Columbidology (PIGEONS? YES) with Rosemary Mosco

Part 1: You love pigeons. You might not know it yet. Espionage! Fancy breeds! Internal GPS! Weird feet! Should you be afraid of them? Should you adopt one? Pigeon advocate, comic artist and author of “A Pocket Guide to Pigeon Watching,” Rosemary Mosco finally joins to answer all of our questions in a beautifully mellow and melodious wall-to-wall pigeon exploration. I loved every minute of making this one and if you stick around for the secret, I’ll take you behind-the-scenes. Listen, then sit on a bench and watch your new friends.

Listen via Apple, Spotify, Podbay, Podcast Addict, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Part 2: The thrilling conclusion of PIGEONS, with Columbidologist and author Rosemary Mosco of Bird and Moon comics. It’s wall-to-wall listener questions and you’ll hear all about bonded pairs, the fate of the extinct passenger pigeon, the best cinematic pigeons, how to help their nubby feet, gender reveals gone very wrong, Las Vegas mysteries to boil your blood, and so much more. Also: did I just see a wedding bird escapee?

Listen via Apple, Spotify, Podbay, Podcast Addict, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Visit Rosemary’s website and follow her on Instagram, TikTok, and X

Browse Rosemary’s books including A Pocket Guide to Pigeon Watching: Getting to Know the World’s Most Misunderstood Bird and There Are No Ants in This Book

Read Rosemary’s nature comic Bird and Moon and support on Patreon

Donations went to Great Lakes Pigeon Rescue and Palomacy


Links to things we discussed:

Human activities and landscape features interact to closely define the distribution and dispersal of an urban commensal

Cunning Neanderthals hunted and ate wild pigeons

Pigeons, a Darwin Favorite, Carry New Clues to Evolution

The Far Side Comic Strip by Gary Larson

Where Did Pigeons Come From?

Pigeon Iridescence: Physical and Functional Properties

Rare wild ancestors of feral pigeons found living on British and Irish islands

Limited domestic introgression in a final refuge of the wild pigeon

Americans used to eat pigeon all the time—and it could be making a comeback

Squab Producers of America

Nutrition Facts and Calories for Squab

Pigeon Breed Gallery

BONKERS pigeon breeds

Trumpeter (pigeon) - Pigeon Wiki - Fandom

Cropper Tumbler Pigeon (video)

Pigeon Breeding: Genetics at Work

Following the sun: a mathematical analysis of the tracks of clock-shifted homing pigeons

Magnetic compass helps pigeons find their way

Dr. Elizabeth Carlin’s pigeon research

Urbanization predicts flight initiation distance in feral pigeons (Columba livia) across New York City

Widespread genetic connectivity of feral pigeons across the Northeastern megacity 

The pigeon strut in slow-mo

Urban pigeons losing toes due to human activities

L.A. Was Once Home to the World's Largest Flock of Pigeons

Magnetoreception in birds

Magnetoreception: A Dynamo in the Inner Ear of Pigeons

A Putative Mechanism for Magnetoreception by Electromagnetic Induction in the Pigeon Inner Ear

German city issues coronavirus pigeon-feeding permits

A park where people have been going to feed friendly pigeons since the 18th century - Parque De Las Palomas in San Juan, Puerto Rico

NYC: It is not illegal to keep or feed pigeons, but a violation may be issued for failing to clean up unsanitary conditions that result from this activity. 

Occasional human infestations by feral pigeons' ectoparasites: Two case reports

Gamasoidosis

Pigeons Exonerated In Meningitis Cases By Italian Specialist

Human diseases caused by feral pigeons

Million Dollar Pigeons Official Trailer 2022

Pigeons Get a New Look

PG-67 WW II pigeon message vial

Cunning Neanderthals hunted and ate wild pigeons

Pigeons, a Darwin Favorite, Carry New Clues to Evolution

Rare wild ancestors of feral pigeons found living on British and Irish islands

Nutrition Facts and Calories for Squab


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Ornithology (BIRDS)

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Editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions and Jacob Chaffee

Managing Director: Susan Hale

Scheduling Producer: Noel Dilworth 

Transcripts by Aveline Malek

Website by Kelly R. Dwyer

Theme song by Nick Thorburn

BirdsAlie Ward