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The sport is even rapidly growing in Iraq, and a pigeon recently sold for $93,000. While the number of British pigeon fanciers has fallen from 60,000 in 1990 to about 21,000 today, there are 100,000 fanciers in Beijing, and Taiwan alone has half a million fanciers. As of December 2020, the sale of New Kim for $1.9 million shattered the prior record. Despite reaching this record price, Armando is likely to never race again and instead be used for breeding.ĮDITOR'S NOTE: At time of production, Armando's $1.3 million pricetag was the record for most expensive racing pigeon sale. Animation: Īnd Armando's value rose to $1.3 million only because of a bidding war between two wealthy Chinese bidders. Its rising popularity in China and the huge surge in wealth there has led people to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in the birds, and the prize money for winning some of the races can be equally high.Ĭhinese bidders have spent millions of dollars on pigeons over the last few years, often buying them from Belgium. But in recent years, the sport has transformed. These days, you won't see many pigeons delivering messages, but the birds are still used in races across the world.Īfter the war, the sport became a pastime of the working class, and affordable to many. In 1907, Julius Neubronner, a German pharmacist who used the birds to deliver medicine, invented a miniature pigeon camera that the German military used briefly in the war for aerial reconnaissance. Their role in the war wasn't limited to delivering messages, though. Submarines, minesweepers, and tanks often carried pigeons on board to send urgent messages back to base. They even played big parts in the world wars - thousands of pigeons were used in the First World War alone. The birds can fly for 1,000 miles in one race and can reach 90 miles per hour over shorter distances. According to Pliny the Elder, "Many persons have quite a mania for pigeons - building towns for them on the top of their roofs, and taking a pleasure in relating the pedigree and noble origin of each." And in about 50 BC, a single pair of pigeons were sold for 400 denarii, almost twice the annual pay of a Roman foot soldier at the time.Īnd right up until the invention of the telegraph, in 1844, homing pigeons remained the fastest way to send messages across long distances.
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Messenger pigeons were used across ancient Egypt and Rome, and their high value isn't new. And there are over 800 breeds of pigeon, many bred specifically to be exhibited at shows.
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They are appreciated not only for their speed but for their looks, too. They have been kept for thousands of years and used for food, sending messages, and entertainment. Narrator: Pigeons are one of the oldest domesticated birds. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
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In Taiwan, an organized criminal ring was kidnapping valuable racing pigeons and holding them at ransom. In 2018, two men tried to win the prize money at a pigeon race by smuggling their birds on a bullet train.Messenger pigeons were used across ancient Egypt and Rome, and their high value isn't new.A pigeon sold for a record-breaking $1.9 million in China in November 2020, making it the most that a racing pigeon has ever been sold for.This months cover features Ken Malloch of the Broken Hill & Barrier Pigeon Club. Welcome to the Australian Racing Pigeon Journal Sale to be held on Saturday 11th December at 12 noon, at 41 Kialla Lakes Drive, Kialla. Includes pigeons from Mousa Haider, Nick Lakiotis, Mark Vella, Tony Sofra, Godfrey Stevens, Noel Barnes, Jeff Weaver, Luke Sibraa, Geoff Parker, Tony Maslowski, John van Beers, Gary Mountjoy and several South Australian pigeons. Greater Valleys Pigeon Federation Stock Bird Sale No part of this website may be reproduced without the express written permission of the Australian Racing Pigeon Journal