Male behaves like female?

[york]

I am always able to determined rather quickly if one pigeon is a male or female and I am quite certain that the one I have is a male. (It better be -- LOL)

However, recently, he is into his courtship rituals and I play with him by taking my hand from his left side to his right as he tucks his head for a fraction of a second under his wings. He grooms my fingers and I do the same to him but then, instead of trying to mount my hand he crouches down low and opens his wings a little in order to provide stability when mounting.

Why does he do this, he is a male!
Is it because I am bigger then him and pigeons make this relationship that the bigger one climbs?

It is all very interesting indeed and I am anxious to hear your reflections.

Thanks.

[maryco]

How old is your pigeons? If it is adult(4 months +) I would say she is female.. My Tooty did that when he was very young at about 26 days but later on he started mounting on things like potatoes(LOL) instead of squating down, I think he was just confused and very young at that age but if your bird is an older bird I would say she is female.


Wait I just thought of something, I remember a couple outside (The male is HUGE) and I know he is the male because his wife laid the eggs on my balcony any way while courting she squated and he mounted on her then he squated and the little female mounted on him!
I remember WhiteWingsCa saying one of her pair do that too.. So your pigeon could also be a male.. This is so confusing but if she is female you will be sure because she will lay an egg then!

Mary

[This message has been edited by maryco (edited December 02, 2002).]

[york]

Mary!

It is odd and confusing indeed. Mr. Darcy behaviour is 99% male but squats instead of mounts. I say he is 3 months old now.

Oh my, this is interesting indeed. We have a pigeon here by the name of Mantova (Verdi's Rigoletto -- 100% pigeon equivalent) and has to be the biggest bull in the area. He does not live on our balcony, but somehow claimed ours to be his court. Rigoletto however, lives here among others. (He lost his left finger and thumb and looks like a hunchback too -- Gilda has yet to be seen...)
Anyways, ** giggles ** Mantova's official mate, The Countess sua sposa, has been laying ever since we moved here and this summer, I observed that on the odd occasion (1/50 perhaps) -- he would squat down and she would mount!!

An odd sight indeed. I was never sure if this was regarded as play... but both of them reversed the roles well enough to question the sexes in that single moment.

I am glad to hear that others have observed this too.

Perhaps Mr. Darcy is still exploring...

[bigbird]

How to tell!

Tis easy to tell, if male or female.
Just ask how does it walk, how does it talk?
Behavior tells me I have a lock, yes, for sure, for sure I have a cock.
And when me thinks pigeons I know all about,
it is then and there that an egg just comes out.

Carl

[arrowhead]

Damn it Carl!!! A poet an I did"nt even know it! I have several pairs that mate an the the male does what the female does an she gets on top an flaps her wings for old glory and then we have fertile eggs, its quite FUNNY!!! but it works for me I do'nt know why but all those birds r allways laying fertile eggs. HORMONES???????



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Arrowhead