Wood pigeon (Columba polumbus)
Before we delve into any level of detail regarding Britain’s most preeminent pigeon, let us begin by asking a contentious question: should “wood” and “pigeon” be separate, as two words, or together, as one?
Let’s approach this with reason, and look for authority as guidance; and what better example should we discover than that of both RSPB and BTO. Yes, a quick search in Google yields the following answer, which, interestingly, is taken from Wikipedia, whose usage separates the two words.

But take a look at RSPB and BTO, both of which organisations use “Woodpigeon” as the standard term. This is very interesting, because in fact there’s a clear trend towards the use of “Wood pigeon” (separate), rather than “Woodpigeon” (together), which is in decline. Could this be the mighty power of Google influencing our language? Quite possibly, and I shall let you decide whether or not that is the case. But for now, we shall go with the general trend, and stick with “Wood pigeon”, separated. Preemptive apologies for this!

Increased trend in the use of “Wood pigeon” since 2008
As to your thoughts on this, we would love to know…
General characteristics
The Wood pigeons is, without a doubt, the most common type of pigeon to appear in gardens across the UK. It is a big and burley animal whose pleasant grey colour contrasts nicely with the striking white patch on its neck. In fact, white is quite a feature of this animal, particularly in flight when those white wing bars are exposed on a clear day. It is ever more memorable when combined with the loud beating of its wings, a sound which is ever more present in forest areas, where the bird is traditionally shy; you might hear the sound of its wings flapping, and the occasional rustle of leaves up high, but you might not see the bird directly.

What is most familiar with the pigeon, though, is its cooing sound, which is somewhat distinct from other birds in the garden. In fact, there are just five notes in total, and they go like this: “ru-hoo ru ru-hoo.” Try counting the sounds next time you hear a Wood pigeon in your garden.
The other interesting feature about Wood pigeons is their size. They often come across as slightly overweight, and one consequence of their size is the manner in which they walk. It isn’t straight, but a waddle, which gives the impression that they possess over-sized bottoms. This isn’t the case, of course, and it is a fact that the total weight of all the feathers combined is greater in weight than the entire skeleton.
Taxonomy
The Wood pigeon has taken on various different names over the centuries with, of course, regard to differing regional nomenclature. For instance, in the southeast England, it is commonly known as a “Culver”, elsewhere it can be called Woody, Cushy-do and/or Quist.
The current Latinate name, Columba polumbus, which sort of rolls off the tongue, can be broken down as follows: Columba is the Latin for “pigeon or dove”; and polumbus is the ancient Greek for “a diver”, which is, in turn, derived from kolumbao meaning “to dive, swim, or plunge”.
So, a “swimming dove”, which is in a way quite accurate, as the Wood pigeon does take on a type of swimming movement as it beats its wings through the air.
κόλυμβος
Ancient Greek for Columba, which means “a diver”
Wood pigeon diet
Wood pigeons are, perhaps, the least fussy eaters of all common garden birds. They will pretty much eat anything put out on the table, but there are one or two types of food Wood pigeons favour. Put out seeds and grain, and they will swoop down in excitement, even to the detriment of other garden birds. Their sheer size allows them to push away smaller birds with ease so, pay attention, as you might find your Wood pigeons dominating the feeding table.
They also drink a lot of water because of their relatively dry diets; however, take note that Wood pigeons only drink from open places, like bird baths. They, unlike other garden birds, whose habit it is to scoop up water and fling back their heads to allow water to “drop down”, suck up the water using their beak as a straw. It is quite a unique phenomenon.
Wood pigeon nesting
Wood pigeons prefer the privacy of wooded areas for nesting and producing young. Never do female Wood pigeons lay more than two eggs per clutch, although should those eggs be destroyed, eaten or stolen, further clutches will be produced within a season, allowing successive generations to continue the family line.
The nest itself is built by both mother and father, and is a co-ordinated mass of twigs located in either a tree or high up on a building. The eggs are incredibly smooth, glossy white and have a width and length of 30mm x 41mm.

Wood pigeon eggs in a nest
They are surprisingly interesting, and quite funny,
especially if you have a regular pair in the garden.
Good to watch!
