On all continents of the planet live these amazing birds - pigeons. They were engaged in their selection from ancient times and continue to this day, bringing all new breeds. These birds bring to their owners aesthetic pleasure, in addition, they adapt to almost any climate and can live a rather long life, up to 15 years.
Domesticated birds
The ancestors of modern breeds of domestic pigeons are considered gray and rocky. Since they live in a fairly wide range, it is very difficult to draw any conclusions about the first place of taming the pigeon by man.
Did you know? It is reliably known that, at least in the Egyptian civilization, they played such an important role that they were honored with images on frescoes dating back 5 thousand years ago. Not only the Egyptians depicted these birds, archaeologists find their drawings everywhere during excavations in European and Asian territories.
Modern pigeon breeding numbers about 800 species of these birds, there are also many lines that have a chance after some time to form the newest breeds. 
There are several specialized areas in golubevodstvo:
- wild;
- meat;
- flight;
- postage;
- decorative.
Only in the territories that were once united by the Soviet Union, not less than two hundred breeds were bred, at least one was bred in almost every region. At present, the fascination with pigeons is no longer of an indiscriminate nature, however, there are fans of their work who take real pleasure from such a hobby and are engaged in the selection of their pets.
Important! Each breed differs from others in a variety of parameters: in color and size, in morphological structure and pattern on feathers, in flight qualities, etc.
Golubevody united into clubs in the directions and breeds of pets bred by them. Those who breed sporting or postal flyers, train them and hold competitions afterwards. 
The work of those who breed decorative birds is similar to jewelry, because these connoisseurs of the aesthetic component can work with drawings, feather color and other signs.
Meat direction is engaged in farmers, not breeders. They grow fast-ripening and large pigeons in order to get dietary high-calorie meat.
Wild pigeons
Every day in almost every locality we meet pigeons, which seem to us exactly the same. This is not true, because wild pigeons, and it is they, are represented by several species.
Gray
Sisaris are painted in a dark-gray color, their wings are gray, of a light shade, they have two transverse stripes. They differ from other wild varieties, for example, clintukha, with white nadkhvostiem, from rocky - with dark color of tail. 
It is found throughout the world in cities and villages, in the mountains, in meadows, in steppes. They can lead both sedentary and nomadic lifestyles.
Discover wild and forest pigeons.
Rocky
The rocky color resembles a sizar, but has a lighter tail, and the beak is black. This bird is smaller than other species. It lives, as the name implies, in mountainous areas. 
It behaves in the same way as gray, but their voices are very different: the cooing of the rocky is shorter, thinner and more abrupt. Crosses both with blue and gray, and with domestic pigeons, from which hybrid progeny is obtained.
Did you know? Beautiful flyers, pigeons can climb up to a kilometer distance, and others - up to 3 km!
Klintuh
Feathers of a clintukh are painted in a bluish-gray color, on the neck is a green tint with a purple tinge, the craw is a shade of wine-red, and at the beak is brown-red near the base and turning yellow to the tip. On the wings, a transverse strip is drawn, which, however, may not be expressed at all. The color of the females is more matte.
Birds living in the northern regions are nomadic, southern birds prefer to live sedentary. The cooing of a male clintukh is similar to the constantly repeating exclamations of "ugu-hu", which he publishes, inflating the goiter, settling down near the place where the nest will subsequently be. 
It can mate with both domestic breeds and sizar. Deforestation adversely affects the number of clintuhovs.
Ringdove
The wood-goblin has a bluish-gray color, the beak is the same as that of a clintukh - red-yellow.
Find out where the wood pigeon lives and what it eats.The plumage on the back begins in a gray-gray color, which turns brown by the end. The neck at the back and on the sides has a metallic sheen with a green or purple tint.
At the bottom of the calf the gray color is much lighter, and the neck and folds of the wings have white spots. Of the wild pigeons, common pigeon is considered the largest. Northern Viyri migratory, in more fertile lands, they live sedentary. They love to live in coniferous and deciduous forests, parks.Important! Only this variety of all wild pigeons is capable of causing damage to agriculture, destroying cereal and pea crops, as well as causing damage to vegetable beds.
Crowned
Crowned pigeons are rather large, about the size of a hen, and extraordinarily beautiful due to the original plumage. Extravagant crest gave the name of this species.
Their color is also extraordinarily beautiful: the body is blue or blue from above, the chestnut-brown on the bottom, a beautiful white stripe on the wings, which is underlined by a blue-gray line. 
Live more often in the marshland. Caring for the lady, the male, in addition to performing a marriage dance, makes sounds that resemble drumming. With a female who has favored courtship, they start mutual cleaning of feathers.
Important! The number of these handsome men decreases steadily due to the fact that their habitats are being destroyed, and also poachers hunt them, or rather their plumage. Having no natural enemies, crowned pigeons behave trustingly, which aggravates the deplorable situation of the population.
Meat breeds
The pigeon meat breeding industry is popular in America and Western Europe. They are grown on farms and specialized factories. Residents of Eastern Europe, in general, are not interested in this delicacy, and, if necessary, use outbred pigeons for culinary purposes.
