How Humanity Gave This Animal the Middle Finger
I have finally confronted my demons, Ima go take a nap now
ANNOUNCEMENT: I have a calendar out, based on my book 100 Animals That Can Effing End if any of you are interested: www.amazon.ca/Animals-That-ck...
If you'd like to watch videos early, get bonus content, vote on video topics and support this channel, consider joining my Patreon: / hoodnature
Music from:
Don't Starve Main Theme
Nebula- Myuu
World Map- Pikmin 2 (Smash Ultimate)
Book of Spells- Runescape
New Donk City- Super Mario Odyssey
Daisy Circuit- Mario Kart Wii
Under Cover- Wayne Jones
Clips used:
Pigeon Domestication TikTok: www.tiktok.com/t/ZPRvgWFTt/
High Fiving Spider: • Genifer, the Adorable ...
Pigeon gets too lit: • Drunk New Zealand nati...
English pouter pigeons: • English Pouter Ivica P...
Opossum eating bird: • Opossum eating a bird ...
Talking raven: • talking raven
Reading pigeon: • Reading Pigeon
Pigeons playing ping pong: • BF Skinner Foundation ...
Navy pigeons: www.military.com/video/forces...
Pigeon walks up to falcon: • 2023 04 07 important b...
Pigeon avoids hawk: • Amazing video of a fal...
Purring pigeon (Outtro): • How do you know you ha...
Research referenced:
evergreenreview.com/read/pige...
www.sciencedirect.com/science....
media.defense.gov/2023/Jun/23...
They taught pigeons to read They taught pigeons to read *They taught pigeons to read*
THEY TAUGHT PIGEONS TO READ!!
We can read too dude
Wow Pigeons can read?
@@Amaend8 oh wow so special
@@cottoncandylover- you can read too😑
Fun fact: pigeons purr when they are happy. This is most commonly seen with pet pigeons. They also love being petted and will take being petted over treats when they are pets.
I just saw that at the end, so cute
I want a pet pidgin now
I wanna pet a pigeon
we don't deserve pigeons
@@YaakovEzraAmiChi I'm definitely planning to get one when I'm in a better spot economically speaking.
Once my boyfriend and I were standing at a quai wall at the riverside, holding hands and looking at the sunset when I noticed a pigeon couple about 20 metres away from us, sitting on the railing. It was not mating season, they were just a couple sitting close to each other, enjoying the view at the riverside, exchanging kisses and snuggles and showing each other true affection. Just like us. It had a lasting impact on how I think of them (though I never hated them to begin with).
Pigeons often seem to have partners and even families. Honestly people should be kinder to these birds
That’s adorable 🥹
@@RobotronSageYeah, they mate for life
I mean not even humans are that loyal sometimes, just give them a break 😶
Are u gay?
Also a funfact: Pigeons can pretty much speed run de-evolution. Look up how many generations it takes for pigeons, if you mix their breeds, to return back to becoming a basic rock pigeon. TWO. Well, two to three. But it goes that fast. It takes like a year. That would be like breeding a Chihuahua with a poodle, that offspring with another random dog and they return to being a wolf again.
I'm laughing at the thought of what kind of wolf a chihuahua, dachshund and pug mix would result in.
@@Yzerbruh If they would work like pigeons, legit just an average grey wolf. Pigeons are fascinating ❤️
im more concerned on how breeding a poodle and a chihuahua would even work
Anyone who says pigeons are the rats with wings has never dealt with seagulls. Like everything in this video people think pigeons are, seagulls _actually_ are.
calling seagulls rats is more of an insults to rats than seagulls
I would love to see where seagulls came from.
@@julien827 True
I dealt with seagulls personally one-on-one. They are very misunderstood. I had a seagull live with me for about a month because he was injured. We used to nap together. He would follow me and would eat from my hands. He was vocal and made these kind of chicken clucking sounds at me and dialate his eyes. After he healed and he left, he would still fly over my place sometimes calling out to me with the same sounds he used to make for me.
Finally someone gets it
Just a reminder: Pigeons are domesticated. Parrots are not. Pigeons are also sweet, gentle, very emotionally sensitive pets, and even if they do attack, their beaks can't break skin like a parrot's can. They're also much, MUCH quieter. Beginner bird owners should consider a pigeon, not a parrot.
Knowing what I know about rats, "Rats with Wings," is soon to become a term of endearment. Especially if Pigeons get a major PR boost like their ground fairing kin.
Some parrots are
Legit kinda want a pigeon. They just seem a much better bird to own than a parrot.
@XWierdThingsHappenX My dad raised pigeons when I was a kid. They really are amusing birds. My childhood was pretty amazing, raising different birds and fowl. You should get one!
@@sweetsierrablues5095 that sounds so great
i once saw a pidgeon with most of its skull exposed and sunbleached, and it was still walking around like nothing was wrong with only one eye. they practice necromancy too.
Poor thing.
They’re just extremely tough. There’s a reason their population is so high despite rarely getting their correct diet and living in bad conditions. They can get something called string foot where their feet can fall off due to lack of blood, but even without feet they’ll still be able to walk
Thank you so much for recognizing them and giving them credit. Humanity really let them down, used and abandoned. They are amazing beings. Absolutely adorable too.
For some reason I misread every single "them" and "they" as "us" and "we". My brain assigned you pigeon.
hell we were the reason why there so damn many of them. >.>
Humanity has let down a lot of animals
That Cher Ami, despite its injuries, half dead, still flew to where he was supposed to go, instead of literally anywhere else in its pain and panic, is more proof than anything else in this video, that these birds are loyal and intelligent.
Cher Ami is a god damn legend.
Pigeons have a innate ability to find home, where ever they are they will return home. So Cher Ami was probably going to that place from pain and panic, still an absolute legend.
An absolute avain unit.
...and is a role model,@@jameshughes6355 !
If they really are that smart and observant, just imagine how well they know us just by watching us all day like in NYC.
Smartest pigeon I ever saw was one who faked an injury to get food. When it saw someone eating it would droop it's wings and limp towards them, looking as pathetic as possible. The people it approached seemed to feel sorry for it and threw it some food. Once it finished the food it stood up as normal and strutted away perfectly fine to find it's next victim. I saw it use the same trick successfully on multiple people!
I wonder how it learned that. Crazy.
