lilTOKTANT FACTS TO KNOW 11 



can be removed from the pen until a new mate is se- 

 lected. In addition to the above, the record should in- 

 clude the number of squabs each pair of birds produce. 

 In this manner the unprofitable ones may be elimi- 

 nated. It is further an aid to prevent inbreeding. When 

 youngsters are banded while in the nest and their 

 numbers recorded, they can be distinguished from 

 others. This would be impossible after they have left 

 the nest without bands and after they have mingled 

 with others ; for many pigeons very closely resemble 

 each other in color and markings. 



Squabs cannot feed themselves. — Nature provides 

 the mother bird with a substance sometimes called 

 "pigeon-milk," produced in the crop and resembling 

 cottage cheese. This is injected into the mouth of the 

 squab during the first five or six days. Grain is grad- 

 ually added during the last day or two, after which the 

 youngster is put on a full grain diet. Until the squab 

 leaves the nest it is absolutely dependent on its parents 

 for all its food and drink. 