King
Kinga, American pigeons, quite prolific. For a month and a half, depending on the conditions of detention, the king can be grown to a mass of 630-800 g of live weight. The female is able to bring 14-18 fleshy well-fed chicks in a year. 
Depending on the conditions of detention, the weight of the king fluctuates: an aviary will give a less well-fed bird than a walking one. Despite the conditions in which the kingy were bred, his carcass contains 50% meat, 16% fat, 5% edible liver, and the rest is not consumed. Show copies of the breed king can reach a weight of 1.5 kg.
Did you know? Pigeons are able to sense the approach of thunderstorms and earthquakes, as they hear infrasound up to a frequency of 10 Hz.
Modena
The breed Modena is named after the city of the same name in Italy, where it originated. 
Currently there are two varieties of fashionable:
- English (shitti) - more often of a uniform color, on wings and head there are colored blotches;
- German (gazzi) - very decorative, with patterned feathers and white body.
Important! The color variety of colors distinguishes Modena from other varieties: it is believed that there are more than two hundred variants combining a variety of colors and patterns.
Carnot
Carnot - French aviary breed, one of the most precocious. You can grow a bird to a weight of 500 g, and this is not the limit. Young birds are tastier, their meat is softer. This meat breed occupies one of the leading places. 
Monden
Monden is also a “Frenchman”, a native of the city of Mont-de-Marsan, who gave it a name. It can be grown to a kilogram of weight. During the month, the bird is gaining 700 g.
Did you know? Pigeons are not stupid at all: they are able to recognize their own reflection in the mirror, which, due to some primates, dolphins and elephants, as well as their memory, is capable of storing up to 300 complex visual images. In addition, they have a unique vision and structure of the eye: he is unable to harm either the sunlight or other bright flashes that can burn the retina of a person’s eyes.The percentage of edible body parts in Monden is large enough and is 82% for males and 81% for females. Very valuable meat of Swiss and French birds weighing 600 and 550 g, respectively.
Roman
These "Italians" can grow to a kilogram of weight and more in some cases.
Important! They are not only eaten, but also with their participation new breeds are brought out, for example, the English dutish.The meat in the carcasses contains about 60%, but it has a high biological and nutritional value.
Birds move a little, but successfully withstand bird ailments. Per month reach 620-650 g weight.Learn more about roman pigeons.
Strasser
Strasser bred in the province of the same name, which gave the breed a name. The male Stasser can gain up to 1200 g, the female - 800 g. At a monthly age the bird weighs 700 g. In order to avoid shredding the offspring, it is recommended to contain representatives of this breed for no more than 5 years.
Depending on the conditions in which the bird was kept, the percentage of slaughter output varies: 58% with the captive variant and 62% with the free-range. 
Teksan
Texan - very prolific "Americans". In the year they are able to give from 12 to 24 chicks.
You will probably be interested to get acquainted with the species of the most popular meat pigeons.
They are quite large, can reach a kilogram mass, but more often it is 750 g with a lethal yield of 65%. 
Prahnensky kanik
Prahna canik is a Czech ancient breed. Its representatives can be observed in the Crimea, they are also called buzzards. The male of Prahnensky canica can weigh from 550 to 750 g, the female can weigh no more than 600 g. The breed is quite prolific and capable of producing a considerable number of well-fed chicks.
Flying breeds
Flight breeds of pigeons vary in style of flight:
- high flying: their way of taking off - in circles, the time spent in the air is 2-15 hours, they can reach a height at which they will not be visible from the ground;
- mountain: during takeoff, they practice sharp, rapid turns, reminiscent of somersaults, while making a circle;
- battle: not too high-altitude flyers, taking off, they tumble over their heads or tails, emiting characteristic sounds that look like battle with the help of wings;
- scooters: rotate spirally around its own axis during takeoff.
Nicholas
Bred in Nikolaev, pigeons have a rather characteristic, flight-looking lark, flight. They are medium in size, with a narrow head on a rather short neck. 
Representatives of the breed have long wings and a very muscular chest. Paws are not feathered, short. Nicholas dove to be painted in black, blue, white, yellow and red.
Familiarize yourself with the peculiarities of keeping Nikolaev pigeons at home.
This is a bird of high flight. Taking off, the Nikolaev pigeon does not tumble. This is the only flight breed that both takes off and lands vertically. Although trained individuals demonstrate other beautiful styles.
Short-billed turman
The short-billed turman was created in Berlin. This is a small bird with a small not long beak and a proud beautiful posture. The location of the wings - below the tail. Feathers of feathers grow on their paws. The bird's color is uniform blue or black or motley. They belong to the fighting birds, which were bred in the XIX century. 
German monk
The German monk does not fly high, but rises into the air at the sight of a strange bird, inviting his relatives to him. They are medium in size, with a rather prominent forehead.
We advise you to read about what diseases you can get from pigeons, how to find out the sex of a pigeon, how many pigeons are sitting on eggs, why pigeons nod their heads when they walk, and how long pigeons live on the outside and at home.
