What I’ve learned from studying the wild pigeon

Wild rock doves such as these are endangered, following interbreeding with feral 'city pigeons'. Mike Pennington/Wikimedia , CC BY-NC-SA

Domestic pigeons have surprising cultural significance. They inspired Charles Darwin in his thinking about evolution, delivered wartime messages to save lives, and have symbolic meaning around the world.

The domestic pigeon is among the best understood animals on the planet, with research published weekly on various aspects of their biology. Yet we know very little about their wild ancestors.