Pigeon in a Box: Columba livia as Subject in Behavioral Research

Fernandez and colleagues traced how often pigeons appeared in behavior-science journals.

They read every pigeon paper they could find from the 1960s through today.

The team simply counted: when were pigeons hot, and when did the numbers drop?

Pigeon studies peaked in the 1970-90 era, then slid downhill after 2000.

Labs still publish a few pigeon papers, but the wave has clearly passed.

Podlesnik et al. (2023) backs this up. Their big review of 200 resurgence studies shows most still used pigeons or rats, yet the flow of new pigeon work is slowing.

Older single-case papers tell the same story. Anonymous (1995), Campos et al. (2011), and Holt et al. (2019) all ran clever pigeon experiments, but each one is another brick from the past.

REESSCHUTZ et al. (1962) saw this coming. They pitched Coturnix quail as a cheap, easy bird back in the 60s. Fernandez echoes them: if you need a new basic preparation, look beyond the classic pigeon box.

If you design lab courses or pilot studies, take the hint. Pigeons are harder to source, house, and justify with IACUC today. Quail, rats, or even in-silico models can give you the same reinforcement schedules without the hassle. Pick the animal that answers your question, not the one history made famous.