An improved method of housing pigeons.
Swap wire cages for solid-tray housing to cut dust and keep pigeon labs clean.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Hirota (1971) built a new pigeon cage.
The old wire floor let dust, feathers, and seed fall through.
The new box has a solid floor and a pull-out tray so waste stays inside.
What they found
The lab stayed cleaner.
Less dust reached the birds, the staff, and the equipment.
How this fits with other research
Tracey et al. (1974) saw that extra feeder light cut key-pecking.
Christophersen et al. (1972) found a lit key slowed learning.
Both papers needed clean air so stray dust would not block or reflect light.
T’s cage design gives that cleaner background, so the later results are easier to see and trust.
Why it matters
If you run pigeon labs, swap wire floors for solid trays.
You will breathe less dust, protect your electronics, and give the birds a clearer stage for autoshaping or discrimination work.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The problems associated with housing pigeons have received little attention considering the wide use the species has in behavioral research. Pigeons, unlike rats or monkeys, generate a considerable amount of dust from both feathers and excreta. Normal shedding of feathers and considerable moulting when room tem- peratures rise add to the problem. Under free feeding, pigeons tend to scatter less-preferred grains. When wire cages are used, dust, feathers, grain, and excreta are propelled about the room by the conditioned wing- flapping that develops during feeding periods.
Journal of the experimental analysis of behavior, 1971 · doi:10.1901/jeab.1971.16-407