Joe the Pigeon is a

tumbler pigeon Tumbler pigeons are varieties of domesticated pigeons descendant from the rock dove that have been selected for their ability to tumble or roll over backwards in flight. This ability has been known in domesticated breeds of pigeons for centuri ...

found in

Melbourne, Australia Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metropol ...

and named after the President of the United States, Joe Biden. According to initial reports, the pigeon was believed to have flown from Oregon to Melbourne in December 2020. The pigeon was identified based on a leg ring that matched that of a

racing pigeon Pigeon racing is the sport of releasing specially trained homing pigeons, which then return to their homes over a carefully measured distance. The time it takes the animal to cover the specified distance is measured and the bird's rate of trave ...

from Oregon that had disappeared two months earlier, though the ring was later found to be

counterfeit To counterfeit means to imitate something authentic, with the intent to steal, destroy, or replace the original, for use in illegal transactions, or otherwise to deceive individuals into believing that the fake is of equal or greater value tha ...

. The pigeon was scheduled to be euthanised as a biosecurity risk, but was released by the Australian government after being determined unlikely to be of foreign origin.

Discovery and confinement

The pigeon was first noticed by Kevin Celli-Bird, a resident of Melbourne,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, when he saw the pigeon, "very weak and in an emaciated state", in his backyard on December 26, 2020. While feeding Joe in an attempt to revitalise him, Celli-Bird noticed a ring on Joe's leg. Celli-Bird traced the tag to an owner in Alabama who had last seen the bird after it flew off from a race in Oregon. The pigeon was named 'Joe' by Celli-Bird after Joe Biden, due to the bird's alleged journey beginning in the United States. It was speculated that Joe had crossed the distance on a container ship, as flying the from Oregon to Melbourne would have beaten the previous record for the longest bird flight at . Celli-Bird was contacted by the Australian Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment after Joe the pigeon received press coverage in Australian media. The Department stated that the pigeon would have to be captured and euthanised as a disease risk, which led to outcry against the Australian government. Deputy Prime Minister of Australia Michael McCormack called the incident "bad luck", saying "If Joe has come in a way that has not met our strict biosecurity measures, then bad luck Joe, either fly home or face the consequences." Politicians Andy Meddick and Martin Foley called for Joe to be quarantined instead of euthanised, with Meddick calling for the federal government to "take Joe off death row".

Release

Deone Roberts of the

American Racing Pigeon Union The American Racing Pigeon Union (AU) is a national organization for pigeon racing hobbyists. The organization was founded November 9, 1910, in Washington, D.C.,{{cite book, last=Vriends, first=Matthew M., title=Barron's Pigeons, year=2005, publishe ...

stated on January 15, 2021, that the leg ring found on Joe was "counterfeit and not traceable". It was revealed that Joe is a Turkish tumbler, a breed bred for mid-air tricks rather than long-distance flight. After an investigation, the Department stated that "Joe the Pigeon is highly likely to be Australian and does not present a biosecurity risk", granting him a

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...

. Celli-Bird stated that he has bought birdseed for Joe to eat, saying "as long as he's happy to stay there I'll let him stay and if he chooses to fly off, he can do that too."

References

{{Reflist, 2 Individual domesticated pigeons Individual animals in Australia

Discovery and confinement

Release

See also

References