Humor: Fun Facts about Pigeons, the Unofficial Winged Mascot of New York City

By Christine Stoddard

• Pigeons are birds that make up the family Columbidae (order Columbiformes)—though not all pigeons are graduates of Columbia University. Some went to NYU.
• The most common pigeon in New York City is the rock dove, or Columbia livia. Some people prefer the term sky rat.
• Doves and pigeons are cousins, with doves generally ​being smaller and pigeons bigger. Exception: the white domestic pigeon. You know, the Jesus kind.

• All pigeons strut and bob. It’s not scientifically known if all pigeons boogie.
• Pigeons are monogamous. There is no known dating app for pigeons.
• The mama pigeon lays two eggs at a time in a nest. This is just a plain cute fact. Please don’t try to make it cuter because you will fail.
• The mama and papa pigeon take turns incubating the eggs–Mama at night, Papa during the day. Equality!
• A young pigeon is called a squab or squeaker. You also shouldn’t try to come up with something cuter. Those are cute enough.
• All species of pigeons are edible. It’s up to you to decide if you want to go there.
• Pigeons poop on monuments. This is just known. Ask a toddler. But we needed another fact to fill up this column. That’s how designing on deadline works.

Sources (for the real stuff):
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, NYC Parks, Encyclopaedia of Animals: Birds (London: Merehurst Press).