Colourful Crested Pigeon
Crested pigeon
This evening I was sorting through some bird photos taken some months ago – earlier this year in fact. I’m not sure if I posted these photos at the time but that doesn’t matter.
I was once again bedazzled by the subtle colours on the wings of these Crested Pigeons. I’ve seen these colours glinting in the sunlight many times, and each time it catches my breath.
On one memorable occasion decades ago I was in my mother in law’s garden and I was able to steadily walk up to one of these pigeons until I was no more than 2 metres away. On this occasion the wing facing me was in bright sunlight and shone beautifully in many colours.
At first glance this species appears a dull grey all over. It is only when up close, and in the right light conditions, that its true beauty shines.
Crested pigeon
I love the sound that crested pigeons make taking off in flight. It is something to do with the structure of their wings and a modified primary feather. It is a kind of whistling, rattling. Different people describe this sound in different ways.
Peter Skrzynecki, The Sparrow Garden. ‘When Peter returns to the stagnant sewage works at Parkes, “crested pigeons make a wooden clapping sound with their wings”.’
I worked with my grandfather and uncles in their engineering shop when I was a teenager. Crested pigeons remind me of the sound of moving metal part, like old rusty louvre frames.
Thanks for your reminiscing Ken. It’s interesting how sounds (and sights and smells) can trigger off memories like this.
This raises a question: are writers more sensitive do these triggers than the general community, or is it widespread throughout the general population? Mmmmm…