Thanks for the kind words chaps More than happy to provide for the needs of any stray Homing pigeon, from time to time they do turn up & stay 2-3 days. First time one has stayed for such a long time. Anyway I digress. I am pleased to say that the little fella has left, I would imagine that he/she has left to return to its loft. The bird spent a fair bit of Monday ( 9th July ) stetching his wings & having a good fly around the valley. Tuesday morning ( 10th July ) he/she came down for a spot of breakfast quite early, spent the rest of the morning flying about in ever bigger circuits of the valley. Came back at lunchtime, ate a very hearty meal & spent the afternoon standing on our garage roof in the sunshine & had a very thorough preen. Early evening he/she took station on the end of our gutter, I assumed the bird was getting settled for the night as usual. At 8.30 pm he/she took off like a bat out of hell, I would say, definitely flying in the right direction of Southern Ireland The weather was set very fair, I have absolutely no idea if the bird would try to make an overnight crossing back the the loft. Perhaps he/she was heading for the coast & would roost over night then cross at first light ? I really hope the bird is now back in the comfort of his/hers loft. On a final note. I can now relate to how you must feel about birds of prey, Monday afternoon saw the local pair of Buzzards together with this years brood of 3 youngsters, they were on a hunting session over the valley. The wife & I were having kittens as the family of Buzzards were circling over the top of our house with the Homing pigeon in full view on the ridge of the roof. Most relieved when they returned back to the local woodlands. So there it is folks, I make this post to provide a wee insight into what your stray Pigeon might be up too. Would love to hear if the bird found its way home though.
