World of birds: a small pigeon

Representatives of pigeons impress the imagination with a variety of species that differ in size, shape, and color of the plumage. Large breeds of pigeons reach the size of an adult chicken, and the smallest - a little more than a sparrow.

City pigeons trustfully relate to a person and quickly become practically tame. And their wild brethren are more cautious, and approaching them at close range is very difficult.

These birds have excellent eyesight and hearing. They have a soft voice, they make sounds that are deaf, cooing.

The first wild pigeons, according to research, appeared in nature 35 million years ago. All current species have one common ancestor - a blue dove, which is still widespread in the territories of Europe, South Asia, North Africa and the Caucasus.

People always had a special relationship with pigeons. In ancient Jews, this bird symbolized love and moral purity, the Palestinians sacrificed it to their gods, for Christians the dove is a symbolic embodiment of the Holy Spirit, and in world modern symbolism this bird depicts peace and friendship.

Breeders have brought out many decorative rocks that surprise with their unusual appearance. For example, the neck of a warty pigeon is adorned with a "collar-shirtlet", among the species of Asian pigeons one can find birds more like peacocks with luxurious tail feathers, while in pigeons-Jacobis a crown of hair is adorned on the head.

Feeding pigeons

These birds are extremely voracious. The main diet of their food is cereals, seeds, fruits, berries, very rarely - small insects. Even a small pigeon can make long flights in search of food.

Pigeons adapt easily enough to the food that the person offers them. In urban conditions, these birds often find their livelihood in garbage piles and garbage dumps. Their indiscriminate selection of food is explained by a very small number of taste receptors in the language, which are only about 40 (for comparison, there are more than 10 thousand of them).

For pigeons, water is of great importance, because with its help the grains swell in the stomach and are well digested. These birds drink in a very unusual way: they immerse the beak to the very nostrils in the liquid and so suck it.

A small dove feeds to the "goiter" milk of its parents until a month old. A week after the birth of the parents feed him already "milk" with the addition of softened grains, gradually increasing their number. Approximately at the age of 20 days a small pigeon can already peck small millet and gradually gets used to independent feeding. If parents have problems with goiter "milk", then the adoptive parents - nannies can feed the kids.

Reproduction of pigeons

All representatives of the family of pigeons are exclusively monogamous. Most couples remain unchanged throughout life. Since the pigeons are significantly domesticated, the breeding takes place at any time of the year. The exception is birds living in the cold climate of the northern hemisphere. There, these birds mostly reproduce in a warm time - from March to October.

Pigeons must conduct a marriage dance - a ritual before mating. The male walks in circles near the female, dissolves the tail, bends the head to the ground, produces a beautiful cooing.

For pigging eggs the pigeon pair together builds a nest from a bunch of grass, thin twigs and feathers. If pigeons live in a quiet place, then they can use the same socket several times, simply increasing its size.

Usually at one pair within a year there are seven-eight clutches on one-two eggs. Parents are incubating their offspring in turn. A small dove appears about twenty days later.