# Mourning the loss of a pigeon family... Can anyone explain what happened?



## coxbox28 (Jul 14, 2015)

Hi,

For the last couple weeks, my wife and I had been excitedly following the development of a pigeon family on our window ledge. We live on the second floor of an apartment building in New York City.

~19 days ago, a pair of pigeons began building a nest, with the first egg laid ~17 days ago. Mama and Papa were taking turns sitting on the eggs and all appeared to be well, until this morning. I heard the sound of some shuffling and eggs rolling, and before I knew it, the eggs were no longer in the nest. This area is not accessible by humans, so I am quite sure that the pigeons rolled the eggs off the ledge by themselves. Also, starting yesterday, they had been gradually removing all of the twigs from the nest.

After many days of excitement at the potential of getting to see babies, we are so saddened, and cannot imagine the loss the parents must be feeling, especially because the eggs were due to be hatched any day now. (Pigeon eggs usually take ~18 days to hatch.) Looking out the window right now, I can see one of the birds perched at the site of the former nest, looking very forlorn.

An album of images documenting this: http://imgur.com/a/xfoam

We love pigeons, and we would really like to understand what happened here. We had occasionally taken a look at the pigeons through the window, sometimes for several minutes at a time, but we never bothered or touched them in any way. Sometimes, we would open an adjacent window so they would see some activity or hear noise from us. The nest was located right next to an air conditioning unit that would periodically be turned on. It didn't appear like any of these things bothered them at all.

I looked online and couldn't find very much about pigeons destroying their own nests or eggs. Can anyone explain the unusual behaviour of these pigeons? What would prompt this family to destroy their own nest and eggs, especially when it is so close to hatching time? Why would one of the birds remain at the site of the former nest?

Moving forward, we just want to make sure we provide a safe environment for any future pigeon families that might want to be our neighbours. Thank you very much for your help.


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

Hi, sad to know the incidence. Wanted to know are you very sure that these completed 17 days or not more than 18 days, coz it is less likely that pigeons abandon their eggs before that unless they fear of any predator attack and find the site unsafe.
after 18 days if not hatched they may abandon considering them as infertile. 
Regarding dismantling the nest, they must have started building other nest at some more comfortable place so they are shifting the twigs to that place because when they abandon previous eggs, they lay again in 10-12 days.
if i am missing something ,some other experienced member may enlighten us more on this behaviour.


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## coxbox28 (Jul 14, 2015)

It has definitely been less than 18 days, but not sure if it was exactly 17 days. It has been exactly 19 days since they started nesting, but I recall seeing the first egg 16-17 days ago. 

The area where the eggs fell is locked and inaccessible to me, but just by looking down at it from my window, I can see a bloody mess resembling an embryo coming out of one (if not both) of the eggs, but I'm not 100% sure.


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## kiddy (Feb 5, 2015)

Oh that's so sad if it is so. In 17 days it becomes a chick just ready to hatch. I would feel so sad to see such broken eggs with dead chicks. I can understand your situation. I highly doubt if some predator has done it like crows, not sure. It is not normal behavior of pigeons to push off the fertile eggs. There must be some reason. Let some other throw light on it. 
I am so sorry to hear about them.


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## CBL (May 13, 2014)

Well dont assume the parents abandoned the eggs, what could have happened is the commotion you heard could have been nest robbing attempt by predator and eggs got knocked out of the nest. The parents will not sit on eggs out of the nest, they wont be able to roll eggs back into nest and if you could have reached the eggs and placed them back, they would have hatched them. So if you could have opened window on that side or even take out air con and put eggs back in nest and replace air con, they may have hatched jsut fine. Im gonna bet they got disturbed by something and knocked out. Pity, and maybe babies trying too hatch as they are due but got gold and died half way out. What a shame.

Ok so I looked at the pics, too many sticks on the ground with the eggs, Im gonna say there was a scuffle of some sort and the entire nest and eggs got knokced off. In my coop every time I go in, the one hen will walk right over to another hens nest and steal her stick and would take her entire nest if I let her. I bet some other pair either saw the nest and wanted to either steal material or a predator came and there was a scuffle and then entire then went, that is why the mom is still there, they may rebuild and relay but clearly not a good spot. I would discourage it for the sake of fully develped babies and or hatchlings falling to their death again. Pity.


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