The Archangel (, , ) is a
breed
A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...
of
fancy pigeon
Fancy pigeon refers to any breed of domestic pigeon, which is a domesticated form of the wild rock dove (''Columba livia''). They are bred by pigeon fanciers for various traits relating to size, shape, color, and behavior, and often exhibited at pi ...
, notable for the metallic sheen of its
feather
Feathers are epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates and an exa ...
s.
Archangels, along with other varieties of
domesticated pigeons, are all descendants from the
rock pigeon
The rock dove (''Columba livia''), also sometimes known as "rock pigeon" or "common pigeon", is a member of the bird family Columbidae (doves and pigeons). In common usage, it is often simply referred to as the "pigeon", although the rock dov ...
(''Columba livia''). It is kept as an ornamental or
fancy breed, valued for its unusual appearance. Archangels are small, weighing about 12 oz. They have unfeathered legs and dark orange eyes. They may or may not be crested. The body of the bird is bronze or gold with wings that are either black, white, or blue.
This breed is also known as the Gimpel, which is German for
Eurasian bullfinch
The Eurasian bullfinch, common bullfinch or bullfinch (''Pyrrhula pyrrhula'') is a small passerine bird in the finch family, Fringillidae. In Anglophone Europe it is known simply as the bullfinch (English regional, Shropshire: plum bird), as it ...
. The United States is the only country in which all color forms are referred to as "Archangels". In Great Britain, only the black and copper colored birds are called Archangels as the black and copper color type was created in Great Britain.
The Archangel is known as Gimpeltaube in Germany, where most color types were refined.
This is a very old breed; the most likely place origin is
Dalmatia
Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...
/
Illyria
In classical and late antiquity, Illyria (; , ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; , ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyrians.
The Ancient Gree ...
.
[Handbook for Breeding and Judging Archangels by Bill Tietze and Charly Nickels]
Breeder
A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed, to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist ...
s maintain consistency within the breed by following the
breed standard
In animal husbandry or animal fancy, a breed standard is a description of the characteristics of a hypothetical or ideal example of a breed. The description may include phenotype, physical or morphology (biology), morphological detail, genotype, g ...
.
Standard
*''Element Characteristics:''
**''Head:'' Lightly curved, longish and narrow with a fairly flat frontal. The crest develops from the back of the shoulders and runs up to the apex, and here developing into a sharp conical point upon the head. The feathers from both sides of the shoulders converge together into a ridge or niche which runs up the back of the neck to form the crest.
**''Eyes:'' Very vivid, the iris is dark orange in color and is surrounded by a very slightly developed cere which is light pink to flesh in coloration.
**''Beak:'' Long thin and straight, the upper beak being slightly curved at the tip. The color the beak is light horn which becomes darker close to the tip.
**''Neck:'' Fairly long and comparatively thin. The throat is well rounded out.
**''Breast:'' Moderately wide and slightly pronounced.
**''Back:'' Sloping down and blending well into the tail.
**''Wings:'' Moderately long, tightly closed and lying nicely upon the tail without crossing. The tips should not extend to the end of the tail.
**''Tail:'' Long and narrow, tightly closed, being slightly longer than the flights. The tail must not be carried too low as to touch the ground.
See also
*
List of pigeon breeds
This is an alphabetical list of pigeon breeds; these are exclusively breeds of the domestic pigeon (''Columba livia domestica''). Other Columbidae species (e.g., the Barbary dove, ''Streptopelia risoria'') have been domesticated and developed in ...
References
External links
Archangel Pigeon: Breed GuidePigeonpedia
{{Domesticated-pigeon-breed-stub