A New Type of Connection: How Scientists Control the Movements of Pigeons

One of the interesting domesticated breeds of rock pigeons is the homing pigeon. The homing pigeon is the famous variety of pigeons often depicted in media for their keen ability to detect location and find their way home over record-breaking distances.

The mere mechanism behind such precise navigating abilities has been long debated. Some researchers contribute that the homing ability stems from the way the pigeons detect the Earth's magnetic field.

Today, the emerging advances in the field of Neuroscience continue to shift the line between science fiction and full-blown reality.

Correspondingly, the scientists in the eastern China, at the Robot Engineering Science Research Centre, have recently confirmed to have the ability to control the flight of pigeons.

The micro electrodes were successfully implanted in the avian brain allowing the scientists to command the navigation of up or down and left or right movements. The scientists sent the signals to the micro electrodes via a computer, which were in turn capable of stimulating various brain regions in the pigeons.

Su Xuecheng, the chief scientist at the engineering centre, was quoted saying that "It's the first such successful experiment on a pigeon in the world", according to Xinhua news.

The history of using pigeons as a means of transporting messages dates back to Genghis Khan, a founder of Mongol Empire, in the 1200's.

Having the ability to remotely control the movements of pigeons in the future could forever alter the relationship between a human and a pigeon.