Wood pidgeons do seem to be rather careless nest builders. They often make what is little more than a platform of twigs in the tree in our garden- when a strong wind blows all too often this comes down. One year they did manage to hatch and raise 2 youngsters and we had the pleasure of watching them first on the nest and then gradually venture on to branches until they finally flew. Most years however their efforts are fruitless.
I am a bit disappointed by RSBP reply to questions about wood pigeons letting people know it is legal to shoot them but not offering deterrent which l think is sad and in this day and age when so many animals and wild life are struggling to survey, even gave details put that rice if eaten enough could kill them. Leave them alone l know they seem a bit greedy but only making the most of it when they find something decent to eat
this wood pigeon joined us a bird hide to see what we were watching
It is Columba palumbus. The text has cAlumba, three times. The Greek is correct
Hi Sam,
Yep, you’re absolutely right. This has now been changed.
GardenBird
Excellent summaries of all we need to know about these lovely birds!
Damn greedy birds that mess everywhere. Not good to have in your garden!
We totally agree with you ! They are the most unwelcome birds in our garden second to starlings !!
They are greedy, bossy and filthy. They also take over our bird bath just to sit in it so other birds cannot get near.
Their ‘ bill & cooing ‘ is so monotonous in the early hours of the morning.I hate them !!
I’m forever shooing them off because they greedily snatch up all the food so there’s nothing for other birds.
I scare them off …briefly with a party popper, to give other birds a chance but they craftily wait to come back into the garden.
I’ve now decided not to feed or leave water for birds at all. A shame because I love wild birds. I have alovely photo of a Jackdaw,sitting on my shoulder, eating out of my packet of crisps,That’s when we didn’t have these awful Wood pigeons around.
Our woody’s mainly eat clover. We don’t ground feed, except in places they can’t reach, therefore they cause no problems. I’m afraid our problem is parakeets and occasionally, dare I say – jackdaws.
Feeding salty snacks will soon kill a bird. Their liver cannot metabolise all that salt & chemicals as ours
Couldn’t agree more, Louise. It doesn’t take a lot of ingenuity to find ways of feeding the smaller garden birds in a way that doesn’t allow the wood pigeons to eat it all.
Just witnessed a Wood pigeon carrying an egg in its beak then landing on a nearby rooftop. Unfortunately it dropped the egg. Is this common behaviour for wood pigeons?
Yes, nothing to worry about. The pigeon is a tidy parent. The egg has hatched and the parent takes the eggshell away. I imagine it’s so that the shell doesn’t just fall out of the nest and leave evidence on the ground to predators that there’s a nice juicy squab just above. I’ve noticed that there’s also no droppings on the ground under a nest, although there’s quite a few fallen sticks from the nest.
You seem nice.
Sound like most humans.
I have two gentle pigeons come in my garden they are certainly not greedy. They are fascinating to watch especially when having a bath wonderful birds.
We have a pair of wood pigeons nesting in a smallish tree in our town garden. They feed voraciously from our bird seed hangers, though they do not get in the way of a hoard of house sparrows and some blackbirds, tits and robins who still use the feeders. The pigeons have successfully (at least so far) raised two chicks who are now pretty much full size but don’t (yet?) have the whitre neck band.
We are overrun with pigeons. Used to have up to 5 jays at a time come for good but the pigeons are such ‘food Hoover’s” that we cannot put food on the ground as up to 20 of them swoop down and scare everything else away.
I have plenty of wood pigeons in my suburban garden, sadly they come in company with large numbers of feral pigeons who, between them, simply “take over”. They scoff everything in sight, (yes they love Ultiva Gold), and even tackle the hanging seed feeders, with much flapping of wings!.
I have cages over the ground feeding trays, so the pigeons (of both varieties) spend a lot of time “patrolling” around the cages looking for spillage, and even stretching their necks to try to reach the food inside. I love birds but the wood and feral pigeons try my patience . . .and my pocket!
I enjoyed reading about the Wood pigeon as I get two regular ones visit my garden waiting for food. Is there a difference between male and female birds? And I have another wood pigeon that comes with them without the distinctive neck marking – could this be a young one?
This is a picture of Jake. He lived to be 9 years old.We first saw him in our garden as a young one with no neck markings. He only had one eye. We were amazed that he could fly, land and fend for himself, given that he could only see to his left, Winters were hard for him but he was helped by our bird table. At first he got bullied but he learned to be assertive. We saw him billing and cooing so it seems likely that he has descendents.
