by johnnymarin | Oct 12, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
In the third floor hallway of the Pentagon, just outside the Army Chief of Staff’s office, there is a pigeon.
Walking the corridors, the lifelike pigeon stands out among the cases of military history that display Revolutionary-era bayonets, Civil War uniforms and replicas of helicopters used in Vietnam. Upon closer inspection, one might notice the pigeon is so life-like because it has been taxidermied. It’s also missing one leg.
That pigeon’s name is “President Wilson” — an unsung hero of World War I that made a daring flight to save U.S. troops exactly 100 years ago on Friday.
President Wilson was a military carrier pigeon, one of many in the U.S. Army Signal Corps that delivered messages between commanders and troops on the front lines. The pigeons were especially useful tools of communication during World War I when the telephone and telegraph were still unreliable new technologies.
According to U.S. military accounts recorded in the U.S. Army Center of Military History and the National Archives, Wilson was born in France and first assigned to the U.S. Army’s newly formed Tank Corps, delivering messages to Tank Battalions commanded by Col. George S. Patton in the Battle of Saint-Mihiel.
But soon afterward, Wilson was assigned to an infantry unit conducting operations near Grandpré during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.
On the morning of Oct. 5, 1918, his unit came under attack, and Wilson was dispatched to send a message that the unit needed artillery support. During the 25-mile journey, German soldiers spotted him and began firing into his flight path. (It should be noted that some accounts of Wilson’s heroics place the event as occurring on Nov. 5, but multiple historians reached by ABC corroborated the Oct. 5 date.)
Wilson was hit several times, losing a leg and suffering a wound to his chest, but he managed to deliver the message in a record 25 minutes.
Surviving his wounds, Wilson was retired and sent to the U.S. Army Signal Corps Breeding and Training Center at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, where he would live another eleven years.
After his death, Wilson was taxidermied and presented to the Smithsonian Institution before being transferred to the custody of the U.S. Army in 2008. Now, located in the prestigious halls of the U.S. military’s headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, Wilson serves as a reminder that these simple birds — often considered a nuisance by the general public — were once war heroes.
Carrier pigeons were used by both the Allied and Central Powers during World War I and could even provide updates to military commanders when launched in midair from planes.
“Launched mid-mission, the birds would fly back to their coops and update ground commanders on what the pilots had observed,” the National Archives wrote in a blog post in January. “Quick updates like this were essential for leaders to know what the battlefield looked like and what the enemy was doing in its own trenches.”
“Tanks carried the birds in order to relay the advance of individual units. Even after the introduction of the radio, pigeons were often the easiest way to help coordinate tank units without exposing the men to dangerous fire. Without a radio set, the soldiers would have had to leave the relative safety of their tanks to relay or receive orders,” the Archives said.
When the pigeons weren’t in use, they were stored in mobile units, often converted horse carriages or even double-decker buses.
The birds are thought to use low-frequency sound waves to map their environments and find their way from location to location.
Another famous World War I pigeon was known as Cher Ami — his moment of heroism came during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in the fall of 1918.
The German Army surrounded elements of the 77th Division for five days, at one moment confusing the Americans as they accidentally shelled their own men in an attempt to fire at the enemy.
Messages were unable to get to U.S. commanders, so Cher Ami was released as the division’s last hope. Like Wilson, Cher Ami flew through a barrage of gunfire, also sustaining injuries to his leg and chest. But he successfully delivered the message, ending the friendly fire.
The French even awarded Cher Ami the Croix de Guerre with Palm, a military decoration, for his service.
Military carrier pigeons were again used in World War II. In that war, 32 pigeons were awarded the United Kingdom’s Dickin Medal for their heroic actions.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 11, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
In Bangkok in all areas forbidden to feed the “flying rats”. Violators face imprisonment of up to 3 months. In the capital of Thailand came into force a law banning the feeding of pigeons in all 50 districts of the city. In public areas of Bangkok have already appeared warning signs in Thai, Chinese and English.
For violation of the law to local residents and foreign visitors are threatened by punishment in the form of imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months or a fine of 25 thousand baht. Bangkok authorities introduced the ban to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, vectors of which are the “flying rats”.
Thus the mayor of the Thai capital, Asawin Kwanmuang said that the administration does not seek to strictly prosecute offenders. The authorities want to use the promotion to draw people’s attention on the real threat from pigeons, said the mayor, writes turizm.ru. Feeding the pigeons is prohibited in another major city in Thailand – Chiang Mai.