@@s-w I'm guessing it was maybe genuinely sick/injured at some point, realised people gave it more food during that time and so kept up the act. I've also seen pigeons wait at street crossings for the lights to change before walking across and hopping onto trains to travel to different parts of the city.
@@onyxstewart9587 OK, on that part of how they navigate cities, I assume its just them learning from humans since they're apparently domesticated.
@@s-wfrom Neymar
@@onyxstewart9587cats do the same thing, maybe pigeons watched them.
I absolutely adore pigeons, especially after hearing how they're actually incredibly intelligent and how they're a rare case of a species of bird not being a jerk whenever they're given the chance, so the positive press here is so appreciated. Also I'm terrified of turkeys (it's a long story) so I totally get where you're coming from.
You're wrong.
They're the only birds in my garden which don't mob attack other birds at the feeding table. Crows, magpies, starlings and robins are bullies but pigeons are so chilled.
@@spamlives77 Holy crap, what an argument! This guy wins. Who could possibly compete with a statement like that?
@@MartinFinnerup don't worry bro i got this
@@spamlives77 they're right
The eating pigeon story reminds me of one of the first times I went to the homeland (Colombia) and was walking around with my mom and saw a store with chickens in cages. I asked my mom excitedly “you can have a chicken as a pet?!” And she said “those aren’t pets.” I cried the rest of the day.
so, youre vegan now?
@@mato4334 nope, just shook me up for a few months. Same thing happened after I dissected a pig in school; I couldn’t eat pork for about a year. I’m fine now 😅.
@@carolinamurtha3102 Good news, though, you can totally have a chicken as a pet, provided you have a yard to keep them in. Do your research, obviously, but they're pretty easy to care for. They're also loyal, useful, and just damn cute! I'd recommend to get the chicks' sexes confirmed, because a lot of places won't allow roosters, especially suburbs, because they're LOUD.
@@woomy2343 I’m actually more of a rodent type person (rabbits, rats, mice, etc), but thank you for the tips 😄. That’s interesting that you can keep hens but not roosters because I live in a suburban type neighborhood and a neighbor in my complex totally has a rooster. We know this because it caws at dawn. Not all the time, we’ve never seen the rooster, but it’s so freaking odd.
@@carolinamurtha3102 Oh, then it's probably fine for you to keep roosters then where you live. I would personally look into the laws and policies in your neighborhood just to be sure. Also, not to be "that gal", but rabbits aren't rodents, they're lagomorphs.
Man I hate how humanity goes from respecting the potential of an animal, to blaming them for stuff they are not even related to, like imagine how much could’ve got done if we didn’t give up on using them and showed their abilities respect
People in general have shown we're not even able to respect all other humans. If we can't even do that, I'm not surprised we vilify other animals
Humans don’t like accepting responsibility. Just look at men.
Should probably hate how just ONE public official, and ONE celebrity, are enough to do that.
@@Andyisgodcky and it turned out those two were scumbags so shame on us as a society for paying attention to them in the first place
I found out that the Catholic Church was souly to blame for the black plague that devastating Europe and other countries. They were so suspicious of cats being connected to the devil that they murked them on site. After that, the rats that were carrying the fleas who had the plague went wild.
Pidgeons are honestly the only bird I could keep as a pet without going insane. I also never understood the hate, especially since I grew up in a town with way too many seagulls and those WILL aidrop you and steal your food.
I get what you mean. I've lived in a city with pigeons and seagulls and the seagulls are way more intimidating. Also, while I do like birds and I like watching other people's videos of their pet cockatoos and macaws, I don't think I have it in me to deal with parrots, especially the large ones, 24/7 for like 70 years. Huge respect to those who do! Pigeons seem a bit more calm in comparison, but I haven't seen as many videos about people talking about their pet pigeons so idk for sure.
Same, my grandma had pigeons as indoors pets. They were easy to clean after since some will prefer to have a potty spot, they are very smart and feisty. They could fend off cats and dogs, literally never had any of the cats even attempt to attack it. And one would just walk around the house and eat from their food bowls like the little prick it was. You can let them free fly without a worry (minus hawk danger but ours were lucky) since they always find a way back home. They also form bonds with people (which I was not happy about because that makes the bird hormonal but explain that to my grandma) and they like pets. Excellent pet, made my grandma very happy. I might also add that it was just a wild pigeon, we found a baby on the street and kept it (twice).
Yeah, Pigeons are actually really polite not to poop above a person. Oh sure your parked car or side of the building might not be safe, but they dont bukake the streets like Seagulls do.
As someone who use to have pigeon because they would fall off their nest that in the tree that i use to have they are way better pets than parrots and don't require constant playtime unlike what you need to do with parrots they are chill too and don't become agressive all of the sudden like parrots do
There is no "d" in pigeon. You are thinking of it as if it were a word like "bridge."
As the Mother of Pigeons I approve of this video. I know a pigeon fancier with diabetes on Twitter who's pigeon will peck her arm when she needs to take her insulin. And my emotional support animal for my Autism was my old male pigeon JonJon; he loved me as his mate. Fun Fact, Nikola Tesla who was famously anti social in his dealings with people, loved pigeons and would feed them in the park. At one point he saw an injured female, took her to his home and nursed her back to health stating "I love her as any man loves a woman". Also Mike Tyson threw his first punch when some neighbourhood bullies killed one of Pigeons in front of him, inspiring him to become strong enough to defend his birds, the rest is boxing history.
That Pigeon cartoon with Mike voice acting makes so much more sense now lol.
@@mastershake8018 What cartoon?
@@MidnightDarkness666 I got it mixed up, Mike didn't voice the pigeon but it was his cartoon called Mike Tyson mysteries. The pigeon in the show was voiced by Norm McDonald.
Honestly if I didn't have cats, I'd love to look after these beautiful birds. I knew the story about them getting slandered out of our lives, and felt real bad for the poor things. They deserve better
i have a cat and 3 pigeons! believe it or not, the cat is terrified of them. if it gets too close, the pigeons will swat their wings at it (completely harmless) and coo at the cat as the cat runs away. probably depends on the scaredycatness of your cat but for the most part if you have a cage or a room for them theyll be fine.
Genuinely never got why people don't like pigeons. 90% of what they do is hang around and clean up the sidewalk. They're not even ugly, they look like the generic definition of a bird.
the even have a heart shape on ther beak!
they shit on our heads.
they poop on yo head
@@Mom-pl2xb If you watched the video then you know it's not true. They don't do their business while flying.