Here is the photo.
I also had a one eyed Percy for around 4 years! He became so used to me moving slowly around him, so as not to frighten him that he would allow me to get quite close.
This is so heartwarming, Chris! Thank you for sharing and looking after Jake❤️
What a lovely story!
We’ve got wood pigeons in our garden and get confused between their early morning ‘cooing’ and our dog (a greyhound) crying to go out!
Woodpigeons are always in our small back garden. They sit underneath the bird feeder, which usually contains sunflower hearts, and feed on the bits dropped by the Tits and Greenfinches.
I have several pairs of pigeons in my garden, last year I HAD A NEST IN ONE OF MY APPLE trees, but didn’t see any babies. Love all birds. Thank you for the pictures you put on your website.
Our Urban green square has seen a considerable increase in the number of wood pigeons over the past 20 years, with now very few feral pigeon or collared doves. They haven’t learnt to use our feeders but are excellent for clearing up the mess beneath the feeders and also the food, which includes waste from our parakeet put on the lawn. Lovely birds, although the noise down our chimneys as they coo in the evenings can be disturbing.
The BTO and RSPB always worry about population numbers in gardens, and there has been a reduction of small birds, but I suspect the biomass remains similar.
I’ve stopped feeding except in hanging feeders as I am sick of the darn Woodpigeons taking everything. I can’t afford to feed these greedy lazy birds.
We have wood pigeons in our garden. They are quiet tame and wash in our small wildlife pond waterfall. They even stay when the two Yorkies are about.
They only eat seeds that have dropped on the grass and cause no problems with all the other types of birds which visit our tree feeders. Not even the Magpies.
I love to watch them plodding about (they are fat lol).
Another bird which has recently increased are the sparrows, which we’re dealing in numbers. I love all the wildlife the wildlife pond attract, and having built a raised pond for our fish, they are now left in peace.
The Sparrows are not dealing in numbers, they were declining. Predictive text lol.
We have a pair who are quite comical. Haven’t found that they bully other birds. In fact they patiently wait under the bird table to pick up the droppings. Very useful for keeping the floor tidy. They also enjoyed the company of two racing pigeons who stopped by fir a weeks rest recently. I love the way they virtually stick their whole head in the bird bath to drink. All birds have a right to be on this planet and should be enjoyed for what they are.
Woodpigeons should be recognised for what they have become.One of the biggest pests in rural areas by far.A drastic cull of these birds is long overdue.
Hi everyone
When it comes to feeding birds and preventing larger birds from eating all the food you may need to purchase good decent feeding cages with the feeder holder inside. This will prevent, to an extent larger birds taking all the food.
In addition birds like to be fed in many different ways, feeder, table and ground. When placing feeders out you need to be aware of small and larger birds feeding habits.
We should not stop feeding or putting water out for birds as this will not contribute to their survival. I get a great deal of pleasure and satisfaction knowing that I am contributing to nature.
When ground feeding place or scatter food in different areas of the garden but in places where the larger birds cannot find it, the littler birds will. Water bowls that have some height to them will prevent wood pigeons from using them.
Feeding birds can be exspensive but applying the above will prevent pigeons and birds alike from dominating the feeding area that you have.
Happy feeding
Pjab
If only it were so easy! The pigeons in my garden have learned to hang precariously from hanging feeders long enough to get a good fill (including small bird feeders with a cage round which is apparently just pigeon head sized) and they parade around the ground cages snatching food off sparrows, dunnocks etc when they hop out or if they drop anything close to the edge. I do admire their cleverness but get very cross with the fact that I get less and less small birds and more and more pigeons.
I had a major problem with woodpigeons hoover up the softbill food I put out for the robins,dunnocks etc, that is until now cover the mealworms, which I put in a shallow dish, with an upturned metal hanging basket. Problem solved.
Personally I think they are beautiful birds and a delight to watch.
They are not the top bird in my garden as I have a blackbird and a starling that both stand up to them and shoo them off.
Great birds with lots of character…..still get lots of other birds too.
Absolutely, they are so loving kind natured and intelligent. If only humans were so nice it would be a lovely world.
