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Why Do We All Hate Pigeons? episode artwork

EPISODE · Oct 18, 2026 · 9 MIN

Why Do We All Hate Pigeons?

from Be Smart. · host Joe Hanson

Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/PBSDSDonate Check out Planet Earth II! https://youtu.be/c8aFcHFu8QM On BBC One in the UK this Sunday and coming to BBC America on 28th January 2017 Don’t be bird-brained. You should SUBSCRIBE! http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub ↓ More info and sources below ↓ Want to wear your love for science? We’ve got merch: http://dftba.com/besmart Find out when you can watch Planet Earth II: http://www.bbcamerica.com/shows/planet-earth http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02544td Special thanks to BBC Earth: https://www.youtube.com/user/BBCEarth Planet Earth II is a BBC Studios Natural History Unit Production, co-produced with BBC America, ZDF, Tencent and France Télévision Books from this episode: “Superdove” by Courtney Humphries: http://amzn.to/2h0sZly “Unseen City” by Nathanael Johnson http://amzn.to/2g3v1nM -References/Learn More- Robert Fulton’s illustrated “Book of Pigeons” - 1876 https://archive.org/details/illustratedbooko00robe Scarf, Damian, Harlene Hayne, and Michael Colombo. "Pigeons on par with primates in numerical competence." Science 334.6063 (2011): 1664-1664. Scarf, Damian, et al. "Orthographic processing in pigeons (Columba livia)." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 113.40 (2016): 11272-11276. Skinner, Burrhus F. "Pigeons in a pelican." American Psychologist 15.1 (1960): 28. Watanabe, Shigeru, Junko Sakamoto, and Masumi Wakita. "PIGEONS'DISCRIMINATION OF PAINTINGS BY MONET AND PICASSO." Journal of the experimental analysis of behavior 63.2 (1995): 165-174. ---------------- It’s Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D. Have an idea for an episode or an amazing science question you want answered? Leave a comment or check us out at the links below! Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart Twitter: http://twitter.com/okaytobesmart http://twitter.com/jtotheizzoe Tumblr: http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/jtotheizzoe Snapchat: YoDrJoe Produced by PBS Digital Studios Music via APM Stock images from SciencePhoto http://www.sciencephoto.com/ and Shutterstock http://www.shutterstock.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Oct 18, 2026

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Why Do We All Hate Pigeons?

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