@@zenchost4216They sit on the ledges of buildings, tree branches and roofs to shit on your head.
The fact that they named the pigeon "my dear friend" made me tear up
same, i love pigeons, i think they’re really cute too
I had a pet pigeon I raised from an egg, named Pidgey. He was legit one of the best birds I ever had, and I own parrots! Whenever I was sick and bed ridden, he would lay beside me in bed and just coo anytime he saw me wake up. He always wanted cuddles an to hang with the family, also dude was potty trained. I am so glad to see you face your fears and learn about these smart lil guys, thank you for sharing this wonderful video! They are amazing creatures and deserve far more love than majority of the world will ever give them.
Pidgey, that's so cute.
That name is so good😆
Here in Turkey some historical mosques have stone nests for pigeons. Like they built miniature stone houses for them. Also they can learn tricks and stuff. They are really great pets too. My neighbor has 10 pigeons and he flies them regularly. Also I never saw a super dirty pigeon in my life. I think they are the second most popular avian pet in Turkey (first is the budgie, we are obssessed with budgies)
I'll never understand why people hate pigeons so much. They're one of the most amazing and important birds in history, not to mention that they're one of the best pet birds out there
Why do people hate sharks? All mouth to mouth propaganda and people not caring about actuall information :/.
Now seagulls on the other hand...
I didn’t even know people disliked pigeons. They’re nice, sound nice, and they look nice. They’re no different than any species which lives close to humans. They only become dirty when the human settlement becomes dirty first.
I love pigeons. I’ve got a couple pigeon tattoos
I dont hate pigeons but i hate where they dump their s***
Another fun fact: Mike Tyson also loved pidgeon since he was 9 years old, he claimed that they were an escape from the bullying he endured as a child. He still loves them to this day, and his pidgeon coupe is quite luxurious, in fact he only gives them Fiji water to drink.
That explains the pigeon character in his animated series.
@@aeden8008I was going to say this exact thing. It has always seemed like a random choice to me, but I never investigated it.
wow hes even cooler now
All facts. I was just about to say the same thing, but I found this comment already exists. 🎯🤔🦾
Not gonna lie, I have gained a lot of respect for Mike over over the last few years. Mostly due to his sense of humor. The man literally sold candies in the shape of an ear, I cannot help but respect that lol.
This video really opened my eyes on how disrespected pidgeons are by the entire human population on top of everything else. Poor goobers literally got bullied by basically every animal on the planet and then to add insult to injury they were straight up abandoned and humiliated by humans despite how much good they’ve done for them.
The little heart-shaped pillow on their beak is called the 'cere' and it's velvety soft. It actually grows as the bird ages, and looks more like a buildup of coral.
Don't forget the 'Passenger Pigeon'. At one time they were the most numerous bird in the world, numbering 3 billion. Then humanity decided to hunt them to extinction, yes EXTINCTION! Christ, the pigeon certainly has had a raw deal.
bird: exists usa: NO *casually makes them go extinct*
So if you see one today, know that you have most likely fallen into a rip in the fabric of time.
Don't forget that the Passenger Pigeon solely kept Lyme Disease in check and now that it's gone there's been outbreaks ever since. It also had other important roles but I forgot the others.
@@theoneandonlyartyomapparently the usa is all of humanity now?
@@anidiot4992 no, but the bird only lived in north america, specifically eastern usa and southern canada
We give most animals that aren’t cute the middle finger
Including humans
okay, okay, but ever seen pigeons when they are all fluffed up or pudgy? THEY ARE, ADORABLE. On the serious note, poor pigeons, they don't deserve this.
I love peigons I would often chase them to catch them It never worked
The same with people lol
Sad part even being cute doesn’t help
The story of the lost battalion is so amazing all throughout. From the human soldiers to the bravest bird combatant it’s an amazing story
It baffles me how pigeons are considered pests rather than pets. When I was little, it was me and my pet pigeon forever. Then my dad got a pug, and I was scared of it because I was so used to my pigeon being so kind to me and then the pug was growling at me and stuff and I hated the pug. Pigeons are the nicest, sweetest pets you could have. (Ignore the pfp this is my troll account)
I find it funny that they are called "rats with wing." Because rat are smart as hell. They can learn tricks and be potty trained. They are also really clean and social creatures to. So, ya, it is a huge compliment to be called "rats with wings."
Pigeons are smart as well. They can find there way home over 300 miles.
Just goes to show how ignorant we are about pigeons _and_ rats.
@@madtabby66don't they have a build in compass thought the reason why they can do that is because they can sense the magnetic field in the earth
Pigeons, rats, crows, coyotes - all victims of their own intelligence. They are smart enough to benefit from human activity instead of being displaced by it, and as a result, we see them as pests.
"Because rat are smart as hell. They can learn tricks and be potty trained. They are also really clean and social creatures to." Same goes for rats. So I guess the description is fitting. It's just that neither animal deserves the negativity associated with it. Edit: Just noticed that that's basically what you wrote. I blame it on being tired.
As a kid, we had this brown and white pigeon that hung around our house. We named him Rupert, and he would occasionally just walk inside for a snack or hang out. I can fully attest that they're smarter than people give them credit for.
That's awesome. 😂
Wow, i had one too, he got in our house with an injured wing, we build him a house, after 2 weeks he left, it was also brown and white
We had a wood knocker who kept knocking on one of our windows for hours on end. I think you got the better deal. 😂
pigeons and doves are also way easier (and better) to have as pets than things like parrots IMO. with parrots theres a lot more to worry about, especially when it comes to improperly handling or petting them, but pigeons r so laid back and love being pet . i had a friend who used to have frilled back pigeons and they were so sweet, would just sit and quietly coo while you pet them
as a bird vet, bird owner and birdwatcher... it's so satisfing to see your character development. i wish more people had the balls to simply google pigeons and learn something, like you did. thank you for the video!!
Only this man can perfectly time an ad on my face and not have me grunt
Adblocker/YT Red bro
Failed for me sadly
I have ad block 👁👄👁
ay yooo
get KZhead Premium you broke boy
One of the main reasons why rats are commonly blamed for the plague is because while they did carry the plague, it was caused by the fleas on the rats instead of the rats themselves
I think there's a theory that people were what was carrying the plague from city to city. Reason being is that rats can't travel fast enough to account for how fast it spread.
