Survivors

Most people are familiar with Pigeons or Rock Doves. They are often thought of as city birds and many attempts have been made to get rid of them in urban environments.

In their more natural habitat they live in rock caves and shelves. We have a small but steady population that hangs out in the nearby sandstone cliffs year round. Their numbers are kept in check not only by the availability of food and water but also by the resident population of Prairie and Peregrine Falcons who feed on the smaller birds.

During the day the rock doves often lounge on Vertebrae Rock. I took a shot of some with the barely waning full moon behind them this morning.

For a number of years Ken and I raised a few chickens in a coop located in the llama corral. But the truth is we rarely eat eggs and keeping the coop clean was a never-ending chore so we gave all our birds away two years ago. Within a week a mama pigeon had moved into the shelter by digging a tunnel under the door. Since she immediately layed two eggs we decided to let her be until the babies hatched. Ha! Two years later and she and her mate are still there and still raising two chicks every two to three months. I am almost certain it is the same pair and they are quite territorial of their space; often chasing any other pigeon that attempts to share the huge area.

 I have learned quite a lot about the birds by watching this pair week after week.
- They always lay two eggs and both have always hatched and been raised to fledgling status.
- Mama and Papa both live in the coop and both have duties but mama seems to be the one who always feeds the chicks.
- Mama feeds  her babies by regurgitating food. They stick their little heads down her throat and feed from her gullet.
- She is shy about the feeding and will often lead the babies into the box for that task.

 - Weather and temperature do not seem to matter. Last winter mama layed her eggs in temperatures well below zero and still managed to raise two youngsters.

 These two are growing fast. They are about 5 weeks old now and will probably fledge in the next few weeks at which time mama will almost immediately start over with two more eggs!

One thing about pigeons is that they can carry human diseases so I always wear a mask and gloves when I am in the coop.

To the right is mama (with freshly regurgitated food on her chest!) and to the left is papa, the enforcer, overseeing the feeding operation!