Let’s Fly Home

Flock of white doves (photo from Shutterstock, 2012) 20 July 2026 Rock doves (Columba livia) were domesticated 5,000 to 10,000 years ago and are still kept today worldwide for a variety of reasons including food or fancy show breeds, and especially for their homing instinct. Homing pigeons (yes Columba livia) are specially bred for navigation and speed and can fly home from a place they’ve never seen up to 600 miles away. This makes them valuable for carrying messages, taking part in races and in white “dove” releases at weddings and funerals. According to Wikipedia, pigeons’ navigation tools include a combination of: Sun compass Nocturnal navigation by stars Visual landmark map –> pigeons follow roads to get home Navigation by infrasound map Polarized light compass Olfactory (sense of smell) stimuli. For a wedding dove release the pigeons are transported in cages to the launch point. When released they circle up, form a flock, figure out their current location and the direction of…