@@Duamerthrax Could be that it originally came from the fleas on the rats, and then once a couple people were infected they continued to spread it
@@Duamerthrax This theory does track a bit, but rats traveled via ships (People had ships back then) Which made it to major coastal cities much faster. People going horse from the origin is going to have a much slower spread and their gonna die fairly quickly in their journey, ultimately it seems like it it was the fleas on the rats that spread. It started with the fleas, and ended up with human transmission, but not just human transmission.
@@fenixleonor Well it didn't help things, but the plague was already rampant by the time they started doing churchy shit like killing cats.
@@jolenetheredhead9761 they started killing cats around 13 century check that please😺
I grew up in a pigeon household. So I was taught from basically birth all the wonderful things about them. I actually used to do educational lectures on them with my personal rescue pigeon on my shoulder. The fact that they can read and correctly identify patterns with such a high rate of accuracy is incredible. One of my favorite stories is of a dyslexic person that taught their pet pigeon how to read ingredient labels because they had some pretty severe food allergies. If the pigeon saw one of the allergens on the label, the bird would wing slap the food item. Pigeons are heroes and partners from ancient times, they’re one of the oldest domesticated animals and we’ve turned our backs on them.
The fact that pigeons are all essentially strays that we abandoned makes me so sad. Like, I consistently will go buy birdseed and peanuts and stuff like that so they have healthier things to nibble on than leftover fries, cigarette butts, and garbage.
Now I see why Nikola Tesla (yes, THE inventor Tesla) basically considered pigeons to be his best friends. The man purportedly even built a special apparatus just to allow one pigeon he found to heal its broken leg and wing, along with having made a point to feed pigeons in the areas where he lived. Yet another way in which Tesla was ahead of his time: recognizing that pigeons are actually pretty cool, smart birbs and not unhygienic menaces.
Thankfully Tesla died before pigeons' reputation tanked like this, so he didn't have to witness it himself. I'm sure it would have broken his heart if he had to see that.
This makes sense now. I thought the implication was that he was going crazy in the end. But he was really just a bit lonely and adopted some dogs. I mean, they use a litter box? What a great video.
But Tesla was clinically insane, so there's that.
@katier9725 If he was alive when they started claiming pigeons are rats with wings, he could have swayed public opinion to think otherwise.
@@youngdresbaby not ikely, he was by and large looked at as a nutter.
Other things to note: They produce crop milk, and males also roost and get broody when they have an egg. They're good fathers and mothers.
what's crop milk?
I remember talking to a friend not long ago, calling pidgeons 'nasty rats with wings'. Here in germany. I not only did not come up with that term, i also never knew it was popularized the way it was. I am part of the problem. I'll never do them dirty again.
Humans disowning pigeons always made me sad growing up. Last year some mourning doves made a nest in one of my plants and it was so wonderful just to watch them from my window. 💜
In 2017, I was on a military training exercise in the Mojave desert. It was night, and I was on day 4 without any sleep, barely functioning, and sitting in my Humvee with the door open and eating an MRE. I was out of it, to say the least. So this dog comes over, looks at me kinda confused and startled, and I just instinctively held out a piece of food for him and he comes over and takes it- and I just idly scratched his head and told him 'good boy'. He walked away, and that's when I realized something. I'm in the Mojave desert, the middle of nowhere, on a military exercise at night. No one has dogs here. I suddenly realized "I just gave a coyote some of my food and pet him like a dog, and that just happened" and did a double take on the animal that walked about 20 yards away- yep, coyote. The thing is, the coyote also realized this at the same time and did a double-take on me. I think we were both kind of embarrassed.
"what just happened?" "what just happened?"
@@magentaplatinum1430 there was a silent agreement between us to not speak of this I guess I violated it. Sorry Coyote Bro, but I think we were both in the same headspace
He forgot he was a coyote for a moment, and turned into a dog.
And that was the exact moment he became a good boy.
What can you tell about patrolling Mojave desert? Did you wish for a nuclear winter?
There’s a quote by primatologist Frans de Waal that I will never forget: “The possibility that empathy resides in parts of the brain so ancient that we share them with rats should give pause to anyone comparing politicians with those poor, underestimated creatures.” Being compared to a rat is a compliment. Like pigeons they are smart, clean and genuinely interesting creatures we could do much to learn from.
So.... We are calling politicians "flightless seagulls" from now on?
@@tiagobelo4965 yes.
No truer statement
@@tiagobelo4965or we could call them 'homo sapians' that sounds about right! (Sorry I can't spell)
And this is why I’m Vegan. Because animals have sentience, emotions, attachments, can feel pain, fear, terror, betrayal, hopelessness. Anyone who claims to be an animal lover but consumes animals and animal products is a hypocrite. Think about not WHAT you’re eating, but WHO you’re eating.
I recently rescued an injured pigeon that couldn't fly from the street, thankfully we have a réhabilitation center for birds in my city so that's where I brought him, he literally fell asleep in my scarf while on the commute, so gentle, afterwards everyone was telling me to wash the scarf and generally disapproving of what I did, I'm glad I watched this and learned that pigeons aren't bigger disease carriers than us, I'll tell them that next time
Thank you for the positive PR on pigeons! I honestly never understood why people went so hard hating on them. You can tell they’re smart and I actually used to feed some on the quad of my college campus. I also never knew where the whole “rats with wings” phrase originated… now I know. 🙌🏾
I'm so glad to see this. Pidgeons are crapped on by media left and right, fiction and non, but I never knew where it all started. As shared here, they have such a rich history of companionship and symbiosis with humans. People bred and trained them like dogs, but pigeons don't get to be man's dear friend anymore. Man rejected his dear friend. Hopefully we don't see even more rejection of his best friend. What's worse is that doves are seen as symbols of purity, goodness, life, and peace... but they're just pigeons with pretty privilege.
“Pigeons with pretty privilege” just sounds dope lol
I agree with the media part. Pokemon did them poor with tranquill
WHY DO SO MANY PEOPLE NOT KNOWS HOW TO SPELL "PIGEON"? 😫😫😫😂😂😂😂😂
@@slappy8941 "Pidgeon" is the more ancient of outdated words, while "Pigeon" is the more modern one. Both are CORRECT.
@@slappy8941oof
My sister rescued a pigeon with a broken leg. He made my sister his girlfriend. Funniest thing I’ve ever witnessed. She took him to a bird specialist/ vet and they told her she could drop him in Alaska and he would fly back to her in Texas. She was stuck with him. I still laugh about it.
