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The common pigeon: A city bird
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| May 27, 2002. |
Paradoxically, today's human being
is the only living species that modifies and destroys
his environment to achieve a better quality and style
of life in a process known as urbanization. In his zeal
to adapt the environment to his circumstances, man has
eliminated an untold number of animal species from the
face of the earth. Nevertheless, some of them have managed
to adapt to these new environments by changing their
feeding, courting and reproductive habits, thus converting
themselves into urban species.
The city is a relatively young habitat.
Unlike the forests, the oceans and the rivers that have
existed since the earth was dominated by dinosaurs,
the history of cities only began a few thousand years
ago when man became sedentary. Many of the animal species
that live in cities are those whose natural habitats
are the edge of forests and which don't mind using the
few bushes and trees present in the gardens of the city,
as if the6y were extensions of the forest's edge.
Other advantages offered to fauna
by the city is that the temperature there is higher
than in the environment due to the heat generated by
houses and industrial facilities, as well as by the
atmosphere's pollution that reduces cooling at night
thus offering a more temperate climate. There is also
more food available, in the form of waste deposited
in garbage dumps, along the streets and sidewalks or
around the public street lights where a significant
amount of protein in the form of insects can be found.
Furthermore, the city offers refuge and reproduction
sites in between roof tiles, domestic drain pipes, garbage
dumps and places as incredible as old shoes and the
insides of computer equipment!
Among all the animals that have made
city parks, gardens and suburbs their natural habitat,
one that represents them most convincingly is the pigeon,
sometimes called the "rock dove". The latter
name is due to the fact that when it is in its forest
environment, it prefers to nest in rocky cliffs.
The pigeon (Columba livia) originated
in Eurasia. It was apparently introduced in North America
from France, through Port Royal in Nova Scotia in 1606,
with the purpose of using it for food. This bird measures
approximately 13" - 14" and can be of different
colors, surely the species with the greatest variety
within the group. They can be white, brown or black
or even spotted with various tones. It can be found
nearly everywhere in the world.
The pigeon reproduces all year long,
building its nest with branches, roots and feathers
in buildings or near them, although they may also nest
in holes and branches of trees. There it will lay two
eggs that both parents will hatch for 23 to 25 days,
and this may occur 3 to 6 times per year.
If their sources of food are plentiful,
pigeons can spend their entire life within a radius
of a few hundred meters instead of flying to faraway
places in search of food. They feed mainly on soft plants,
seeds and waste. To satisfy their mineral salts requirements,
they will pick at decomposing walls as well as earth
impregnated with dog urine. Pigeons can live as long
as chickens, up to 16 years or more. There is a report
of one that died at the age of 32 years and 8 months.
It is believed that pigeons were
the first domesticated birds around 4,500 B.C. when
they were used for food. Afterwards, they were exploited
as carriers. It is said that ancient Romans used them
to carry notes of their conquests to Rome. History also
tells that news of Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo was
carried to England by a pigeon that arrived four days
before the horse or boat. The reason for which pigeons
have been used as carriers for millennia is their ability
to orient themselves using the position of the sun and
the earth's magnetic field.*
Because they are considered as a
species that is a potential food source, they are also
catalogued as a destructive animal as each pigeon can
produce a considerable amount of excrement that contaminates
the city both visually and due to its odor. It can even
affect public health and corrode buildings and historical
monuments. Until now, wiring, nets and even sterilization
with treated foods have been used to try to stop pigeons
from incubating and dominating cities - with very poor
results indeed. It turns out that with less places to
incubate, the birds concentrate on strategic points,
forming large colonies under bridges, in train stations
and church towers. There is no doubt that pigeons represent
yet another example of the erroneous manipulations of
nature by man, in his constant effort to dominate his
entire environment.
cupul@pvmirror.com
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