Frequent visitors to our Brighton back garden, and not aggressive to smaller birds as they prefer ground feeding, or drinking at the pool edge, and cannot attempt the hanging feeders. I would like to know why one often keeps moving between trees to avoid another 1 or 2 trying to join it: are they rival suiters?
I have a number of pigeons in my garden. They ca n be a bit “bossy” but have rivals with the magpies. They do clean up under the feeders along with the badgers.I have not had any problems with them on the feeders(not like the jackdaws} or the suet feeders..
We have had lots of laughs over our woodpigeons. A few years back, an amorous male led his mate into our small bedroom, obviously thinking it would be a lovely nesting place. They both flew in, and I had to catch them and free them. They were very tame, and tried again, so had to keep window closed. Saw them, always together, very frequently, so named them Jeremy and Jessica. They are very respectful of each other, and very close, always preening and kissing each other.
We had a feeding station once, in metal with branches coming off to hang seeds, peanuts etc., At first the woodpigeons were so big, when one perched to feed the seed hanger would unbalance, so the woodpigeon had to get off. After a week I noticed that they came in twos and both would perch either end to balance the feeder out, and they could get the feed.
Yes they do tend to sit in the bird bath and stay there forever making me have to clean and change the water, and yes they are greedy eaters, however I do like them because they are very loyal to each other, and I quite like there soft coos.
I agree, they are lovely to watch before sunset. There is usually a couple on every other fence and rooftop enjoying a romantic kiss. I don’t mind them sitting in our bird baths looking a little clumsy, happy to clean up after. And rather they hoover up under the feeder than let rats clean up.
We have lots of wood pigeons visit our garden (amongst other birds), I’ve counted at least 20 in the trees. We feed them on an old bench and it’s funny watching them bullying each other for the food, puffing their chests out and lurching their beaks towards rivals. They’re used to the time of day the food is put out (we have cats) and gather in the trees to wait. We also have a raised bird bath that they tend to sit in and pooh in! The crows dunk dog food in the bird bath also!
I have a pair of woodpigeons nesting in my tree right next to my lounge window. I have a birdtable and a birdbath which is probably why they chose my tree. I can’t stop watching them and feel honoured to be allowed to see them
I feel the same as you Julia ,we have two in our tree and are such fun to watch
We moved in to our new suburban home 22 years ago with very little wildlife to be seen. Over the years and with considerate planting; putting out feeders; bird baths etc, this year I have counted 16 different species of birds in our garden – and yes, this includes the lovely wood pigeon. Every bird has a right to be on our wonderful planet and they are certainly welcome in our garden.
I’m saddened by some of the negative comments on here, Wood Pigeons are not pests and they do no harm. They are in fact beautiful and interesting birds and totally welcome in my garden. I have 3 or 4 who visit my bird table to eat the sunflower seeds and their presence doesn’t deter the other birds. I get goldfinches, tits, starlings collared doves, Dunnocks and blackbirds all feeding at the same time as the wood pigeons. It’s a delight to see them all together.
Lovely comment thank you for caring for our lovely Wood Pidgeons ❤️
Agreed… they’re misunderstood
Ours is a couch potato
Lol love it Jody
Love birds but have an aversion to pigeons and magpies of which we seem to have way too many. At any one time I can often count up to 6 pigeons in the garden and we no longer get the tits and chaffinches that we did before they grew in numbers. my ground feed is in cages and I have hanging feeders – so do what I can to discourage – HOWEVER – I have recently caught pigeons hanging precariously on my seed feeders eating their fill before they flop off and back to the ground – even the so called small bird hanging feeder seems accessible to the heads of these greedy birds – and they are the only birds that the local families of Magpies don’t scare – so between the 2 species I am looking for a solution!
Very interestng reading…..will change my bird feeding habits to see if that helps.
Have just told a pair of them that they’re too late for breakfast this morning…..the cats eaten it….they’ve flown off in a huff !!
I have a very small garden 27ft x 24ft I have a lot of bird feeders but this year have. Oticed a great change in the birds that are using them. Last year there were dozens of goldfinches this year just four early on but none now. One robin and no chaffinches any more. Lots of blue Titus and it seems a huge amount of sparrows which we never had before. What has arrived is an enormous amount of pigeons.some are unusual – practically all white and some nearly all black both very small BUT they make a lot of mess, they trample down smaller plants, and they push smaller birds out of the way, even though I have several feeders that they can’t feed from because of their weight. They just fly onto my roof if disturbed and return immediately. Are these pigeons frightening away all my other little birds?
