RAP

I stopped in my tracks as soon as I saw it. This was no ordinary pigeon. It was sat on the rim of our bird-bath and my camera was on a table only feet in front of the bird. The chances of my picking it up and taking photos seemed slim. But I was wrong. The bird was very tame. It allowed me to get close and use my camera. It frequently cocked its head and looked around. The bird itself was in fine condition and had two leg-rings. My wife also came to watch the bird. Again, the pigeon seemed comfortable with human presence. It had to be a racing pigeon, or similar. It tolerated us putting sunflower seeds around the edge of the bath and it ate a few. From all the photos I took, it was possible to get a full description from its rings. After sitting at the bird-bath for about an hour it flew to the car-port roof where it stayed for another couple of hours before disappearing. I was relieved when it went since it would have been an obvious target for a passing sparrowhawk.

I sent an email to the Royal Pigeon Racing Association (RPRA) with the details of the leg-rings. I got a reply telling me the name of the owner. I was delighted to learn a few days later that the pigeon had arrived home safely to Ditcheat, near Shepton Mallet, Somerset. It seems that some the pigeons had become disorientated in a training flight due to the presence of a peregrine. All was now well. A happy ending.

About 2 weeks after the first racing pigeon appeared in the garden another 'handsome' specimen arrived (above). This one was far more wary and didn't stay long, allowing only a couple of photos. Again, there was a ring on each leg (both reddish brown), one square, the other circular(?). It was not possible to read any data that may have been on them. It looked quite different from the first bird, much whiter at the rear and showing strong dark bars on the ends of its wings (but not like those of a stock dove). Feedback from the RPRA suggested this was mostly likely to be a racing pigeon. One of the leg rings would have shown registration data, the other probably used to time when the pigeon arrived back at the loft. The bird seemed very alert and healthy and was probably having a brief rest.