Pigeon poo, II

The Marchenero is one of the oldest pouter breeds, and it is a breed that was developed in Spain in a period of time covering almost on thousand years.

In order to understand the beginnings or ancient history, a brief history lesson is in order. During the MiddleAges, while Europe was divided into hundreds of little feudal principalities, the tribes of the Middle East united under the Islamic religion, and under this unified group of rulers conquered all of the lands in Africa bordering the Mediterranean Ocean. Spain, like the rest of Europe, was divided into numerous feudal kingdoms and was closest to these conquerors, and naturally they invaded that country. They were able to get a foothold in the southern part of Spain that lasted for the better part of 700 years.

These Moors brought their animals with them, and included in that group of animals were pigeons. These were primarily flying pigeons, and there was one in that group that was known for having a tile shaped tail, hence its name, Colitejo. The Calitejo was the ancestor of the Marchenero.

The name Marchenero came along hundreds of years after the Moors were driven out of Spain. How the breed developed and how the crop inflation characteristic came about is unknown. It undoubtedly came about from crossing with other breeds. But then, one needs to examine how pigeons were bred. There weren’t any get togethers like shows or even standards. People lived in cities and villages and bred their birds as they liked. Naturally, pigeons with a certain look developed in certain locales, and our little Marchenero was developed in and around Seville.