We had a pair of pigeons nesting in our grapevine last year and successfully reared two chicks. This year we have had them back again in the summer, again raising two chicks. They nested again over a month ago, we now have only one baby and it has moved away from the nest on the pergola, won’t be long before it goes. I was sure there were two of them, today got the step ladder and a mirror to see inside the nest and found a dead decomposing chick. Can only assume that it wasn’t strong enough to cope with all the rain that we have had. Really sad. I love all wild birds and I love the fact that they feel secure to nest in our grapevine so close to the house, although I do worry about the babies in bad weather. I have been tempted to put up a brolly over their heads to protect them from the weather, but my hubby says that is going against nature. I will be happy when the chick flees the nest as that will stop me worrying about it in the bad weather. Bless it. Hope it can survive the winter. I don’t understand why anyone would’nt want any wild bird in their garden. All wildlife should be nurtured as they have to cope with all the elements and life is tough for them all.
I love wood pigeons but zebras are still my fav.
I wonder if anyone knows why the wood pidgeon seems to call so frequently and for so long? They seem to just carry on even when the breeding season appears to be over but they still seem to adhere tenesiously to the dawn chorus – they doesn’t seem to go quiet at all like the song birds. At the end of June they, except for some squabbling sparrows, it is the only bird call I can hear. Any specific reason why?
I was amazed this morning to see a Wood Pigeon chasing a small bird, either a sparrow, robin or blue tit, and then carry it off in its claws. Is this normal? I never thought of them as carnivorous birds.
I have a small suburban garden of which I gain great pleasure watching and feeding the birds. This year the wood pigeons built one of their rickety nests in the sycamore in the front garden, two chicks have hatched. Annoyingly yesterday I found an adult wood pigeon lying by the front door, he/she had been mauled by a cat. Upon inspection his injuries are mainly on his lower back, red raw from having feathers pulled out. He also cannot stand or perch. At the moment he is in the house. He is accepting water eagerly but not food. I’ve cleaned his wounds. He is comfortable so can only hope he will heal. I’ve since seen a parent on the nest so I hope if the injured one is one of the parents, one parent will be enough to raise the chicks. I read that both parents usually tend to the chicks. If anyone has advice I would be grateful. I have mended injured birds in the past but never a wood pigeon. Thanks.
How are you doing with the Woody Glenda please? Do you still have the bird?
I know we shouldn’t interfere with nature but this year our two resident pigeons were having a lot of trouble getting their twigs to stay in place in the laburnum tree outside our kitchen door. After a few weeks they were still trying so we gave them a bit of help by way of a small straw tray which we attached to some branches. They moved in straight away and their twigs finally stayed put. This morning we glimpsed a tiny, scruffy head of a chick. We’re like proud parents ourselves.
The pair didn’t use our tree last year but i tbink that’s because we’d trimmed it quite heavily and there was little cover. The year before they had a lovely chick which we enjoyed seeing grow up and fledge. So interesting. I love them znd they cause no trouble in the garden or to other birds.
That’s lovely, Christine – thanks for sharing!
Glenda, well done for saving this lovely woodie! I hope he was alright. Last week I found a young feral in the garden, he was soaking wet and couldn’t fly, got himself tangled in plants. Fortunately all he needed was to dry up and get warm. I let him off after a couple of hours and he was fine. I think I saw him in the garden a few times, probably with parents. I have a bit of a problem with pigeons. I would like to feed them and I would if only my garden was bigger and not so overlooked. I know the neighbours do not like the pigeons and complain about them (as they do about foxes and everything else, as long as they are full everything is fine…). The woodpigeons are not a problem, there are not nearly as many here as there are ferals. I used to feed them in the garden in winter but the group was growing quickly and they started dominating and scaring other birds away. I stopped feeding them when it got warmer but felt awful about it (I still feed the smaller birds). The pigeons disappeared for a while but now a few are back again (my fault really because when a single one started coming and looking me in the eye, as they do, I gave him some food and he quickly brought friends…). I try not to feed them on purpose because I don’t want the neighbours to start complaining about me feeding birds in general. At the same time I feel bad about it, they too get hungry. Oh what can I do…
Do wood pigeons mate for life? We used to have a pair but the new nieghbours cat ( named Pigeon) caught one I have to say she caused carnage beyond belief. Now we have one solitary visitor.
