Falcons and hawks playing with my racing pigeons. Please select 4K video quality.
Years ago I started filming birds of prey attacking my pigeons because I found it fascinating and also because I didn't like the myth pigeons fanciers kept saying, that the falcon never fails. I think I posted hundreds of falcon attacks failing. Then some fanciers changed their mind. I am being told that the birds of prey only play and they don't want to seriously attack. I am also told I hide the losses and promote the wrong idea that birds of prey never win. I always updated in the comments about losses and also posted some falcon winning videos. As of Jan 27, 2023, there are 9 pigeons taken and 80 still surviving. I also removed a few lazy, sick or wounded birds from this flock.
So, here are some new clips of "birds of play", playing with my pigeons. My years of selection and learning how to maximise survival are worthless, the experience of pigeons that had hundreds of falcon and hawk attacks are worthless, the birds of prey just play. I don't know why fanciers keep their pigeons locked in the lofts for the cold half of the year, the birds of prey just want to play... ;)
00:00 - Birds of Play
01:10 - Close-up footage of a mature falcon flying.
03:54 - Single pigeon ruining the entire flock strategy.
04:40 - Normally, a small flock of 100% fit pigeons wouldn't wait for a hawk after starting a sprint like this, but this flock is too big and there are some bad pigeons in it, so they decide to wait for the hawk in the end.
10:22 - "Safety in numbers" - when you separate from the flock, get ready for a serious sprint.
12:18 - My pigeons are very healthy, look, they drop a lot of down feathers, even in flight. :))
13:37 - I think this is the moment when the falcon took "Red Alert", she was the only one diving on the direction of the falcon, a mistake that many pigeons did when they were taken.
14:01 - Random rocket pigeon.
14:09 - Airplanes. After a very hard intense match with the falcon, after seeing it taking a pigeon and knowing they are safe after that, the entire flock of survivor pigeons dives down at the loft almost with no more wing beats, like airplanes.
15:26 - When the flock comes back home, the pigeons that survived individual chases with the falcon and got to hide in the loft get out again to join the flock.
Soundtrack:
https://youtube.com/@nextsound1236