homing pigeon (plural homing pigeons)

1. A variety of domesticated rock pigeon (Columba livia) that has been selectively bred to be able to find its way home over extremely long distances.
   • 1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, chapter XV, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, OCLC 1227855 ↗:

     “Oh, Wooster,” he said, “I was talking to my mother a night or two ago. [...] She tells me you are interested in mice. [...] She says she found you trying to catch one in my bedroom! [...] She says you seemed to be making a very thorough search of my room. [...] I wonder if by any chance you happened to find an eighteenth-century cow-creamer? [...] It's gone.” [...] “No, I'd just wait a while, if I were you. I expect it'll turn out that the thing's somewhere you put it but didn't think you'd put it. I mean, you often put a thing somewhere and think you've put it somewhere else and then find you didn't put it somewhere else but somewhere. I don't know if you follow me?” “I don't.” “What I mean is, just stick around and you'll probably find the thing.” “You think it will return?” “I do.” “Like a homing pigeon?” “That's the idea.”

• carrier pigeon, homer, homer pigeon, messenger pigeon, racer, racing homer, racing pigeon

• pigeon
• pigeon band
• pigeon breeder
• pigeon breeding
• pigeon clock
• pigeon fancier
• pigeon fancy
• pigeon loft
• pigeon post
• pigeon race
• pigeon racing
• pigeon ring
• pigeon sport
• pigeon tower

• French: pigeon voyageur
• German: Brieftaube, Reisetaube, Reisebrieftaube, Posttaube
• Italian: piccione viaggiatore
• Portuguese: pombo-correio
• Russian: почто́вый го́лубь
• Spanish: paloma mensajera