The tippler is a breed of

domestic pigeon The domestic pigeon (''Columba livia domestica'' or ''Columba livia'' ''forma'' ''domestica'') is a pigeon subspecies that was derived from the rock dove (also called the rock pigeon). The rock pigeon is the world's oldest domesticated bird. ...

bred to participate in endurance competitions. Flying results of up to 22 hours (non-stop) have been reported.

Origins

The pigeon evolved from the

rock pigeon The rock dove, rock pigeon, or common pigeon ( also ; ''Columba livia'') is a member of the bird family Columbidae (doves and pigeons). In common usage, it is often simply referred to as the "pigeon". The domestic pigeon (''Columba livia dome ...

(''Columba livia'') that is endemic to the region between the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on th ...

and China. Some pigeon breeds are believed to have originated from the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

, although the origin of the tippler is uncertain. The predominant theory is that the tippler was a

cross breed A crossbreed is an organism with purebred parents of two different breeds, varieties, or populations. ''Crossbreeding'', sometimes called "designer crossbreeding", is the process of breeding such an organism, While crossbreeding is used to main ...

, between the

homing pigeon The homing pigeon, also called the mail pigeon or messenger pigeon, is a variety of domestic pigeons (''Columba livia domestica'') derived from the wild rock dove, selectively bred for its ability to find its way home over extremely long dis ...

(Indian Highflyers/Tumblers) and the

cumulet The Cumulet is a breed A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature ...

. This cross-breeding was thought to improve the bird's endurance and allow a larger flight range. It is proposed that selection for this long-term flying ability helped to eliminate its progenitor's tumbling flight behavior. The breed is believed to have originated in 1845, near the silk milling towns of

Congleton Congleton is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. The town is by the River Dane, south of Manchester and north of Stoke on Trent. At the 2011 Census, it had a population of 26,482. Topony ...

and

Macclesfield Macclesfield is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Bollin in the east of the county, on the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its e ...

East Cheshire Cheshire East is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The local authority is Cheshire East Council. Towns within the area include Crewe, Macclesfield, Congleton, Sandbach, Wilmslow, Handforth ...

, England. The breeder's aim was to perfect the "butterfly action" of the wings. The ease and grace of the wings enabled the tippler to attain its long flight duration. Levi, in ''The Pigeon'', cites a reference from Hepworth (1893) who interviewed W. Jolly of Mill Green, who claimed that he had been breeding tipplers for fifty-six years. That would take the origin back to at least 1837. Levi also commented that the breed was developed around the towns of Rainow and Macclesfield. It further mentions, "Macclesfield tipplers", as a strain or type of tippler and that they were named after the region in which they were developed.

Types

Tippler "types" were named after their breeders or their original location. Most of these types can stay aloft for over 19 hours. "Hughes" were bred by Gordon Hughes in

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gain ...

, with a flying record of 18:07 in 1976.
"Sam Billingham"
Arthur Newton, Joe Davies, and Jack Holland were also among England's top breeders. Other popular types includ

Shannon (also known as Irish Delight) and

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

(usually colored red and yellow).

Training

Tipplers are intelligent birds and can be trained to fly long hours and drop only when asked.

Competitions and flying rules

The

flies to race home, the Roller pigeon flies to roll, but the tippler just flies. Tippler fanciers can compete anywhere in the world without traveling. A "kit" of tipplers consists of three or more birds. Each tippler club has defined flying rules. Generally, the aim is for the whole kit to fly as long as possible. When one lands, or if the fancier gives the landing sign, the competition ends. Usually, the birds must be seen every hour by the referee to make sure that they are indeed flying. Most clubs base their flying rules on the "NTU flying rules". The two categories of competition are young birds and old birds. A young bird is one hatched during the current year that bears a seamless band issued for that year. Any other bird is regarded as an old bird, regardless of its actual age. The first old bird race is usually about the middle of April, with others at two week intervals. The most important competition occupies the so-called Long Day. The longest (weekend) day of the year. In Pakistan many fanciers and associations organize endurance competitions. In the

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capita ...

area, the All Pakistan Pigeons Lovers Association organizes two competitions one in September or October and one in May. Each fancier comes with a team of seven to eleven birds. In May, the competition starts at 4:50 am when the temperature gets up to 45 degrees. The total time scored by each team is calculated at the end and prizes are awarded. These competitions are not only a source of amusement but also an opportunity for social interaction.

International records

International Results 2007
, - , ''14:43'' , , Hrithik Halder , , Khulna, Bangladesh ,

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million pe ...

, , 2020 , -

Clubs

References

External links

* 36 stages for the Flying Tippler Novice, W. Matthews, N.T.U. Yearbook 1987. Retrieved December 27, 2005. * N.T.U. Yearbook 1990/1991. Retrieved November 5, 2006.
Tippler Pigeons: Breed Information & Facts - Pigeonpedia

"Flight Performance, Energetics and Water Turnover of Tippler Pigeons with a Harness and Dorsal Load"
JA Gessaman, GW Workman, MR Fuller, 1991.
The secrets of Tippler Pigeon Flying with 18 Invaluable Receipts
by J Stanway
Origins of the English Flying Tipplers
by Jack Prescott, February 2006. * {{cite book , last=Levi , first=Wendell , title= The Pigeon, year= 1977, publisher= Levi Publishing Co, Inc, location= Sumter, S.C., isbn=0-85390-013-2 * CURLEY, J. T. 1961
The time-flying tippler pigeon sport
Howell Book House, New York, NY.
International Tipplers

Articles by Jack Prescott

Tipplers.com

BBC: Tippler Pigeon fans' fury over falcon threat
Pigeon breeds Pigeon sport