Tbh that vet isn't lying because some pigeon has a build in compass inside of them that can help them navigate thanks to earth magnetic field
@@coffee_2234They have a GPS system in their brain lol.
Yeah that's not necessarily because it was attracted to her BUT that is actually pretty common in captive raised pigeons. But they generally will only view people as competition or a potential partner if they were hand reared by people without any other pigeons to bond with. A lot of people who keep pigeons now recommend that you have at least two so they don't get aggressive and horny when they get older. Which. I mean an aggressive pigeon isn't really a big deal or even dangerous but it lowers their stress levels. So she either rescued it quite young or it just bonded with her normally. Like the people above have said, most pigeons have honest to God GPS. That's how we used them to race and to carry messages. You raise them at home and as long as they consider your home their home.. . they're coming back. In fact that's basically how some people in the city get pigeons to their coops. They just ..scoop them off the street and start taking care of them. And because pigeons are very much still a domestic species it's not that hard to get them to stick around. They're very intelligent and affectionate birds and can be kept indoors like parrots too.
From the video title and thumbnail, I thought it was meant literally. As in “we have selectively bred the pidgeons so much that they grew extra digit.”
my friend had a pigeon named Fareed that he trained without prior knowledge to come to him and only him if he snapped his fingers , my pet cat also tried so hard to get him but could not even touch him , pigeons here in Egypt are precious pets and lovable creatures ( and meals ) . R.I.P Fareed 💔
Finally, someone is talking about this. It always makes me sad how we just threw pigeons away. They deserve better.
Yall
Its called rewilding. Not every animal needs human captivity.
@@krishadyn5211tbf maybe if humans stopped fucking around with animals and fucking them up we wouldn’t need to rewild them in the first place.
@@krishadyn5211Incorrect. The indomitable human race shall conquer all animals and we will pet every single one.
@@krishadyn5211dude it isn’t captivity. It’s like if we all decided we hated golden retrievers and threw them out, let their coats get matted and nails overgrown, and then made fun of them for it. Would you call it “captivity” then? Knowing they rely on us?
As a bird lover I am fucking devastated, honestly
Much like the asteroid that wiped out the Dino’s
same
Same here 😂😢
I too am devasted by this news as an avian archosaur appreciator.
I read a study where pigeons could look at a circuit diagram and prefer the ones that worked, from the ones that didn't. 🤯
Ok I will never disrespect a pidgeon again. I'm tearing up over how brave and loyal that bird was. He saved so many lives, good on him.
I didn't know HALF this stuff about pigeons!! Daaamn. I also really like how much research and stuff you do. AH THE ENDING CLIPS, they're so cuuute
The worst thing that humans did to any pigeon was the tragedy of the passenger pigeon. They went from billions to extinct in less than a century due to overhunting and destruction of nesting and habitat. The flocks were so big that there was a report from like 1855 Columbus Ohio of a flock flying over the city. They blotted out the sun and took two hours to pass over completely. People were running and screaming and hiding to get out of the streets and once the flock was gone the town was basically painted white. Famous conservationist Aldo Leopold once called them "feathered tempests" which is cool as hell.
That passenger pigeon flock story is the funniest thing I’ve read this week
Only in Ohio
I think, I want to also mention, that another reason they went extinct, is that I think I read somewhere, is that these swarms of them were the only way the could breed. Like, they didn't have good conception rates, and these swarms helped them with that. I'd assume once a swarm started to die down, they too would.
@@AuraAi We learned in evolutionary bio about that. It was an excellent strategy until firearms became common and the increase of humans during the industrial revolution. Most animals would not be able to consume a whole flock, but a group of people with shotguns could cause terrible damage.
@@darthsilversith667unfunny
Maybe I'm a weirdo, but I've always found pigeons cute. Much like rats, they also have been observed to clean themselves a lot and enjoy baths. Their ability to find the way home despite being in the dark and put in random places in tests is actually insane.
i think they're cute to, definitely one of my favorite animals
they make lots of cute lil noises, a lot like cats. the cooing when you pet them really gets me lol
no cuz they're absolutely adorable how do people hate them 🙁
@@nckojita I love watching videos of them acting like feathered cats and being cute lil goobers.
14:02 Glad to hear the Pigeon wasn’t a piece a shit like his namesake was
Also i love how you made a video for pigeons, even when you don't feel comfortable around pigeons.
Don't forget 'pigeon' also used to be an affectionate nickname to call someone, typically a girl or woman, like the Tramp called Lady. Basically it meant 'sweet little thing' because people used to regard pigeons that way.
I always wondered why he always called her that whenever I watched Lady and the Tramp.
@@beastmaster0934 My guess is that calling a girl "pigeon" was from Beatnik culture. Note how Lady's humans call each other "Jim Dear," and "Darling." -Dear and darling were older, more 'establishment' affectionate nicknames, whereas young Beatniks were bringing all kinds of new slang to American dialogue. Considering the movie came out in 1955 and the Tramp was a freewheeling rebel type, I suspect his lingo was meant to emulate Beat talk.
In france a "pigeon" is a gullible person, easily tricked and manipulated
The nicer version of it is still understood as that. Dove can be used as an old-fashioned way of calling someone "sweet little thing"
they’re also a sign of peace
As the Pigeon God, I'm glad you're finally giving pigeons the recognition they deserve
i love you pigeongod3450
Praise be
All hail the pigeon god!
Praise be to our new overlords the pigeons, may they bless use with their coo’s….. I mean. They cute.
coo
2:09 about the Victoria Crowned Pigeon: they’re about the size of a wild turkey, also they can indeed fly. The zoo I worked at had two of them in the Australia Aviary, and I have seen it happen. Twice.
I love watching and listening to your videos, you have a smooth delivery and make it easy to understand.(also love it when you do spider warnings) I started listening to your videos earlier this year to get chores done and since losing my mom earlier this year, I hope more people listen when you say hug your loved ones
Yeah, pigeon intelligence is way underrated. I recall reading a post by a wildlife rehabilitator talking about how they were training falcons and other 'cool' birds to do tricks for school programs, and realizing that a random pigeon had been watching from the sidelines and learnt the tricks too. Which is how they ended up with a pigeon in the show too. They are hella trainable and honestly quite pretty too. It's kind of a shame people don't appreciate them more.
now im interested to watch such show
Surprised the raptors didn't eat the little asshole.
Aww, that’s so cool!! I’d totally watch that show!
