the parent birds' sacs have become red honeycomb-like folds, and the cells containing "milk" continue to fall off into the sacs to form pigeon milk.

The parents of pigeons take the mouths of their young pigeons into their mouths and spit out the milk for them to eat.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Spit-up parenting

Image credit: pigeonpedia

An ornamental pigeon that my mother did not recognize

The strict monogamy of pigeons is very easy for humans to grasp their lineage, and there is no need to worry about mixed offspring, so it is easier to domesticate and breed. For thousands of years, domestic pigeons have been bred in hundreds of breeds, which can be roughly divided into three categories: carrier pigeons, ornamental pigeons and meat pigeons.

Carrier pigeons and meat pigeons basically retain the traditional appearance of the original pigeons of the ancestors, while the ornamental breeds are more dramatized, and there are many changes in appearance, I am afraid that even the ancestors can not recognize it.

I have selected several special ones for you to see:

● Wool collar pigeons

A large "fur collar" is wrapped around the left and right sides of the neck, and the entire head is wrapped in it, and the feathers on its head are no different from normal pigeons.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

This big fur collar, it takes a lot of money

● Ball-breasted pigeons

The sac inflates and swells and is the norm, as if carrying a large balloon or holding a big drum.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Momentum alone wins

Image credit: Getty Images

● British post pigeon (Carrio pigeon)

Historically, it was a prominent breed of carrier pigeons, the English name carrier is "carrier", "porter", and now it is generally classified as ornamental pigeon. They are tall and slender, with long necks and long legs, and although their mouths are also very long, most of them are covered by large "nasal tumors". British pigeons have large nose tumors and bare eye circles and grow larger as they age.

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

This is a pigeon, I'm afraid it's not the head that has been changed

The museum public account officially opened the submission channel!

If you are interested in animals, plants, astronomy, geography, food and other natural knowledge close to life, and have experience in writing, welcome to send manuscripts to: [email protected]

Once the manuscript is adopted, we will take the initiative to contact you!

Where can the Flying Pigeon Book go? I believe you are a ghost

Written by | Song Xiaomeng

WeChat Editor | Xie Shuang

This article was originally published in the March 2015 issue of Naturalist magazine