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The Carrier or English Carrier is a breed of fancy pigeon developed over many years of selective breeding. [1] Carriers, along with other varieties of domesticated pigeons , are all descendants of the rock dove ( Columba livia ).
With training, pigeons can carry up to 75 g (2.5 oz) on their backs. As early as 1903, the German apothecary Julius Neubronner used carrier pigeons to both receive and deliver urgent medication. [37] In 1977, a similar system of 30 carrier pigeons was set up for the transport of laboratory specimens between two English hospitals.
A carrier pigeon's job was dangerous. Nearby, enemy soldiers often tried to shoot down pigeons, knowing that released birds were carrying important messages. Some of these pigeons became quite famous amongst the infantrymen for whom they worked. One pigeon, named “Spike”, flew 52 missions without receiving a single wound. [2]
The true history of pigeons is one of thousands of years of careful cultivation by humans, followed by nearly utter abandonments in the last century. We think of pigeons as a nuisance today, but ...
The museum's scope covers various pigeon species as well as their history, with emphasis on domestic and homing pigeons. [9] [10] There are three main sections: one on pigeon racing, another on the use of homing pigeons during World War I and World War II, and the last on the different species of fancy pigeons that are bred for appearances. [4]
A war pigeon at Signal Pigeon Center Tidworth (UK), United States Army Pigeon Service. The United States Army Pigeon Service (a.k.a. Signal Pigeon Corps) was a unit of the United States Army during World War I and World War II. Their assignment was the training and usage of homing pigeons for communication and reconnaissance purposes. [1]
"Notre Cher Ami: The Enduring Myth and Memory of a Humble Pigeon," an academic article by Frank A. Blazich Jr. in The Journal of Military History; Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey, a novel by Kathleen Rooney; Cher Ami: The Story of a Carrier Pigeon, a children's book by Marion Cothren, published in 1934 "Cher Ami", a poem by Harry Webb Farrington
There are many fancy or ornamental breeds of pigeons: among them are the English carrier pigeons, a variety of pigeon with prominent wattles and an almost vertical stance, the Duchess breed, which has as a prominent characteristic feet that are completely covered by a sort of fan of feathers, the fantails with a fan of tail feathers like a ...