Mike Tyson owns many pigeons
"Yeah, pigeon intelligence is way underrated". I'm sorry, underrated?! One of them beat a certain games' journalist at solving puzzles and the whole world witnessed it!
In the early 1940s, the british government launched a program (Operation Columba) to gather intelligence from occupied territories by air-dropping pigeons over civilian areas in France and Belgium. This was actually moderately successful, and caused enough of a problem for the germans that they made it illegal to possess pigeons in France. This killed the pigeon-keeping hobby and is a major factor in why there are so many feral pigeons. The book "Secret Pigeon Service" by Gordon Corera provides some very interesting information on the subject and talks about how the british were *this* close to having a full map of the german defenses on the northern french coastline.
Those were the pigeons with cameras, right? I've seen pictures.
Thats not even the only 1940s Pigeon-based military operation. In the early 1940s the US Military piloted a program called "Operation Pigeon" which placed pigeons in the nose cone of aerial bombs in order to guide them, using lenses and a screen, which would project the intended target in such a way that pigeons would peck at the screen. Using pivots and sensors, the birds would peck at the target. If the target drifted offcenter, the offset pecking would pivot the screen, and the sensors sent that data to the control surface, effectively guiding the bomb to the target. It didnt work. It got picked up by the Navy a few years later and rebranded to "Project Orcan" It also didnt work, then computers happened. Real good use of the R&D budget 🙃
So that's why my grandfather had to stop catching pigeons to feed himself and his family during WWII...
That is really fascinating!!
I added it to my goodreads list, thank you for the recommendation!
I remember when I was little I used to love birds. When I moved to Texas, I caught notice of a species known as the "White-Winged Dove" and I always loved looking at some from a distance. One day at a park, I noticed one with a bullet wound and told my parents if we could take it to the vet. I held it in my arms, and it was so sweet to me. It knew I wasn't danger the moment I wasn't attacking it. Unfortunately, it passed away recovering from the wound, but that moment always wanted me to get a pet pigeon or dove. I never knew why these birds get bad rep...
We also attempted to use them as a guidance systems for bombs in the aptly named "Project Pigeon", they were basically the precursor to GPS guidance, but got shelved once electronic systems proved more reliable and cost effective. We also attempted to use bats in a very similar manner, which is also a very interesting read.
I instantly teared up the literal second I saw the picture of Cher Ami. I didn't realize I would recognize a picture of a pigeon, but I recognized him immediately. One day, I hope to go to the Smithsonian, and I'm gonna cry just being near him.
He gave it all for us.
hw survived you know@@Topdoggie7
Learning about how smart and vengeful crows and ravens can be I've grown a certain amount of respect for them not to mess around
You should be. We had a crow nest near our house and whenever they got scared of us. They would pluck our plants out from the soil. They're way smart than we assume
They are extremely intelligent and you can teach them too talk. They also have a great memory.
Jewelry store around here has a vending machine for crows... they drop a coin or "ring mostly" inside and it spits out food (anything heavy and shiny is what they grab).@@jibranbhat8711
I used to have a genuine crow plague in the park near my old house. _(entirely my fault, but i love crows so i didn't mind as much as everyone else did)_ We at some point started feeding the crows there, and when more arrived, we fed more. _This went on for about 5 years._ By the time we decided we should stop, there were probably about a couple hundred (if not more) crows gathered in the park, waiting every time for when we would dump local bakery's left over bread by the metaphorical truckload. Our street neighboring the park ended up calling it 'Crow's Nest' (Dutch: het Kraaiennest). About 4 years ago i moved. I stopped feeding them 6-7 years ago, but they never stopped coming, and made our park their local hang-out. I still occasionally fed some in my garden at my old home, but never again the wheelbarrow full of treats i'd bring them weekly, and the amount of crows in my garden was usually limited to only 20 to 30. Now, i didn't move that far, only some 45 kilometers down the road, but one thing i didn't expect is for the crows to follow me to my new home. I had one tapping on my window about 2 weeks after i moved in. I can't confirm they're the same crows, but everywhere i go both crows and to some small degree jackdaws just kind of sit there, waiting for the master of treats to bestow upon them the deliciousness they've come to expect. They camp in my garden, patiently waiting for me to hand them their weekly meal. And whenever i'm in public, especially on my lunch walk to the supermarket, crows actively follow me, and fly overhead. The reason why i believe they followed me is because usually you only really see a fuckton of Jackdaws in the Netherlands, but now my town has been practically overrun by crows, and the jackdaws have almost become a rare sight. I have become the Crowfather. Bringer of blessings to generations of crows. And i will carry on my duty for the rest of my life, however many crow-centuries that might be. They have blessed me with their trust, and so i shall in turn reward their trust with food. TL;DR: I fed crows and now my weekly blessings of food have been ingrained in local crow culture, and i have an army of crows follow me around. 👍 Crows are smart. Respect the crows. _They probably know where you live. Like, literally._ Pigeons i hate, but blackbirds i have come to have huge respect and appreciation for.
crows can be as smart as some kids. ain't surprising that pigeons got that cranial chill too.
This was seriously one of your best videos ever! And that's saying something man! Thank you so much, i learned a lot 🎉❤❤❤
Thanks for recognizing these chubby little gems!
As someone who works in a bird rescue I understand why Steve was afraid of large parrots. They can be pretty unpredictable and dangerous if you don't learn and respect their communication.
This. I have a rescued Pacific parrotlet. She weighs 31 grams (close to one ounce) and while I love her more than anything, she was returned to the shelter multiple times for her aggression. I'm very cautious around the large parrots, because the damage they can deal with those beaks is no joke. My snake on the other hand? He doesn't get jealous, fly at people, and bite their necks.
Parrots are really scary! Growing up, one of my friends had a pet store, and I got to hold all manner of crazy pets from boa constrictors to tarantulas, bearded dragons to ferrets. All the animals I handled, only the parrot caused injury- it took a big chunk out of my hand with its beak.
No doubt. They can be tempermental and can hurt you with their powerful bite.
If you train it right, they're amazing. The problem is that most people aren't dedicated trainers with enough time or knowledge on their own to do it. Then there are some parrots who are utterly insane and terrifying- these are Amazons, cockatoos, and scarlet macaws. I would own a blue and gold or a green wing or a hybrid macaw, and I would own basically any other parrot. Budgie, cockatiel, conure, eclectus, african gray, galah, ringneck, alexandrine, pionus, Senegal, etc. I would own any of those. And many other species. If a hyacinth macaw was dropped into my lap, even for a price that is not $18,000+, I might get one. Honestly my favourite parrots are blue and gold macaws, camelot macaws, catalina macaws, ruby macaws, and blue throat macaws. Oddly, my next favourite parrots are... Budgies. Yup, budgies! I love them!!
