Wood pigeon or not?

[Cazzie]

As promised Naturelover, here's a piccy of the ferals that frequent my garden and mainly the roof!



They're a funny old bunch, and I'm getting quite attached to them tbh (especially the white one) lol!

[naturelover]

hi cazzie,i know these i have them as well flying round and round in a group,they belong to someone opposite me they are homing pigeons,the pigeons i get are bigger than them,more chunky if you know what i mean,the only way i can describe them is their heads look too small for their bodys,i recon they are wood pigeons,just well fed,next time i see one i will have a dam good look,then i will get back to you,another thing they are all the same colour same pattern so i recon they got to be woodies.

[John]

Hi Marliza

Your answer is slightly confusing as Ian & my images are different. Ian has posted an image of a Feral Pigeon whereas I have posted images of Stock Dove and also a young Wood Pigeon so between us there are three different species, Which one did yours look like?

John

Originally Posted by Marliza

The photos posted above by John and Ian are exactly the same as the birds I asked about originally, so they must be young wood pigeons.

I'm very grateful for your help, guys.

Marliza

[naturelover]

Originally Posted by Pigeon feather

How about an adult woodpigeon? there's no photo's of them yet! certainly bigger and plumper than than youngsters, I usually see them waddling around my garden http://www.blueskybirds.co.uk/photos/woodpigeon09.jpg
P.s this response was intended for naturelovers query as opposed to the initial one by Marliza

thats more like it but lighter in colour,that one is dark grey mine are paler with white feathers here and there,i still think there wood pigeons.

[wildone]

Here is a not very good image of a woodpigeon with a house sparrow beside it for size comparison

[naturelover]

well done wildone i knew we would get there in the end,your one has white on it thats just like the birds that visit my garden,i think they are beatifull birds so well built thanks.betty.

[Marliza]

Well, since I first posted my question about the wood pigeons in our garden, we're seeing more and more visiting and there seem to be fewer of the young ones without their white collars.

Can anyone tell me what is a normal lifespan for a wood pigeon, please, and how old are they when their white collars appear? Would any of the young we saw without collars in early October have developed them by now?

Marliza

[mrs fish]

They only live for three years, I'm not sure about the age of adult plumage but I would of thought most of them should have it by now

[Marliza]

Thanks for replying, Mrs Fish.

Because of the awful weather earlier this year, our local wood pigeons seemed to produce young a little later and we still have a few who don't yet have their white collars.

I hadn't realised they lived so long.

Marliza

[johnnewton1993]

if you live by farmland or woodland than there is possabillty you could get tree sparrows in your garden email me at johnnewton1993@googlemail.com and il tell u more info about them if you want