Initial orientation of homing pigeons as affected by the surrounding landscape

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Abstract
Thousands of vanishing bearings of homing pigeons observed at 28 and 10 release sites, respectively, around two home lofts in southern Germany, Würzburg and Andechs, were analysed with respect to their spatial relationships to nearby villages and forests. Pigeons from Würzburg showed a statistical preference to fly over built-up areas rather than open fields and a less distinct preference for open rather than wooded country. The same kind of analytical method did not reveal such preferences in pigeons from Andechs. Thus, responses to the landscape appear to depend on conditions at the home site. It is concluded that trivial factors such as topographical features may, and often do, contribute to the appearance of the initial-orientation pattern observed at a given release site. Therefore, such patterns should not be interpreted as sole manifestations of less trivial orientation processes, e.g. home-related navigation.