Yup. And once you know how surprisingly painful the bite of a tiny budgie/parakeet beak can be already, you just shudder to think about the level of injury an African Grey or Macaw can give you. This beak shape means business.
I spent some time working at a wildlife rescue and we had one 'failure' wood pigeon who never left the sight after rehabilitation and release. Anyone who stepped outside was at risk of being the unwitting perch for a very friendly bird demanding cuddles.
Me and my girlfriend are suckers for small affectionate animals so if this happened to us we'd probably adopt a pigeon if one took a liking to us.
This is most wholesome story I read this morning
That's a risk I'm willing to take.
i remember we were in an public farm (where folks visit and sometimes buy products from) it was autumn so they had a week event like corn maze to tractor riding, to touching rabbits and goats... this time it was a pigeon who followed the father and daughter before the guy gave to me this domesticated pigeon which we dont know the owner of.. (possibly the farmer or some bird keeper nearby) as it was tagged.. i felt happy to caress it, give gentle pets, showed to my cousin.. before a lady along with her 5 friends was interested with the pigeon I picked along with and gently gave it to her as I was living with my family who might get weirded out due to the same scared of being near 'wild/dirty' birds and our home not open of a big place with a bird.. I was asking anybody if anyone knew any owner of the bird to identity the colored tag... i cant help but wonder whether the lady ask out the farmer about the bird or kept it themselves
Sounds delightful.
Although your clips are fabulous, and the facts are so deliciously satisfying, what I absolutely adore is the narration! Witty,engaging,dry-BRAVO 👏. I look forward to every episode.❤
ive always absolutely adored pigeons, theyre so cute and a lil chubby!! where i grew up, we primarily had mourning doves, but being smol and the english language not making any sense, i called them good morning doves and since my early childhood ive always associated them with peace and comfort. i love them lil dudes :D
Mike Tyson has had pigeons for pets since he was a kid. As a matter of fact, the first fight he ever got in was over a pigeon. One of the kids in the neighborhood saw him carrying it around, and asked to see it. Young Mike Tyson showed him the pigeon, and the kid ripped its head off. He still keeps them as pets to this day.
Pigeons possibly being directly responsible for one of the most iconic boxers and athletes ever might be my favorite random fact lol
Jesus christ... what sort of kid fucking *does* that...
@@mndiaye_97 He races em too apparently.
That kid had it coming to him. Don’t kill animals for fun.
That’s actually a pretty cool origin story.
I have a ''pet pigeon'', I rescued her when she was a little chick that fell from the nest in the middle of the city. When she had grow enough I set her free, but she never wanted to leave! She's pure love, she loves napping on my lap and asking for attention, and yes, she surprises me every day with how intelligent she actually is. She also loves my mother and she is capable of identifying her voice through the phone, she always comes flying from the other side of the house when she hears her!! They're incredible 🥰
Me and my gf have one and she is the sweetest flying thing in the world He pecks my partner when she doesnt give him scritches, but i cant blame her.
Thank you for rescuing the baby, last year I found a hatchling whose parents had apparently chosen an unfortunate spot for a nest. Unsure if the baby had just started hatching or was about to but wound up on the ground still mostly in its shell, no longer alive. My heart still hurts for the poor thing but it’s always soothing to hear not all of these stories end that way
What’s her name? She sounds like such a loving pet
@@bluesteno64 her name is Marie Curie, we call her Marie or Curicuri 🤭💖
damn you must be doing well in life
I've been with this young man from the beginning, and seeing how much the videos have evolved has been fascinating enough, but also seeing how our host has grown more comfortable and open, and become more personable within the presentation... It's been a very interesting, entertaining, and incredibly informative journey. I think this guy should be teaching kids about animals, because taking this more casual approach keeps it from feeling like LEARNING (in the strictured, academically oppressive sense). Love this channel and all the videos, thank you for all you do!
Also, does anyone know his name? The host, I mean.... I feel weird calling him CASUAL GEOGRAPHIC, cause that's certainly not meant to be his personal handle.... That's just the name of the corporation.
@@TheHive616 Mamadou
One of the most informative episodes for me personally. Thanks.
Lesser known fact about pigeons, they are incredibly affectionate. I once found a 5 days old one in the street and picked it up to care for it, as soon as it could fly it decided to do the cuddles with me and no barrier could stop it.
You forgot one really cool thing that only pigeons can do. Normally birds have to drink by taking some water into their beak and then raise their head up so that the water flows down their gullet. But pigeons have small hole at the tip of their beak that allows them to use their beak like a straw. No other bird can do that.
Thats so cool
Awe! This was a lovely video, thank you for posting it.
i always loved pigeons, when i found out there's so much of them in the city i live and that we abandoned them i cried more than once they're beautiful in every sense of the word
Cher Ami's story is actually a bit better than what he says. Cher Ami wasn't released just because they had no food/water/ammo, but also because the soldiers were trapped in a zone being shelled by US artillery batteries. His ears were getting violated and organs getting vibrated by bombardment and even with multiple gunshot wounds delivered the message that stopped the bombardment and got them rescued. For you Sabaton fans out there Cher Ami had saved The Lost Battallion.
Fun fact. Carrier pigeons were used in WW1 to deliver messages into enemy territory. They were so effective that germans trained peregrine falcons to intercept them. Soilders would shoot at them on sight, sometimes taken prisoner if caught. A very short life expectancy but some flew so many missions that they would retire them with medals. They literally played a major part in battle and who knows if they were never used. Edit: I typed this before I watched the whole vid where the uploader later states all this info.
The crazy part is the effectiveness of a peregrine falcon was 35%!!!! Yes that's alot but considering the falcon should literally dominate. They were still fast enough and agile enough to make maneuvers the falcons couldn't.
@@tiredanddepressed wow I didn't know that. I remember watching this kid movie called Valiant, about the carrier pigeons of the war and there were these nazi falcons that I just assumed were there because they had to have animal bad guys, and falcons were a natural predator. The more you know!
