Jen and Drew
Rock Doves, pigeons, call them what you will; one Columba Livia in particular has become my favorite. Her name is Drew and she is helping me to type this blog. Actually, she is walking up and down my arms and sitting on my head. She occasionally jumps onto the keyboard to check out the noise my fingers are making but that really can’t be called “help” since I have to back up and edit her work almost every time.
Drew is a very special bird. She was born in the wild and hatched in captivity after her nest was found to be abandoned. When she was just a little egg, she was cared for by a wildlife rehabilitator out on Cape Cod. Once Drew and her siblings hatched, learned to fly and were able to care for themselves, they were released. While all of Drew’s siblings flew away to explore the wide world, Drew decided that it would be a much better idea to land on the rehabilitator’s head. After numerous attempts to release Drew, it was decided that Drew had been imprinted, despite the best efforts her caregivers.
The Audobon Society defines imprinting as follows :
“Imprinting is a term that describes how many animals decide ‘who they are’. It is a critical behavioral process in a growing animal and occurs during a period in which the young establish the concept of “parent” and “self”. Taking place early in life, it is an irreversible process. The period varies between species; ducklings imprint when 13-16 hours old while large birdsof prey imprint between 2 and 5 weeks of age.”
Since the rehabilitators had a relationship with the zoo, it was decided that this would be the best place for her.
Many people ask me what kind of animals I work with. The are always surprised when I tell them that one of the animals I work closely with is a pigeon. If I am being perfectly honest (don’t tell Drew) I thought it was kind of strange myself. I had passed thousands of pigeons in my life without really looking at them. Of course I thought they were cute and I loved “doing the pigeon” dance with Bert on Sesame Street when I was a kid, but I had no idea how intellegent or how much personality could be packed into such a small body.
She is very good at communicating with those who listen. She will let you know if she is feeling affectionate or annoyed using sounds or body language.
I especially love taking Drew into urban schools. Everyone knows about pigeons but they are always surprised at how beautiful her iridescent feathers are or the variety of sounds she makes. She reminds us that we are always surrounded by nature. You don’t need to travel to the rainforest or the desert. There is a jungle right in your own back yard of you just stop, look and listen.
Here are just a few fun facts about pigeons:
Wild rock doves usually nest in crevices along rocky cliffs by the sea, close to open fields or scrub land. In rural areas, rock doves tend to live in farm buildings. In the cities they nest in skyscrapers that are substitutes for natural cliff surroundings. Rock doves may mate at any time during the year although spring and summer are the most common. Like most pigeons, these pairs are formed for life. The male will put on a display, which is often followed by “kissing” where both birds lightly peck around the head and neck mostly with their eyes closed. After mating, the male will build a flimsy nest either up on a cliff ledge or cave if wild or on a building ledge, under a bridge or under the roof of an open air building if feral. The female will lay 2 eggs and both will spend time incubating them. The eggs hatch about 19 days after they were laid. After the eggs hatch, they are fed “crop-milk” for the first 2 to 3 days. Crop-milk is made in the crop of the adult birds and is 75 to 77 percent water, 11 to 13 percent protein, 5 to 7 percent fat and 1.2 to 1.8 percent minerals and amino acids. Fledglings grow their adult plumage a few months after fledging and reach sexual maturity in 6 to 12 months.
Drew can be seen all this summer as a featured animal during zoo camp or sitting on my head in my office as I write.
By Lynne Mclain