So trips on keeping unwanted moggies away very welcome.
Our Wood Pidgeons don’t seem to bother the other birds in our garden at all. Our neighbour hates them and also dislikes the frog in our little bucket pond.
Our neighbour says that Pidgeons are decimating smaller bird populations, which doesn’t seem true for our garden. It seems like the poor Wood Pidgeon might be a scape goat for problems that humanity is inflicting on wildlife.
I have woodpidgeons in my garden, with a nest beneath my guttering. Last year they produced quite a brood, aside from one poor fledgling that was decapitated mid flight by 2 magpies just after leaving the nest, (caught on my CCTV). However this year they have spent 2 weeks sitting on the nest and now abandoned it. It is empty as I examined it with my camera today. Thats 3 failed nestings one after the other. Any idea what is going on. They are well fed so I cant understand the empty nest issue.
I’ve a pair of nesting wood pigeons in my garden, the male is quite tame now and doesn’t mind me being nearby. I put a birdbath on our garage roof which he loves, and he won’t let any other bird near it, not even his mate! A fledgling from the pair appeared in my garden about 12 days ago. I was terrified a cat would get it (there are a lot roaming the area) but it is very quiet and hides under the bushy plants. Dad flies down to feed it several times a day, he’s very diligent, and doesn’t mind me watching the process. However I think Pigeon Jr may have a problem with its left wing, it doesn’t seem to stretch it out fully when feeding, unlike the right one. So I don’t know what will happen, whether the wing was damaged when the pigeon left the nest. I just hope it recovers! This is a picture of him/her peering out through the stone lattice.
About 2-3 weeks ago a wood pigeon couple built a nest in our neighbours tree, the side that reaches over to ours. They were sitting on the nest consistently for what only seemed to be a week. A few days ago I saw she wasn’t sitting on the nest. I saw them in the tree off and on but still not on the nest. I was careful not to bother them except to fill the bird bath. What could of happened? I’m so disappointed that they might have gone :-(
We have a lovely wood pigeon we call Eric. He’s lovely and quite tame and has his breakfast in our garden and his tea at about 4.30pm. Love him. What we don’t understand though is that he often leaves a pebble on his dinner plate when he’s finished. Can anyone tell us why this might be? Perhaps it’s a tip!
Yesterday evening I went into my kitchen to find a young wood pigeon perched on top of the window frame. It was pouring down with rain and getting dark. I approached it and it didn’t budge from its sitting position even when I reached up and put some biscuit crumbs beside it (I had no idea that they ate mainly grains and seeds).
Anyway, I checked before I went to bed and it was still there busy preening its feathers even when I was standing right beside it, in fact it just went to sleep while I was there.
Early this morning it was still there and I took this photograph of it. Eventually it flew off about 8.30 am which is just as well because one of the local crows that I have semi-tamed visits me 5 or six times a day for food and would probably kill and eat it given half a chance.
I have a bird table and 4 hanging feeders, we regularly get 4 wood pigeons. Unfortunately my neighbour has complained about all the birds. I read that they are agricultural pests but surely they are not as bad as ordinary pigeons?
I have a small bar attached to back off my garage. Un fortunately the door broke last week, so I took it off. We only really use it on a weekend.
All this week, a pair of Wood Pigeons have started frequenting my bar. Not for a wee dram of rum, but to build a nest on my shelf, among the memorabilia we’ve collected. Although I like birds, these two will have to be barred!
It is lovely to read all the accounts from kind caring woody lovers. I have ignored the angry hateful messages. My grandson found a woody who had fallen out of it’s nest and brought it to me. I think it is a he and he would be about 10 days old when I took him in. I had to hand feed him at first and he couldn’t fly. He is now flying all around my flat eating a variety of seeds and growing into a handsome bird. I intend to let him go when he is mature enough but like every mother will feel dreadfully sad and nervous for him. I have to clean up after him but it is well worth the inconvenience to have his company and watch him grow. They are bright intelligent adaptable lovely birds. Can anybody tell me at what age they start cooing? He will be about 7 to 8 weeks old now and still squeaking.
