Parking Lot Pigeons

The other week I went for a nature walk.  The woods I explored were eerily dead.  No birds, not even a raccoon sleeping in a tree or cavity anywhere (I'm pretty good at finding raccoons for some reason).  After an hour out, I chalked the walk up to just that...  a nice walk.  I had an errand to run, picking up something from a friends' place on the border of Mississauga.  I happened to pass a small shopping mall and noticed the hundred plus pigeons in the parking lot.  Ya so, what about pigeons in a parking lot?  Well there was some real stand out birds in this flock.  People say pigeons are boring birds because there can be so many around and as some say "they all look the same", but that isn't really so.  Check out these guys I saw...

Red pigeons aren't very common to see so when I do spot one, I always take a longer look.  There was one in this flock and I watched him for a while.  Visually stunning I must say.  I love that fine line around his face, going from grey to that iridescent of reddish/purple.  Wow!

His friend is quite unique looking too...

Then there was this one relaxing near the curb.  He could be Gulliver's cousin.

Here is Gulliver.  Do you agree?

There was quite a few whitish birds in this flock.  Similar looking from afar but not so as you got closer.

I often hear from people who spot the white ones, thinking that they are people's escaped pets.  I don't believe that is so.  Maybe somewhere in the lineage some fancy bird's genes got in the mix; but really, as I learn more about these birds, they all have genes crossed from fancy breeds over generations.  It's a bit much to explain but if you want to learn more, I highly recommend this book, A Pocket Guide to Pigeon Watching, as it is a fun yet very educational read.  You can order a copy for yourself right here.

This fellow really stood out from the flock.  Almost all white.  It's like when people see snowy owls, the all white adult males send most into an excited tizzy.  Mind you, with pigeons, an all white bird doesn't necessarily mean an adult male.

I think I found his twin a couple hundred feet away.  He was roaming the ice mound in the corner of the lot.  Maybe finding salt bits in the ice?  The early days of spring can be so gross as snow mounds melt and all the debris that got plowed with the snow begins to show.  It's sad that masks are the new cigarette butt across the landscape; and both are in this photo.

Please note that is not poop on his chest, but it's the slight bit of colouring this bird has in it's feathers.

I joked to someone that these were rare Arctic pigeons.  They took me a little too seriously so I had to spoil the joke and admit that they were just common pigeons, although more uniquely coloured than the typical blues and greys most see.

The beauty of nature is all around us.  It really is there if you allow yourself to see it, even in a mall parking lot.  

I will revisit this flock another day for another look and perhaps take some pictures of the others (I thought I took more photos than what I have here in the folder).