Pigeons Monogomous? I don't think so!

[Geranyl]

I moved into my apartment in Feb and realized I had pigeon company on the balcony. Well, Mommy pigeon decided it was time to have babies. She (spotted pattern) laid 2 eggs with a grey blue barred male. He kept yelling at her when she tried to get off the nest....sooo, in a few days both eggs had been kicked out of the nest and she brought back a similar looking male to the balcony. A stand off ensued for a few days and then mommy settled in with her new mate. They had 2 eggs, which to my surprpise hatched. For the first few days she wouldn't let the male come close to the nest, so he hung out at the other end of the balcony. One of the squabs died a few days later (she wasn't sitting on it as much) and I decided to give her a helping hand with the other one. I would feed her and bring the baby inside to keep warm when she wasn't around. The male paid no attention whatsoever to the squab. Well. after this scenario she started hanging out with a black male pigeon. He wasn't paying her much attention, so she went back to daddy and started billing with him, but 2 days later hooked up successfully with the black one. She brought him to my balcony where they mated a few times, but they decided to build a nest elsewhere (I know this because she grabbed twigs from my balcony and flew off to a neighbouring house). So, from this I gather she went through 3 mates in 3 months!

Any thoughts on this?

[Evan Garris]

Its like a Vegas wedding gone bad.

[dano7]

They will mate very faithfully, but if circumstances provide opportunities they will get some on the side, but they still are loyal to #1.

They also may have casual relationships before they really settle down to a #1 mate. I believe if they have been together for a long time, they become consistent with one partner.

That's what I've seen but I'd like to hear from those who have observed for a long time.

[Trees Gray]

Hi there,

I have one male who has taken on another mate. The third sits in another cubby but gets equal time with the male. I've seen all three in one cubby from time to time, but that ends quickly! I have not allowed them to have babies, so I don't know how that would work out. The reason was, at that time I first got my pigeons I had more females then males.

I also have one female who literally was making moves on the male pigeon next door, while sitting with her mate! (Although her mate was in rehab for 2 months prior and she was alone, she fell out of love )She dumped him and now resides with the male with larger cubby. That move, I think was strictly for moving to a better location. I was mad at her, but now in the long run she is much better suited to this male. Pixie and Arnold, Sr. are very happy.

Skye has also had numerous females (white hens) making overtures at him, but he has ignored their flirtations, he loves Sonic. one kept trying to preen him in the aviary, the other would come in his cubby when Sonic was not there. She has chased a few females out of their cubbies a couple of times! LOL Skye is pretty much a one hen bird. My other males do not have any such following.

I always sing "That is why all the girls in town follow Skye, all around...just like me, they want to be close to you...Skye" that is an old song...


Treesa

[Elisabeth]

To defend female pigeons everywhere, here is a true observation: while on vacation in California, I always hiked past a pigeon hangout. Mostly they were roosting, sunbathing, or preening, and once I saw this couple: the female was preening the male, and then sank down: she wanted to mate. He wasn't ready: stepped to the right, stepped to the left - which side to mount her - decisions, decisions... and ended up preening his own wing, not knowing what to do. She started preening him again, flattened down, and again, he didn't know - left, right, viagra, maybe? This went on for several times, until a male who had been sunbathing nearby stepped in: well, if he doesn't want to, can I have a go? And prepared to mount the flattened female. At which she quickly stood up and hit him again and again with her wing. And then went back to preening her mate.

[Reti]

Treesa and Elisabeth,
I just love your stories. I am still laughing.
That's so much like humans.
My feral Jerry sometimes courts other females, but it never gets serious.
Andrew loves Whitney, right after he found her again he dumped Nicky. Nicky still loves Andrew even though she is married to Ricky.
Well, like a soap opera.
Julie has some great soap operas going on in her aviary.
Reti

[hilary]

Hercules has been monogomous for 4 years. He does, however, occassionally cheat on me with a multi-coloured juggling ball.
Hilary

[wovenwoman]

And then...you have the couple thrust together by circumstances, like my Tim and Mabon, who spend most of their time bitching at one another and do very little preening or billing, except when they want to "do it". Then they fight like teens over who gets to sit on the eggs, and right now Tim is still feeding the babies from the clutch I thought was infertile, and they are bigger than him. (born Easter day)
Mabon has her new plastic egg , and wont come off it until she has ordered Tim to have his sit. Meanwhile, Tim is prancing and puffing for my mom who he loves dearly.

[Elisabeth]

Hi Reti,
LOL I actually did that, when I was the editor of a local nature magazine I wrote an ongoing soap about the pigeons that visited my yard: the lovelife of Garfield the patriarch and his mate Dovey, their daugther Kleintje and her sons Bebop and Rocksteady, and how she finally wound up to be the mate of her father (incest!) and how we could always trace bits of Garfield on offspring of other, "unrelated" females: brown glow, white wingtips, pink nails. As a motto I used: "Instead of watching "As the world turns" look out of another window and watch "How your yard lives"."
It was a great hit and people still (7-8 years later) still ask me how "my" pigeons are doing.

[DPyra]

Wovenwoman described my pair to a T. Anyone know of anything I can put in Sam's water to calm him down? It's week three of nest sitting (a pair of fakes) and he's causing all the trouble. It's minor who's-turn-is-it-anyway stuff for the first two weeks. Then when the first egg should hatch he attacks her! But they look so pitiful when they are in separate cages. It's like I'm the police responding to a domestic dispute. "Oh no, here she comes. Act natural. - Oh yeah, that's natural. Peck me again and I'll-" (Wap! Scuffle scuffle). They knocked over a hooded crock during their scuffle this morning. That's not easy to do! If Tory had more than one male to choose from, I'm convinced Sam would be single.

I tried to tell my father that pigeons are monogomous. He laughed and told me about the pigeons he observed in the park. I tried to tell him they were young birds without mates yet. He enthusiastically related story after story of pigeons courting anything with feathers. I'm glad to hear stories of both types. It means we're both right. After all, my isolated pair are not a good example.

[Lin Hansen]

I have approx. sixty pigeons that visit me everyday...feral flock, I do not own them, so I can only pick out about twenty or so distinctive ones that I recognize. I am mightily grateful that the males put on such a display everyday..it is nice knowing who the boys are!

They make me laugh tho....typical guys...always looking to get some! Too funny. And the females are like, "Jeez, will you just let me get a bite to eat!"

Had five couples visit on the afternoon shift and there were the five males doing the dance and there were the five females just trying to mind their own business..I swear they would have rolled their eyes if they could.

I have noticed some couples that seem to be together everyday, and it is nice to imagine that they are "in love."