Like in a previous post I had a large bird bath in my garden but use to always have a few wood pigeons either stand guard on the edge of the bath or actually sitting in it as the they owned it. No other type of bird came while they were present.. unfortunately now I have decided to stop having the bird bath in my garden because I am sick of the wood pigeons.
We have a pair that have become trusting enough to allow hand feeding in the garden, they are fully wild, they dont use any of the hanging bird feeders so are not in competition with the smaller birds, they just eat peanuts from us when we sit out there.
Dear Jim The photos of you and the woodies are lovely. When I let mine go wish he could fine your garden.
Thankyou for caring and sharing.
Jean X
And another pic :-)
Lovely pics Jim. Thanks for sharing.
There’s a pair nesting in a yucca tree in our front garden. We have a pretty good view of them from the bedroom windows and have been able to take shots of the broods as they emerge and grow. The first two youngsters left in early May, the second at the end of June and hreeding pair now appear to be siting on a third clutch. They grow at an astonishing rate and the adults are wonderfully attentive. We watch with awe.
Hi I rescued a baby wood pigeon and put him in garden now mum and dad have come and now mum is feeding it. It is a wonderful experience I do hope he lives.
Some years ago I built a summerhouse on stilts / treehouse withpout a tree, call it what you will. It has three nestboxes which have had families of wrens in them, a blackbird nested on top of a dark of wood leaned up against it a could of years ago, and this year we’ve had two woodies move in, George and Mildred. They’ve successfully raised two chicks so far and are now working on the next pair. I use the under-tower area as an outdoor workshop. They nest just a few feet away from where i work and they don’t mind at all. I’m gradually adding ledges all over the tower to creat loads more places for different birds to nest. I’m also planning to build dozens of nest boxes out of some old oak flooring that we had to rip up and sell them for £5 each, donations to RSPB. I’ll probably give a lot away too but if i say they’re free no don’t some greedy sod will take the lot and sell them for personal profit, hence the £5 tag.
‘Dark’ of wood should read ‘balk’ of wood and ‘creat’ should read ‘create’. Damn predictive text. Duh!
And ‘no don’t’ should read ‘no doubt’. Either I have very fat fingers this morning or Grammarly is playing tricks on me.
After a failed attempt earlier in the year (cat got the baby who had been doing well) we put lots of brambles under and on the branches of our Acer close to the lounge window. The adult wood pigeons have raised a lovely young one who was stretching its wings for several days and early this morning had left the nest, we were sad not to see it go. Will it return at all? Will the parents stay with it to show it how to fend for itself.
I knew I would have to set my Woody free but wasn’t prepared for how sad I would feel and how much I would miss him. He has grown into a fine healthy bird with a lovely coo. I have told him to fly over to your garden Jim. Godspeed Woody I love you.
We have a large garden and loads of wood pigeons come into the feeders with all the other birds. They all get on in their own ways, everyone seems to have enough to eat with the blackbirds in particular liking their early morning fruit salad. It is a privilege to have so many wild birds in my garden and I would never deliberately not feed any of them. Over the years the wood pigeon has become my favourite with the collard doves and they have both successfully raised chicks every year
Has my comment been posted it? I don’t know if there is a pending time before admin approves the post. Please email me if I posted in wrong place as it was my first post about our rescued wood pigeon. Thank you.
We had a pair of woodies build a nest in our large pyracantha. They had 3 babies which we watched from laying to hatching then flying which was approximately 12 weeks. I was quite choked when they flew away, talk about empty nest syndrome! The next day my huge black Ragdoll cat was sitting nonchalantly in the nest. We have regular woodies visiting us to feed and I’d like to think it was the original pair.
We have pigeons in our garden and they nest in our cherry tree but every year the magpies come for the eggs. Is there anyway we could protect their nests? I wondered if they would nest in a dovecote?
I have been looking into what wood pigeons eat because the ones in my garden have been eating raw meat scraps.
I regularly put these trimmings out for the magpie but today the wood pigeons ate them. Is this usual? Everything
I’ve read says they don’t!