There are no feathers on the paws. The back of the head is provided with a peculiar decoration, in the form resembling a hood, for which it owes its name. The German monk is a battle pigeon. 
Long billed berlin
The Berlin dlinnooklyuv, in addition to the characteristic beak, has a narrow head.
Did you know? In English, the name of the breed sounds like Skycutters, which means "techersezy."His feathers are black, blue or yellow, sometimes the color can resemble soroch thanks to lighter wings. Refers to the militant flyers by type of flight.
Post pigeons
During the absence of modern means of communication, people widely used the ability of pigeons to orientate themselves and overcome long distances, which made it possible to conduct correspondence with them, although this method did not apply to operational ones. Now that the postal qualities of the birds are no longer in demand, they participate in pigeon races.
You will be interested to know how the pigeon post worked before.
The best postmen considered:
- quarries;
- badgetov;
- skanderunov.
Belgian
Postal Belgian pigeons are well-deserved fame. The shape of their bodies is rounded and streamlined, the head is also rounded, medium in size, as is the tail. The plumage is usually blue, the wings are bright. The eyes are dark, their fold and beak frame the characteristic folds. 
With their appearance, the Belgian postal ones resemble decorative relatives: long torso, neck, legs, but all these qualities, together with tight-fitting even feathers, make the bird an excellent flyer, and this ability is inborn.
Did you know? Some postal pigeons can reach speeds of up to 140 km / h, and they are considered to be among the fastest birds in the world.
English Quarry
The English career has the same distinguishing feature: there are characteristic growths at the beak and around the eyes. Due to their high decorative qualities, careers are like representatives of decorative groups, but they are intended to fly quickly and cover long distances. 
The bird is large, has a broad chest. The neck is long, legs too. English careers are often monotonously painted: white, red, black, blue. The flight of these birds is swift and straightforward, they have been used as postmen for several centuries.
Deutsch
This breed is the direct heirs of the postman from England and Holland. They, despite the long neck and legs, are quite compact. Their beak is small, the eyes, on the contrary, are large, the tail is short.
Did you know? The first mention of the use of a pigeon as a postman refers to 45 BC. Oe. when the birds communicated with besieged Modena.A distinctive feature of these athletes is the high altitude.
Czech
Czech postmen are not designed for long distances, they quickly and easily overcome short distances.
Read more about how to feed pigeons and pigeons, as well as what vitamins are better to give pigeons.
In addition, this bird is a frequent exhibitor. The neck of the "Czechs" is long, the tail is small, there are growths on the beak and near the eyes. 
Russian
If you aim to find a recognized standard of the sports pigeon, this is undoubtedly Russian postal. His legs are long, his beak is sharp, his head is small and graceful. The rounded ends of the feathers add elegance to the bird. They come in a variety of colors. 
Decorative species
Those who breed decorative birds, have the goal to get beautiful individuals with distinctive external features, for example, tail, outgrowths, plumage, wings.
Barb
Barbs - wart pigeons, the skin around their eyes and nose has the characteristic, characteristic of the breed, growths resembling warts.
Did you know? Even sedentary pigeons are able to find their own nest a thousand kilometers away, resting on the geomagnetic field, the sun, and smells.They have a pretty beak short, forehead bulging, bulging. They are always monotonous, black or white, red or brown.
Dutysh
Blowers have a very original and unusual look: a long body with a lagged body, long legs, an extremely swollen goiter, which gave the breed its name, the lower body as if it were tightened by a belt.
We recommend to read about the pigeons of the breed dutysh.
When the male breathers care for females, they tiptoe, that is, they step on the fingers alone, and besides, they do not bend at a 45-degree angle.
Their color can be very diverse:
- monophonic;
- lap;
- stork;
- speckled.
Bohemian Cosmonogue
Very elegant bird with an original color, which belongs to the colored pigeons. Breed bred in the Czech Republic. The body of the Bohemian cosmonogues is large and powerful, folded in proportion.
Important! Богемским космоногим присуща характерная шахматная расцветка крыльев, кроме того, у них на лапах перья, за что порода и получила своё название.Chess drawing happens in all birds belonging to a given breed, regardless of what color a particular individual has, although they are mostly white. On the head of the Bohemian Cosmonogues there is a colored cockade.
Curly
Curly pigeon is unusually dressed, for which he is popular with fans of decorative breeds. On his wings the feathers curl, creating an unusual effect.
It will be useful for you to read about how to build a pigeon house, as well as how to make nests, feeders and drinkers for pigeons.
At the same time, the bird has a small short and wide body, small, slightly feathered or kosmonogie legs, and all this creates an extraordinary impression. 
The representatives of the white variety may still have a crest on their head, adding to its owner the elegance of appearance. The color of these birds is spotted or solid.
Did you know? For its elegant appearance, the breed received a second name - the magic swallow.Breeding pigeons is a separate philosophy of life. This class requires not only extensive knowledge in many areas (zoology, ornithology, genetics, veterinary medicine, etc.), but also a certain temperament, as well as a love for feathered and research interest.