@@tiredanddepressed The falcon is built for them, but the pigeon has one defense move where it dive bombs right before its snatched. It's a one shot maneuver, obviously. There was one pidgeon that flew so many missions, they had to retire her to let her live out her life. She came back ruffled up and scratched up, but always came back. Amazing birds.
There's an animated movie about carrier pigeons named Valiant, don't know how well it's aged since last I watched it but I remember it being a pretty solid movie.
Incorrect. Falcon does the dive bomb in the pigeons blind spots. The pigeons dodges it, using its overpowered breast muscles and manouvrebility.
“Here is an ad while you grapple with that” 2 ads start playing…..son of a…
Pigeons are awesome birds. Their navigation skills, their memory, everything. I really want to own one someday, if I can. They're sweeties.
Every time I go to the state fair where I am, I am shocked at the horrifying abominations pidgeon breeders have created. I don't think any other animal has been this gruesomely twisted by us--not even dogs.
Goldfish
Also came here to say goldfish, and in very similar ways
Have you heard of Bubble Eye Goldfish.
I'm not so sure. The pit bull family as a whole is a genetic mess, not only mentally, but physically. Higher frequency of allergies, mouth breathers because their block skulls limit how much they can get through their nostrils. Then you have the weirder ones, like the dachshund that literally looks like someone stitched a pit bulls head on it, or the pocket/toad bullies, that can barely walk, have short lifespans and literally cannot mate or give birth most of the time without human intervention. The whole idea behind pocket/toy breeds in general is crazy. Shrink a breed until it has countless physical and mental issues from having to stuff everything in a tiny "cute" package. To be honest I will never understand the appeal some people have for breeding inbred mutants and making a fortune off them. But the relationship between wealth and inbreeding sure helps explain the Habsburgs
Hamsters apparently have their eyes fall out too, dunno for sure if that’s our fault but I’m gonna guess so.
My grandpa raised Birmingham Rollers since he was a child. He helped me build my own coop and gave me some breeding pairs. I kept a full genealogy and cared for those birds every day. My grandpa died a couple years later and I remember going out to the coop and crying for hours. I was so glad that I had that time with him and my pigeons to remember him by.
Those are so cool!
What became of the birds he had when he died?
@@audreymuzingo933 by the time he had died he was living in an apartment and had already given me and a friend his birds.
@@ozzypawsborneprinceofbarkn3249 Thank you. And sorry if I was nosy, I just couldnt' imagine a whole flock of birds not having anyone to care for them after he did so well for them.
Omg there's more 🥺😭 bless their little souls. They were literally little angels
I live in New Zealand and the kereru is my fave bird the sound its wings make as it lands in a tree drunk or otherwise is beautiful
A bit more context with Cher Ami. The battalion wasn't just getting attacked by the enemies, they were also getting attacked by their allies as well. So they were sandwiched between 2 lines of fire, and it took 3 pigeons, Cher Ami being the third pigeon, that was sent out for the battalion to get rescued
As someone with a pet pigeon, I’m so glad you made this! They make phenomenal pets, and they really have the worst wrongful reputation!
More like phenomenal alarm clock
But dont they poop everywhere in the house? Or can you train them to poop in the toilet sand like a cat?
@@chouleo They can, but it's super easy to follow them around and wipe it away when they poop. Or you can buy special diapers for them to wear that catch the poop. They're really cute; look like little overalls.
Damn. I just blanket assumed that they'd be the obligate outdoors kind of pets.
I had a folk of pigeons when I was a kid and it was one of my best experiences, people need to know more about these beautiful feathery creatures
bro your ability to produce fresh and interesting and hilarious content in this space is unmatched
The fact that someone named their homing pigeon "Dear Friend" is the cutest thing
I wasn't aware pigeons had such a bad reputation in the US. And every time I've heard the term "rats with wings" it's usually in reference to bats (bc they look similar) or seagulls. It's a shame it's now considered weird to have pigeons as pets
I always thought it referred to seagulls.
For some reason its normal to keep them in a coop thing, but weird to have just a single bird!
@@kziila0244Same here.
They definitely have the same reputation in Germany. If anything, people here like rats more than pigeons. Or hate them less.
That reminds me, bats in Swedish are called "fladdermöss" which translates to "flutter mice". So it would make sense in a way that they're the "rats with wings". But I don't see rats as a negative, they're cute and intelligent.
Bro how I been sleeping on this channel, straight gold
I love this :) I had pigeons up until a week ago, when I was unfortunately diagnosed with bird fancier’s lung. I am making a quick comeback after rehoming, distancing myself, and taking medications, but it’s a heartbreaking time for me. It’s really wild, they say it takes years of exposure and lots of birds to cause it, but it seems to be more of a bad luck thing as I only had two birds.
So, I volunteer for a wildlife rescue, and pigeons are the most common animals we get. Every time we get one, I am amazed with how much personality they can have (once they get well enough to start showing it). We've had sassy pigeons, sweet pigeons, chill pigeons, pigeons with the personality of a neurotic chihuahua.... and I struggle not to treat them like a pet, even with the ones that try to chop or bite you without hesitation. Speaking of, pigeons do have ways of defending themselves! The main one, and the most surprising, is wing chopping. The bird basically tries to punch you with the wrist of their wing as hard as they can, and it's startling the first couple times it happens. The amount of times I've seen a new Volunteer pull their hand back like they got shocked by the bird.... It's genuinely hilarious. They also bite, and while it feels like a pinch to us, it can fuck up another bird. We actually had to remove a bird from a prerelease enclosure cause the other pigeons decided they didn't like that individual, and tried to kill it. Also, they make for pretty decent pet alternatives to parrots, and can be trained to be ESA's.
That’s actually really interesting, thank you for the extra insight! My perception of them has really flipped the last few years
My grandfather used to breed carrier pigeons as he was a war vet that handled them during his service. So I understand the fear as I was too. But I do admire and respect them as well.
My Grandfather did breed them too, but for food. Very tasty and I was too young to know it was unusual.
@@Kaefer1973 strange but cool fr
@@Kaefer1973What do they taste like?
@@IntrovertedPotato As far as birds go their unique taste can be closer compared to ducks than anything else I've ever eaten (which aside them is just the big four, chicken, turkey duck and goose). But that taste is a lot lighter and doesn't dominate as much, so about an inbetween of chicken and duck.
I love this channel fam!!!! 😂 this man just keep on keeping on lol
Great video! I appreciate Pigwidgeons all the more now.