News from The Vancouver Poultry & Fancy Pigeon Association Newsletter

Natural Selection

by David Williamson

Charles Darwin (1809-1882) was the Victorian naturalist responsible for the theory of evolution by natural selection, or the "survival of the fittest", which radically changed the way that science views the origins of different species.

The basis of evolution by natural selection is that from time to time living organisms mutate in a way that may effect their ability to survive. Some mutations have a detrimental effect, such as an odd colored animal that stands out in a group and draws the attention of a predator, but occasionally a mutation has a beneficial effect that improves the odds of survival for that individual and over time that mutation becomes the norm.

We tend to think of evolution as something that happened eons ago but in fact it is a continuing process, often occurring more quickly in times of change. An example from Darwin's time is a good illustration. During the time of the Industrial Revolution in Europe (early 1800's) there was a small light brown coloured moth that sometimes mutated for melanism (black), but the mutated moths did not survive because they made easy pickings for birds on the lighter coloured tree bark where they lived. However during this time there was a rapid expansion of industries and railways across Europe, all using coal fuelled steam power, which spread soot over wide areas around towns and railway embankments ( this was before the days of environmentalists!) darkening the bark of trees on which the moths lived. The now dark tree bark provided the black mutated moths with a survival advantage and within a decade black became the normal colour for that species of moth.

The methods used in the breeding of fancy pigeons is a classic example of natural selection. As we know all breeds of fancy pigeons are mutations of a common ancestor, the rock dove (columba livia). In theory if you pair two pigeons from different fancy breeds their offspring over multiple generations will revert to the rock dove type. I have not heard of anyone actually doing this but if you look at any flock of feral pigeons they always seem to be predominantly blue bars like the rock dove.

In pigeon breeding the evolutionary goal is the breed standard and the breeder, taking the part of nature, culls the birds that do not display the appropriate mutation and breeds the ones that do. The surviving birds either display or carry the appropriate mutations that conform to the standard and, if the breeder gets it right, produce similar offspring. Of course breeding pigeons is far more complex than say a single colour mutation, which is why many breeders study genetics to determine how specific mutations occur and interrelate. But the process of evolution by selection is the same as in nature although it happens a lot faster. Charles Darwin was a great pigeon fancier and recognized that the hobby could help him prove his theory of evolution. It is commonly thought that he wrote his book "The Origin of Species", which lays out his theory, after his five year voyage as resident naturalist on HMS Beagle as it sailed around South America to its famous stopover at the Galapagos Islands. In fact after the voyage he spent the next 20 years on his country estate in Kent, England developing practical methods of proving his theory, before writing the book. During this time Darwin not only used his pigeon breeding program for evolutionary experiments but spent many hours in London pubs swapping notes with pigeon fanciers on the development of fancy breeds.

It is an interesting footnote to our hobby that it was part of one of the most important scientific events of our time.