The degree of road following increased with repeated releases but not flight length. Birds often broke off from the highways when these veered away from home, but many continued their flight along the highway until a major junction, even when the detour added substantially to their journey. Experienced pigeons released from familiar sites during 3 years around Rome, Italy, were significantly attracted to highways and a railway track running toward home, in many cases without anything forcing them to follow such guide-rails. Results: Here, we present experimental and statistical evidence for this strategy from the analysis of 216 GPS-recorded pigeon tracks over distances up to 50 km. However, technical limitations in tracking pigeon routes have prevented proof. Background: Anecdotal observations and early airplane and helicopter tracking studies suggest that pigeons sometimes follow large roads and use landmarks as turning points during their homeward journey.
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