Pigeon Rescue Story, Part 4

Pigeon Rescue Story, Part 4

April 9, 2019

copyright (c) 2019
William Schaeffer
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Pigeons are monogamous and typically mate for life.
Female pigeons can reach sexual maturity as early as 7 months of age.
Pigeons build a flimsy platform nest of straw and sticks, put on ledge, under cover, often located on the window ledges of buildings.
Eight to 12 days after mating, the females lay 1 to 3 (usually 2) white eggs which hatch after 18 days.
Condition at Hatching: Helpless, with sparse yellow or white down.
Chicks fledge (leave the nest) in 25-32 days (45 days in midwinter).
The male provides nesting material and guards the female and the nest.
The young are fed pigeon milk, a liquid/solid substance secreted in the crop of the adult (both male and female) which is regurgitated.
More eggs are laid before the first clutch leaves the nest.
Breeding may occur at all seasons, but peak reproduction occurs in the spring and fall. A population of pigeons usually consists of equal numbers of males and females. When populations suddenly decrease, pigeon production increases and will soon replenish the flock.
In captivity, pigeons commonly live up to 15 years and sometimes longer. In urban populations, however, pigeons seldom live more than 3 or 4 years. Natural mortality factors, such as predation by mammals and other birds, diseases, and stress due to lack of food and water, reduce pigeon populations by approximately 30% annually.

from the website https://ovocontrol.com/pigeons/

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