I have to admit to having a rather different view of wood pigeons than most of the people that posted here. Due to COVID I have been working from home for the past year and constantly hear some wood pigeons that perch on my and my neighbours roof on a residential street. They never shut up and frankly drive me mad. Once heard…never unheard. I am vegan and used to demonstrate in favour of animal rights but I would happily shoot these birds. They are a pest and doing my head in. Can anyone advise if they’ll ever shut up or should I look to move house!
WE DO NOT LIKE THE WOOD PIGEONS. THEY FRIGHTEN ALL THE LOVELY SMALLER BIRDS AWAY..MAKE A MESS IN THE BIRD BATH ALSO OVER THE CARS. OVER THE PATIO. ALL THE OTHER FLAT SURFACES THEY COME ACROSS. WOULD LIKE TO FIND A WAY, IN WHICH TO DETER THEM FROM VISITING OUR GARDENS.
Why are the pigeons eating the leaves of ny Lilac Tree?
Really disappointed with all the negative comments I love our pair they are comical and make lovely noises all year around they are lovely birds and seem to like humans and are trusting
I live in Finland and I suffer terribly much because they start to hunt, shoot wood pigeons in august here and over 250 000 birds are killed every year! Same happens everywhere.. in France, Spain, England.. wood pigeons born here move to South and many of them will be murdered! It should be stopped! The bird of peace and love.. so gentle, beautiful, emotional bird. I love wood pigeons. Two birds are my dear friends in my garden and i pray they will survive alone!
ps. And it is really tragic that wood pigeons trust people, are so friendly, so sweet! Emotional.. the pair always stays together, or the widow stays for ever alone. And people cheat them!
it is the most popular bird for hunters! Murdered! Also only for fun!
Simon Little, what kind of vegan are you? Making excuses for hating another species. That’s not vegan. These creatures were here before us AND they’ve not caused international wars or pandemics. They don’t bomb each other and are not obsessed with money and status. Yes, move. Move to a sterile area with no wildlife to annoy you. Honestly, I never met a vegan like you and I’ve been vegan for more than 30 years.
Wood pigeons have been trying to breed in my bay tree for years, but usually one of them knocks the eggs out of the nest with their clumsy movements. This year to my excitement two chicks appeared in the nest. The nest is in the branches just below my bedroom window so I have been able to watch them grow, watch their parents fly in to feed them (wildly) and worry whether they would survive, when they were alone they were still and covered in enormous flies! Today with a thud and a bump, they have flown the nest. Did you know that wood pigeons are one of the only birds to feed their young on crop milk, an oily secretion in their throats (along with the more exotic Flamingo and Emperor Penguin). And despite their clumsy shape, they can gain altitude faster than any other bird from standstill and then fly at over 60mph for a couple of days nonstop. They may look like Laurel and Hardy swinging a ladder around the garden with one foot in a bucket but it turns out they have enormous skills. This morning I watched one of the young wobble across the garden, its parent watching carefully from the neighbours rooftop. A Blue tit flew past and a Robin perched on the garden chair nearby. Young Wood pigeon tilted its tail looking all around. The parent flew down to give an encouraging feed. And then little Wood pigeon gathered itself and flew up to sit on the chair, where triumphant it turned its head around to stare at everything, everything new. And ruffling its feathers and gathering confidence, with a loud flap flew up towards the tree.
I found these comments about wood pigeons accidentally and so enjoyed reading most of them. (I didn’t like the cruel suggestions about shooting them.) I’m curious to know why they stop coming into my garden at a certain time of the year. They visit in Spring and early Summer but then they aren’t seen again. I put out food every day so there is always lots of seeds available. They just seem to totally disappear.
This is so CRAZY to hear a bird lover saying he/she hates some species of bird, a wood pigeon in this instance. It’s just beyond me. Absolutely sad.
I LOVE wood pigeons, and see them frequently at my feeding stations, I’ve never ever noticed them scaring other birds, actually they tend to be the shy and gentle ones.
Apart from two males fighting how do you tell make from female?
Wood pigeons come to bathe and drink in my pond, but not only that, they get right in the water and splash around, also swim around like a duck. Maybe that’s why the Greeks called them swimming doves.
How often do birds fall to lay eggs? We have a nest that has just been abandoned after 3 weeks sitting. An observant crow visited about 20 minutes after the birds left and found nothing of interest
i think that the person who said wood pigeons need to be culled has issues of their own to deal with!