giant_crab Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 Hello all , being quite close to town there is often a few feral pigeons around the fields i shoot. have refrained from shooting them strictly due to the fact they look so similar to a rock or even stock dove to me unless they are pretty dam close. A big fat woody sticks out like a sore thumb thankfully are there any obvious features i can pick up on while the bird is in flight or should i just leave them be ( better safe than sorry) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenholland Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 not worth the price of a shell I don't bother unless asked to pop them of by the farmer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenboy Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 They are generally bigger than a stock dove and come in a multitude of colours so can normally be told apart from a stock dove , Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 not worth the price of a shell I don't bother unless asked to pop them of by the farmer. A very valid point They are generally bigger than a stock dove and come in a multitude of colours so can normally be told apart from a stock dove , Shoot one of each and then you can compare them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giant_crab Posted January 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 A very valid point Shoot one of each and then you can compare them! I like your way of thinking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giant_crab Posted January 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 They are generally bigger than a stock dove and come in a multitude of colours so can normally be told apart from a stock dove thanks, am sure the white and brown ones are feral would they ever flock together (mix feral and stock dove) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
srspower Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 I would say they look very different to a stock dove! My only worry is accidentally knocking down a racing pigeon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenboy Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 thanks, am sure the white and brown ones are feral would they ever flock together (mix feral and stock dove) Yes you could get a stock dove come in with ferals, just the same as they can mix in with woodpigeon. I would say they look very different to a stock dove! My only worry is accidentally knocking down a racing pigeon. Racing pigeons generally fly low and fast , they do not stop to feed or drop into decoys , If you shoot one that has a ring on it that has come into the decoys its a racer gone feral and the owner will not give a hoot about it getting shot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rogcal Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 (edited) If you shoot one that has a ring on it that has come into the decoys its a racer gone feral and the owner will not give a hoot about it getting shot. Racing pigeons do get exhausted on long flights and are known to stop en-route for a few hours rest. They are usually on their own and make no attempt to fly off as their feral cousins do and over the years I have been able to trap quite a few and inform their owners, who are generally very grateful and make arrangements to pick them up. When I think back to when I flew racing pigeons I was always pleased to get a call to say someone had found one (sometimes dead), as some of the younger ones often got tired on their first long flights and despite stopping off for a bit of a rest went on to be very good racing birds. The Royal Racing Pigeon Association have an online stray pigeon reporting facility which puts finders and owners in touch with each other relatively quickly: http://www.rpra.org/stray-reporting/ Edited January 12, 2015 by rogcal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDog Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 You must not see my post as harsh, but you must be able to distinguish between the two before you go out shooting. PW members have posted pictures of their bags in the past, some of which have included species not on the quarry list. Do not make that mistake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenboy Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 You must not see my post as harsh, but you must be able to distinguish between the two before you go out shooting. PW members have posted pictures of their bags in the past, some of which have included species not on the quarry list. Do not make that mistake. To be fair to him , he has said that he refrains from shooting ferals as he is not sure of the difference , better to do that than shoot something he is not sure of and post a picture on here as other have , I would say don't shoot if your not sure is a sensible approach . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lakeside1000 Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 I hate ferals, when Im bored I waste cartridges on them, when Im busy with woodies they are distracting, especially when moving with flocks of woodies, they often drop into the pattern then just stand there looking stupid, even when you jump up and down waving your arms around they often don't go far, If you shoot them what do you do with them, no one wants them, its just more weight to carry when clearing up, best thing is just to ignore them, if there are a few about they might even bring in woodies looking for safe feeding ground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giant_crab Posted January 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 You must not see my post as harsh, but you must be able to distinguish between the two before you go out shooting. PW members have posted pictures of their bags in the past, some of which have included species not on the quarry list. Do not make that mistake. Not harsh at all. My main concern is not that the flock is all stock doves in fact it seems all feral , the concern lies in whether or not a stock dove will flock with ferals (which Fenboy answered for me) and was after any traits to look for when they fly. (e.g 20 pigeons and one stock dove in the air). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDog Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 Today I watched a group of twenty stock doves and one wood pigeon. It was easy to tell them apart. Ferals just have a different flight from stock doves and wood pigeons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giant_crab Posted January 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 Today I watched a group of twenty stock doves and one wood pigeon. It was easy to tell them apart. Ferals just have a different flight from stock doves and wood pigeons. Ok thanks for the heads up will keep that in mind. Am really only after the wood pigeons myself but am sure the farmer would prefer them all gone. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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