Extraordinary Pigeons You Probably Didn't Know Exist (10 different pigeon species)

The Jacobin is a medium sized pigeon, not as robust as a racing pigeon, quite slender and tall. It is characterised by a distinctive muff or cowl of feathers which forms a rosette on both sides of the pigeon's head. This is made up of a mane at the back of the head, the hood over the top and a cravat of two lines of feather running down the front of the chest. From the mane to cravat across the line of the eye the hood measures 5-6 inches. It stands a couple of inches above the head. There is currently a trend towards breeding Jacobins with longer necks which then hold the hood off the shoulders. This is said to better display the hood. The breeder interviewed for our segment, Mr Darcy Cook, says there is a problem, however, in that the birds with the best feather quality also appeared to be those which were heavily shouldered. There is no feathering around the feet. Apart from the hood, the birds are slender and sleek. The Jacobin in Australia comes in black, white, red and yellow.