Moreover, similar bans worldwide. For example, can be fined for the bread thrown to the birds in some districts of Paris in the Central areas and squares of Venice, Florence, Geneva, London, Helsinki.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 10, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
REFERRING to the SMS “Pigeon hazard” (The Star, Oct 1), Thailand is considering jailing or fining anyone caught feeding pigeons. The Thai authorities say pigeons are “rats with wings” and cause bird flu, respiratory diseases and meningitis.
Sadly, here in Kuala Lumpur, there are people throwing out food to feed the pigeons. One such place is Jalan Taban 2 in Lucky Garden, Bangsar. They do this every day, usually in the morning, and there are hundreds of pigeons on the road and telephone lines. When the pigeons flutter their wings, small feathers are seen flying around. Residents also find feathers in their kitchens, and this is not healthy.
These so-called “kind souls” who feed the birds are not concerned about health when they throw food on the road. Some even throw food into the back lanes. They never think that crows, other birds, cats and rats also come to eat the food. This is getting out of control and if something is not done soon, someone will get seriously ill due to the germs carried by the pigeons. I hope the Health Ministry will conduct an awareness campaign to educate the public on the dangers pigeons pose to people.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 9, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
Allan Cassidy (66), a resident of Dubbieside, in Lower Methil, claims rats have been an issue in the area for two years, but that this was “the worst I’ve ever known it”. One of the dead rats. Allan, a pensioner who lives in a private let, lost two of his racing pigeons last week after they came down with Paratyphoid. He says the racing pigeons caught the bacterial disease which is caused by the rats. Paratyphoid is a pigeon disease caused by salmonella – and it is thought this can be spread by rats. Allan has used medicine to treat the rest of the racing pigeons, and deployed poison and traps to kill the rats. However, he says he does not know the root of the issue and does not wishing to keep paying out for medicine, traps and poison. Allan has called on Fife Council to investigate. “It’s not a new thing in this area, so there must be some food,” he explained. “The amount of rat poison that is disappearing – I’ve never seen it like that. I don’t know where the source is. “I’m a pensioner. It’s hard enough to keep my pigeons going, never mind buying the bait and poison. “The council need to investigate and get to the root of this. Vermin running about like this – that’s no good.” Allan describes the racing pigeons as “massively important” to him. Delight for residents after controversial… £10,000 funding for Fife to get ‘weather… He added: “A pigeon has to be 100 per cent to fly the channel. Anything less and it might not perform well or you might even lose it.” Fife Council said it had received no reports of rats in the area.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 8, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
Enterprise and Daleville business owner Kiko Arana spoke about his love for racing pigeons at the Lions Club meeting on Sept 12.
He races pigeons in the homing pigeon family, which can instinctively find their way home from great distances. They are different from the normal pigeons you’ll see on the sidewalk.
Due to that instinctive ability, these pigeons have a history of being used to deliver messages for both military and civilian use, according to Arana.
According to a New York Times article, the “first message-bearing pigeon was loosed by Noah. The ancient Romans used pigeons for chariot races, to tell owners how their entries had placed. Genghis Khan established pigeon relay posts across Asia and much of Eastern Europe. Charlemagne made pigeon-raising the exclusive privilege of nobility. The Rothschild fortune is said to have been seriously augmented by a pigeon bearing news of the British victory at Waterloo.”
These pigeons were widely used throughout World War I and according a Wall Street Journal article, the French military was seeking to return its pigeons to active duty in case of an electromagnetic attack.
Arana’s biggest interest in the birds, however, is their ability to imprint the location of their home. Arana said that no one really knows for sure how homing pigeons find their way home, but he has a theory.
“I’m a believer that—more than anything else—the smell is what brings them home,” Arana said. “They’ve done a lot of experiments but when they block the sensors in the nose, they (the pigeons) cannot make it home.”
It’s also this sense that allows people to race homing pigeons.
The pigeons are released at set location and use this ability to navigate back to the club house. The pigeon that makes it back to the club house the fastest is the victor.
The races in the area are in 75, 150, 200, 300, 400 and 600 mile lengths with the longer races taking multiple days for the pigeons to return.
Pigeons average about 50 miles per hour during the races, according to Arana.
He entered his first race in 1977 in Puerto Rico and has been racing ever since.
Though his birds still race in other parts of the country, Arana said the club he used to race for here, the Wiregrass Racing Pigeon Club, is inactive. He said he hoped that teaching people about racing pigeons would help create newcomers to bring the club back to life.
He brought one of his pigeons to the meeting and showed it to all the members of the Lions Club.
“I wanted to release the pigeon but then I remembered it was hunting season,” Arana said.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
